I'm kind-of amazed at how much this person was willing to spend at the drop of a hat. I see someone carelessly jumping on planes, spending thousands of dollars without blinking, and I start to wonder if the person may be bipolar and experiencing a manic episode.
It's an entirely reasonable question, and I'm sad that people are downvoting you. That somebody is a respected X doesn't mean they are in perfect health or couldn't use help.
There is a relationship between bipolar disorder and creativity; Jameson's Touched with Fire is a good exploration of that. Steve Blank of Lean Startup fame suggests that many founders come from dysfunctional families, because a chaotic home environment makes people comfortable operating in chaos later on:
Living in San Francisco and having just spent the weekend mentoring 100 would-be founders at Lean Startup Machine, it's my firm opinion that entrepreneurs are universally odd ducks. They are my people and I love them, but if they were particularly normal they would have found a lower-risk way of making a living. I think it's especially useful for entrepreneurial types to pay attention to mental health; some kinds of crazy are useful and to be honored, but some are just slowing you down.
>"I start to wonder if the person may be bipolar and experiencing a manic episode."
...I would think that depends on how many thousands of dollars you have in the bank. It would be nuts to do this if you had no money to your name and were struggling to make ends meet, sure. But if you're got a high disposable income, or you know you can make it up with work, why not?
I haven't had the pleasure of meeting Stevie, and I know nothing about his financial situation. I suspect neither do you. Regardless, you could easily cover the cost of a last-minute LHR-NYC flight with three, four days of contracting (I should know, I used to freelance iOS in London). Doesn't seem quite so crazy when you frame it like that.
What I probably wouldn't do is throw around the idea that simply because somebody buys a ticket on a whim that makes them a manic depressive.
To me it wasn't just the cost, it was jumping on a plane instantly when there was no particular advantage to it.
Salespeople who are too aggressive frighten prospects, and his target is a billionaire who hears from all sorts of people who want something from him. If he were sincerely after the Zap name, I think he would have been much better off pursuing it consistently over 6 months, rather than in a dramatic, unprepared rush. Especially since this particular name is a nice-to-have.
I wouldn't say it to his face, but that doesn't mean it doesn't influence my actions in regards to him.
I'm also concerned about the message this sends to others -- that since Stevie suddenly spent massively to try and coerce his way to meeting someone who could release the domain his company probably doesn't really need, that this is acceptable behavior we should all try.
Just because a person is highly accomplished and respected doesn't mean that person can't be mentally ill. John Nash Jr was.
I don't know why you were downvoted. It's obviously wrong to play pop psychologist from an internet article, but that could be an explanation - I know firsthand, several family members are bipolar and have done similarly money-disregarding stuff during a manic episode.
I know a variety of people, from family members to family friends to friends' family members, who exhibit strong signs of impulsive behavior like this. Some of them are diagnosed, some aren't.
