Why Everyone Needs a Will, No Matter How Much or How Little You Have
Millionaire, tech entrepreneur, and philanthropist Tony Hseih of Zappos died without a will on November 27th 2020 at the age of 46. Tony was valued at almost $1 billion, most of which he acquired from being an early investor in Zappos. Which makes the fact that he died without a will even more shocking. It reminds us that everyone needs a will, no matter how much/little you have or how young/old you are.
How Tony Hseih Started an Ecommerce Giant
Zappos was founded by Nick Swinmurn in San Francisco in 1999 after Nick couldn’t find the right shoes at the mall. Nick decided to start an internet company where you could shop for shoes online. Tony came in around 1999 and invested in the company with the money he gained from selling Link Exchange to microsoft for nearly $300 million.Tony soon took over as CEO in 2000.
Zappos became a pioneer in ecommerce and became known for their world class customer service. While the company went through many rough patches throughout their history including running out of money several times and not making a profit until 2007, Tony consistently believed enough in the company that he kept Zappos afloat with his own money and he only paid himself a salary of $37,000 for several years. It was only until 2007 when his company started turning a profit.
Tony’s hard work paid off in 2009 when Zappos was sold to Amazon for $1.2 billion. Zappos had been approached by Jeff Bezos prior in 2005, but was rejected. At first Tony was reluctant to give up Zappos in fear that amazon would hurt the company culture he worked so hard to nurture. But after negotiations, the two companies came to an agreement that Zappos would continue to operate independently and keep their company culture.
Tony’s Tragic Death and Decline
Tony stepped down and retired as CEO of Zappos in August of 2020. In the following months after retirement, Tony moved to Park City Utah and purchased $50 million worth of real estate and homes. Many saw this out of character for a man that lived in a trailer while being CEO of a multi-million dollar company. There were also reports he declined into drug abuse and self destructive behavior such as experimenting with oxygen deprivation and seeing how long he could survive not eating.
This would continue until he passed away in a Connecticut house fire on November 27th under very strange circumstances. As expected the entire world was saddened to hear they had lost a man that had impacted so many people.
Here is a statement his family released after the tragedy.
“The Hsieh family is deeply grateful for the outpouring of love and respect shown in the wake of Tony’s passing. It is clear to the family that he had a profound impact on countless people all over the world. He was a forward thinker with a zeal for bringing joy to others, and bridged communities and people from all walks of life. He valued experiences and relationships over material wealth, and always choose kindness.
Tony was extremely accomplished in both his personal and professional lives, his parents are most proud of how he turned out as a human being. He had true compassion and an endless desire to elevate everyone around him. He would often refer to himself as the caboose, because everyone else came first.
The Hsieh family hopes to carry on Tony’s legacy by spreading the tenets he lived by – finding joy through meaningful life experience, inspiring and helping others, and most of all, delivering happiness.”
Why Everyone Needs a Will
Tony who was only 46 at the time, did not leave any sort of will or trust in his name. While death and other unexpected circumstances is something no 46 year old should be worrying about, it just shows how important it is to have a will in place. Tony is not alone as only around 44% of American adults have a will. But it just makes us stop and think when someone as rich and influential as Tony passes away unexpectedly and leaves a massive estate to deal with. Tony probably won’t be the last tragic case that this happens, but it could be a wakeup call for the rest of us to be more conscious about estate planning.
We often don’t want to think about what happens to someone after they pass away, but the hard truth is that without a will, loved ones face the difficult job of managing all their assets. In Tony’s case, a Nevada judge appointed Tony’s father and brother as executors in his estate. This means they are in charge of sorting out his wealth and gathering bank statements, safe deposit boxes, and other financial documents. The normal probate court process can last up to 18 months, in Tony’s situation it will probably last much longer.
Why You Should Avoid Intestacy
In an Intestate case like this, every state has their laws about how the estate is divided, but what the probate judge decides is often very different to how the person would choose to spread his wealth. This is why creating a will or trust is very important, it makes sure things are handled how you would want them to be. When it comes to intestacy, everything goes out the window, nothing is certain. Here is a graph at how intestacy usually breaks down.
It doesn’t matter how much or how little you have. Estate Planning is not about you it’s about your loved ones. You want to leave peace of mind for those you love, so they don’t have to worry about it. 10 million or 40 thousand, at the end of the day your loved ones would still appreciate what you leave behind.
Tony Hseih’s Legacy
Tony wrote a book in 2010 titled, Delivering Happiness. Not many people know what was going on in Tony’s life in the final months, but he was a man that dedicated a lot of his life to making employees and customers happy and that is how he will forever be remembered. A true tech innovator that gave a lot back to the communities he served. While he didn’t leave will behind he has left a lot for us that have improved the world in general. Thank You Tony.
