Is it better to get Employee Stock Option or Stock as an employee? What is your preference and why?

Working at a startup and being in charge of Employee Stock Options Programme before, I would say as the founder/co-founder, you would want your employees to take up as much stock as it is offered to them via the stock option. Otherwise, it goes to show they do not see value in being personally invested to growing the company.

I would be interested as to their reasons if they take up less than what is offered and particularly concerned if they take up none at all.

I think the answer also depends on whether the firm is a publicy traded firm or not. If it is, then I could make use of short term gains of the company to make a profit.

Stock options usually have a vesting period where there could be a long waiting time before I can actually exercise my options, and there is some risk to that since it is harder to predict what the performance of the company is in the long run. There is more certainty and autonomy to what I can do with my shares rather than vested options.