Lenny's Podcast: Product | Career | Growth
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366 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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Meta’s Head of Product (and 29th employee) on working with Mark Zuckerberg, early growth tactics, why PMs are like conductors, and more | Naomi Gleit
27 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 38 min
Naomi Gleit is head of product at Meta, joined as employee #29, and is the longest-serving executive at Meta other than Mark Zuckerberg. She’s been at the center of some of the company’s most foundational products, including Facebook’s early growth team. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• How she originally landed at Facebook
• The evolution of Facebook’s growth team and key metrics
• Lessons from working with Mark Zuckerberg
• Insights from Facebook’s activation metric and retention strategies
• Leadership lessons and “Naomiisms” for effective product management
• Tactics for creating extreme clarity in team communication
• Advice for running effective meetings
• More
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Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
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Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/metas-head-of-product-naomi-gleit
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Where to find Naomi Gleit:
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/naomigleit
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/naomi-gleit/
• Website: https://naomi.com/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Naomi Gleit
(01:53) Naomi’s journey at Meta
(06:18) Landing a job at Facebook
(10:40) Becoming a product manager
(13:40) Working as Head of Product at Meta
(14:55) Insights on working with Mark Zuckerberg
(20:04) Small Groups and “disagreeable givers”
(24:28) The legendary growth team
(33:45) Activation metrics and onboarding
(43:44) Naomi’s leadership and PM philosophy
(53:00) Canonical documents
(55:55) Simplifying complex projects
(01:00:33) Teen accounts: a case study
(01:06:37) Running effective meetings
(01:12:10) The importance of exercise
(01:16:36) The role of a product manager
(01…
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How to see like a designer: The hidden power of typography and logos | Jessica Hische (Lettering Artist, Author)
20 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 22 min
Jessica Hische is a lettering artist and New York Times bestselling author based in Oakland, California. She specializes in typographical work for logos, film, books, and other commercial applications. Her clients include Wes Anderson, The United States Postal Service, Target, Hallmark, and Penguin Books, and her work has been featured in design and illustration annuals both in the U.S. and internationally. She’s been named a Print Magazine New Visual Artist (20 under 30), one of Forbes 30 under 30 in Art and Design, an ADC Young Gun, a “Person to Watch” by GD USA, and an Adweek “Creative 100.” In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• My new logo and brand!
• Jessica’s process for refreshing my logo/brand
• Why most startups shouldn’t worry about their logo/brand
• The psychology behind different typography choices
• Balancing creativity with business needs in logo design
• Jessica’s unique approach to pricing logo work
• How AI is (and isn’t) impacting the design world
• Jessica’s other creative pursuits, including children’s books and art supply stores
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Brought to you by:
• The Enterprise Ready Conference — For B2B leaders building enterprise SaaS
• OneSchema — Import CSV data 10x faster
• Merge — A single API to add hundreds of integrations into your app
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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/seeing-like-a-designer-jessica-hische
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Where to find Jessica Hische:
• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@jessicahische
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicahische
• Website: https://jessicahische.is
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Jessica’s background
(01:32) The logo refresh process
(09:45) When to refresh your logo
(11:45) High-level overview
(18:04) Approaching Lenny’s brand refresh
(24:25) How to see like a designer
(37:53) Lenny’s new logo: where …
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Becoming more strategic, navigating difficult colleagues, harnessing founder mode, and more | Anneka Gupta (Chief Product Officer at Rubrik)
17 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 9 min
Anneka Gupta is the Chief Product Officer at Rubrik, a leading B2B cybersecurity company. She previously spent 11 years at LiveRamp, where she was the President and Head of Product and Platforms leading product development and go-to-market operations and strategy. Anneka also sits on the board of directors for Tinuiti and teaches product management at Stanford University. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Navigating “founder mode” dynamics in organizations
• Navigating difficult personalities and aligning teams
• The PM skill of summarization
• Giving and receiving hard feedback effectively
• The value of a positive mindset
• Tips for breaking into product management
