» Ask “why” to understand the other side’s position and interest
» All negotiations involve both rational and emotional elements
» Whatever decision you make as a product manager will disappoint some people
» Teams benefit from a shared understanding of the trade-offs of decisions
Years ago, someone once told me that “perception is reality” when it comes to reputation at work. Of all the lessons I’ve learned in my career, this has been by far one of the hardest.
» Asking about a specific problem causes people to ignore the other problems they have
» Make time for product discovery in small steps, not all at once
» Biases reduce cognitive load for our brain when it processes new information
» An opportunity solution tree is a way to externalize your thinking
» Don’t specify rigid requirements to your delivery team, have a collaborative conversation instead
» Try out lots of different solutions to the same problem
» Don’t be pressured to rush through discovery and prototyping
» Share knowledge around your team
» Avoid misunderstandings through constant communication with stakeholders
» ChatGPT’s inability to produce exact quotes from web pages is what makes us think it has learned something
» The biggest problem for AI chatbots and search engines is their propensity to generate bullsh*t
“Hi Jock, You talk about doing user research directly with users – does it matter that the Operations and Process tracks are telling me what their users want instead?”
» It can aid a team’s progress to make lots of small bets, rather than one large one in a quarter
» Separate your outputs in a release plan from the outcomes in your product roadmap
» Parkinson’s Law: work always expands to fill the time available
» Frameworks help to spur thinking; they don’t provide the answers
» “I would be nothing without my dev teammates, but my devs would probably get on pretty well without me.”
» Use frameworks with discretion – and expect a bit less of them
» When there is a financial incentive, people will industrialise technology to automate money-making activities
» Authoritative-sounding yet factually inaccurate content generated by AIs is harmful
» Product managers should be primarily concerned with what is best for users from an ethical point of view
» A good product roadmap needs good leaders and clearly articulated goals
» Make every roadmap goal specific and measurable
» Ensure your team owns your roadmap as much as you
