Tony Hsieh was the former CEO of Zappos, the major online shoe retailer that was purchased by Amazon in 2009. He was a tech visionary, who built up the business with one thing in mind: customer satisfaction. After graduating from Harvard with a degree in computer science, he started working with close friends on entrepreneurial endeavors. He created Link Exchange, a digital advertising network that he eventually sold to Microsoft. He created a startup incubator with investment from his own ventures capital fund, and he eventually created Zappos. Zappos came to define Hsieh's career as he became the CEO and Zappos exploded in popularity. Fast forward, 20 years, Hsieh was a multi milionaire, and just another victim of the coronavirus/ US Opioid epidemic.
Hsieh was always a big partier and avid alcohol drinker. He always worked to make others happy, but he could never find a way to become happy himself. After retiring from his position as CEO of Zappos, how moved to Las Vegas where he worked to turn a seedy part of town in to a hub for tech and art. He publish his own book " Delivering Happiness" while secretly suffering from issues of mental health and addiction. He started to take a dramatic turn south over the past year, especially as COVID - 19 put in social distancing restrictions and lockdowns. Tony struggled when he was alone, and the isolation was not good for his mental health. He started disconnecting with friends and family, and went on a starvation diet and veered into frequent drug use. Notably, he used nitrous oxide, which would deprive him of oxygen that he needed, and he became increasingly interested in fire.
In the early morning of the day after Thanksgiving, Tony Hsieh was staying at a co-workers house in Connecticut, where he died from a house fire. While several escaped the burning house, Tony supposedly locked himself in, either on purpose or by accident. He died 9 days later from smoke inhalation. As Forbes describes it, "In some ways, count him as another Covid-19 victim, except that instead of succumbing to the disease itself, the virus appears to have accelerated some wrenching internal battles and a series of terrible external decisions."
My questions for discussion are as follows:
Do you believe that money can by happiness? If so, in what way? If not, how do you believe one can achieve happiness?
How do you you think the Corona Virus lockdown has impacted people at home? Has it led to worsening mental health issues? What are your personal experiences?
**Before commenting, I encourage you to read the Forbes article on Tony Hsieh. They go into much more detail than I do, and will give you a better understanding of his story.**
7 comments:
It is sad to hear that someone who has contributed such a great deal to the modern state of the online environment has passed away. Whether or not it can be attributed to the lockdowns due to the novel coronavirus seems debatable, but overall, they are likely to have played some sort of role. Many that seek to find happiness through money will ultimately fail, for life becomes meaningless if you can do anything you want with no effort of your own. We define our lives based on the hardships we face, and wealth alone does not allow for one to be inherently happy. I am sure that the novel coronavirus played a role in the worsening of Hsieh's struggles given that due to the virus, social interactions have been limited, and humans are naturally social creatures. It is known that solitary confinement for prolonged periods of time can have devastating effects on individuals, and while lockdowns are not the same, there is still likely to be many similar issues that arise. The best we can do to get through these times is to stay safe and be proactive in preventing the spread of the virus such that we can minimize the number of cases and the chances of people passing away as a result of it.
While we may not be sure whether the fire was accidental or not, the long period of isolation this past year has gone to show the value of human interaction and the detrimental consequences of the lack of personal connections. Its upsetting to hear about what he was dealing with on the inside for many years while on the outside many were unaware. While money may be able to buy the house or car one may want, personal connections can't be bought yet many people's life goals don't include much about personal interaction.
I agree with Ian that the lockdown may have had an impact on his mental health along with that of many other people. An article by bbc (https://www.bbc.com/news/health-54616688) talks about the lingering effects of lockdown and the precautions we can take to avoid them. While I think that it is important to social distance and remain safe, we also need to check up on our loved ones and friends whether it be virtually or at a safe distance with masks.
