Two weeks ago the world lost Harry Weller. I was fortunate enough to work alongside and learn from Harry for three years at NEA. I met him in August 2013 shortly after I started at NEA and he immediately put me to work. I got pulled into a meeting with a company in a new space and didn’t even know the name of the company until the meeting was over. It was a whirlwind — the first of many that would only start to make sense much later. Early on, he threw me into the deep end and let me swim. In my first year working with him, he sent me into all sorts of situations and let me join him in several others. It felt crazy to be in many of these situations with my experience and age, but he made it seem normal. I watched how he used his talents to the fullest, and I looked for ways to identify my own talents and do the same; only later did I realize that he was doing this for me. Harry was not the type of mentor who told you what you wanted to hear — he told you what you needed to hear — good, bad or nothing. I developed trust early that everything he told me had a purpose and that if it didn’t make sense to me in the moment, it was my job to figure it out. When I felt like I was lacking something — feedback, direction, information — it was not because he didn’t care, but because he saw the value in me figuring it out for myself. He pushed me to grow, but also to learn how to grow on my own. The saying goes: teach a man to fish. Harry took that to another level: he showed people how to teach themselves and how to teach others, creating a massive network effect. He didn’t want people to rely on him. He never asked for credit, only a thank you. And the thank you was not for him, rather it completed the circle: when you recognized what he had done for you, it was clear that you needed to do the same for others. His silence was as powerful as his voice as he weaned his mentees off the Harry Weller fountain of insight and instruction. I am sad to know that now I only have his silence, but trust that the values he instilled in me will carry me into the future. He never played the short game and always had his eyes way down the road. He saw that the only way to make a difference was through relationships with people. He was a force multiplier to the nth degree because he empowered those around him and inspired them to do the same for others. Harry proved that life, even in the world of investing, is not a zero-sum game. He gave to his family, his companies, to his partners, to his mentees, and to his friends in any way that he could. In a world where competition can kill an outcome, Harry stood above it all claiming collaboration and cooperation as king. He showed us all that you must believe in what you’re doing deep down to create long term value — personally and professionally. To do this, you needed to be in touch with your true self, which required self-awareness and confidence with no room for insecurity or self-consciousness. To Harry, self-confidence and clarity were time savers — get in touch with your instincts to get your point across more smoothly and clearly. There was no time to sugarcoat or play games, and even in challenging situations, his positive energy and genius radiated from him and put people at ease in the boardroom. The beauty of it all was that he set us up to carry on without him — true humility and selflessness embodied. We will never be as fast or as sharp as he was, but we will be our best selves, which is all he ever asked for.
Harry
Harry
Harry
Two weeks ago the world lost Harry Weller. I was fortunate enough to work alongside and learn from Harry for three years at NEA. I met him in August 2013 shortly after I started at NEA and he immediately put me to work. I got pulled into a meeting with a company in a new space and didn’t even know the name of the company until the meeting was over. It was a whirlwind — the first of many that would only start to make sense much later. Early on, he threw me into the deep end and let me swim. In my first year working with him, he sent me into all sorts of situations and let me join him in several others. It felt crazy to be in many of these situations with my experience and age, but he made it seem normal. I watched how he used his talents to the fullest, and I looked for ways to identify my own talents and do the same; only later did I realize that he was doing this for me. Harry was not the type of mentor who told you what you wanted to hear — he told you what you needed to hear — good, bad or nothing. I developed trust early that everything he told me had a purpose and that if it didn’t make sense to me in the moment, it was my job to figure it out. When I felt like I was lacking something — feedback, direction, information — it was not because he didn’t care, but because he saw the value in me figuring it out for myself. He pushed me to grow, but also to learn how to grow on my own. The saying goes: teach a man to fish. Harry took that to another level: he showed people how to teach themselves and how to teach others, creating a massive network effect. He didn’t want people to rely on him. He never asked for credit, only a thank you. And the thank you was not for him, rather it completed the circle: when you recognized what he had done for you, it was clear that you needed to do the same for others. His silence was as powerful as his voice as he weaned his mentees off the Harry Weller fountain of insight and instruction. I am sad to know that now I only have his silence, but trust that the values he instilled in me will carry me into the future. He never played the short game and always had his eyes way down the road. He saw that the only way to make a difference was through relationships with people. He was a force multiplier to the nth degree because he empowered those around him and inspired them to do the same for others. Harry proved that life, even in the world of investing, is not a zero-sum game. He gave to his family, his companies, to his partners, to his mentees, and to his friends in any way that he could. In a world where competition can kill an outcome, Harry stood above it all claiming collaboration and cooperation as king. He showed us all that you must believe in what you’re doing deep down to create long term value — personally and professionally. To do this, you needed to be in touch with your true self, which required self-awareness and confidence with no room for insecurity or self-consciousness. To Harry, self-confidence and clarity were time savers — get in touch with your instincts to get your point across more smoothly and clearly. There was no time to sugarcoat or play games, and even in challenging situations, his positive energy and genius radiated from him and put people at ease in the boardroom. The beauty of it all was that he set us up to carry on without him — true humility and selflessness embodied. We will never be as fast or as sharp as he was, but we will be our best selves, which is all he ever asked for.