When did I #walkaway ? 1994. The owner of the company I worked for died. The family couldn't afford the 55% death tax and still keep the company, so they sold it to Huge Conglomeration. 1/3 of staff lost their jobs. Good paying jobs. The owner had spent the previous 20 years barely scraping by and taking HUGE risks to build the company and brand. The last 5-7 years the company was profitable, and in the last 2 years, very profitable. But the profits of the company weren't the only thing with value.