Hsieh death was tragic. What was even more tragic was that people were taking advantage of his mental state to leach off him. People willing to allow a person to pay for them to be friends is not a friend in the first place. That goes to show how money does not buy happiness but rather troubles and distress. When you have more things than others you evoke jealously and cause people who don't have your best interest at heart to gather around you. In regards to the metal health aspect of corona virus Hsieh is not the only person who has suffered due to the lockdown. Their have been increased cases of domestic violence and metal health issues all around the globe. This goes to show how the impact of pandemics is more than just the deaths due to the virus. Cases like this show how we need to do better in order to prevent pandemics. We need better managment and systems to deal with pandemics. As we begin to see the end of the pandemic in reach we need to remeber to continue to social distance but we need to also not forgot the systems that allowed a global pandemic to happen in the 21rst century and campaign for reform rather than forgeting.
For a man who touched so many lives through his kindness and generosity, Tony Hsieh's death is very tragic. For a young entrepreneur who create such a successful business he definitely struggled with mental health issues prior to the lockdown, and his silent struggles were only exacerbated while in quarantine. It is definitely disheartening to see the possibly negative implications of such a wealthy lifestyle, and the true danger that can come from misuse. The pandemic lockdown has definitely worsened mental health, something very relatable for many students who are trying to keep up with the high demands of online schoolwork and find time to relax away from the screen.
In a time of so much stress and hurt, support- whether that be from friends, family or classmates- is necessary more than ever before. In Hsieh's case, it is extremely frightening to see the lack of guidance/support he received from his surrounding community. Whether that be due to his private struggles, without reaching out, or lack of concern, if his painful loss teaches anything, it is that we should reach out and make sure that everyone feels supported and comforted especially right now.
I think the era of the coronavirus is going to be marked in history as a period of deep unrest and mental unwellness. The Hill reported that four of the deadliest days in American history happened just last week, death tolls from the coronavirus surpassing events like Pearl Harbor and 9/11. Statistically, most Americans know someone who has contracted the disease or died from it. While we mourn those lost from infection, we grieve in isolation. The vast majority of California's students haven't been to school in person in almost a year. I think the effects of all of this on mental wellbeing are overwhelming and very serious, but that there's not an easy solution to it. Many people are blaming government officials like governors with states on lockdown for a rise in suicide rates or mental unwellness, but the reality is that if life were allowed to proceed as normal people would be dying from the virus instead of the effects of isolation.
Tony Hsieh is just one public example of how the current necessity of self-isolation could have deadly effects. Especially with the holiday season approaching, and many counties going into a second wave of lock-downs, mental health crises are not likely to get better any time soon.
It's so sad to see such a good person go down the way that Tony did. And I think that this isolationsist lifestyle that everyone has been forced into over the past few months is somewhat to blame. The reduced contact and distancing that everyone has experienced has certainly impacted everyone's mental health in a negative manner. The combination of mental health issues and addiction is one that must have made his life a living hell. While I truly don't know everything that went on in his life, to respond to your question I would say that he would be a prime example to show that money does not bring happiness. Sure, when you first get a big check it brings joy, but realistically after a long time in which you have had tons of money, it most likely will start to lose its importance. To me, I view money as just a safeguard against the dangers of financial failure/poverty.
I have definitely noticed a trend with worsening mental health issues over the course of quarantine, especially considering the lack of social contact and difficulty in connecting with people over quarantine being essentially recipes for mental illness and especially depression. (Especially considering I have been struggling with mental health issues myself as well.) It also goes hand in hand with what therapists and people in the tech industry have been campaigning about for decades about the correlation between electronic usage and depression in teenagers. Quarantine has forced pretty much everyone to rely almost exclusively on electronics and the Internet to an even higher degree than before due to social distancing, which was already attributed to causing insanely high rates of social anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder. This will definitely cause problems in the long run as we approach the one-year anniversary of the U.S.' entrance into quarantine, and let more and more kids establish an unhealthy reliance habit on the internet as time goes on.
Ultimately, Tony Hsieh's death is representative of an ongoing problem in 2020 surrounding the coronavirus and it's association with rising mental health issues.
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