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• The Enterprise Ready Conference — For B2B leaders building enterprise SaaS
• Command AI — AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users
• Eppo — Run reliable, impactful experiments
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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/becoming-more-strategic-anneka-gupta
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Where to find Anneka Gupta:
• X: https://x.com/annekagupta
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annekagupta
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Anneka Gupta
(01:43) Key mindsets for success
(05:30) Managing energy for optimal performance
(09:05) Founder mode
(18:26) Becoming more strategic
(27:54) The importance of decision-making
(37:18) Navigating difficult personalities
(41:38) Techniques for giving and receiving feedback
(51:01) Transitioning into product management
(54:56) Advice for aspiring product managers
(59:39) Leveraging AI tools in product management
(01:01:27) The power of a positive mindset
(01:04:30) Lightning round
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Referenced:
• Founder Mode: https://paulgraham.com/foundermode.html
• Building a long and meaningful career | Nikhyl Sing…
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Why most public speaking advice is wrong—and how to finally overcome your speaking anxiety | Tristan de Montebello (CEO & co-founder of Ultraspeaking)
13 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 56 min
Tristan de Montebello is the co-creator of Ultraspeaking, the most effective method I’ve come across for rapidly improving communication and presentation skills. In 2017, Tristan became the fastest person ever to reach the finals of the World Championship of Public Speaking, achieving this feat in just seven months with no prior experience. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why public speaking is a meta skill that can transform your life
• Practical games and exercises to improve your speaking skills
• The “Accordion Method” for preparing talks without memorization
• The “Bow and Arrow Technique” for crafting memorable presentations
• Tristan’s journey to the World Championship of Public Speaking finals
• Lenny doing some of the exercises live on-screen
Tristan is offering a limited-time discount to Ultraspeaking. Both codes are valid until November 14, 2024:
→ $500 off an Unlimited Membership with code UNLIMITEDLENNY500
→ $200 off a Rapid Tier pass for a single cohort with code RAPIDLENNY200
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Brought to you by:
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
• Command AI—AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users
• Brave Search—A smarter way to search
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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/master-public-speaking-tristan-de-montebello
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Where to find Tristan de Montebello:
• X: https://x.com/Montebello
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tristandemontebello/
• Website: https://ultraspeaking.com
• Free email course: https://ultraspeaking.com/lenny/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Tristan de Montebello and Ultraspeaking
(01:42) Personal experiences with public speaking
(05:35) Misconceptions and meta skills in public speaking
(08:56) Enjoyment as a barometer for effective speaking
(15:30) Tactical tips for pub…
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Behind the product: NotebookLM | Raiza Martin (Senior Product Manager, AI @ Google Labs)
10 oktober 2024 · 49 min
Raiza Martin is a senior product manager for AI at Google Labs, where she leads the team behind NotebookLM, an AI-powered research tool that includes a delightful podcast-on-demand feature called “Audio Overviews.” NotebookLM started as a 20% project and has grown into a product that’s spreading across social media and has a Discord server with over 60,000 users. Raiza previously worked on AI Test Kitchen and has a background in startups, payments, and ads. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The origin story of NotebookLM
• The future road map for NotebookLM
• How Google Labs operates differently from the rest of Google
• The development of the “Audio Overviews” feature
• Key metrics and growth of NotebookLM
• Stories about collaborating with author Steven Johnson
• Navigating potential misuse of AI technology
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Brought to you by:
• Explo — Embed customer-facing analytics in your product
• Sprig — Build products for people, not data points
• Sidebar — Accelerate your career by surrounding yourself with extraordinary peers
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Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/googles-notebooklm-raiza-martin
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Where to find Raiza Martin:
• X: https://x.com/raiza_abubakar
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/whatsaraiza/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to NotebookLM
(05:43) The genesis of NotebookLM
(08:08) Innovative features and use cases
(18:52) Building a startup culture within Google
(24:28) Expanding user demographics
(27:30) The product roadmap
(32:18) Other use cases
(36:11) Collaborating with Steven Johnson
(42:49) Ensuring ethical AI
(46:06) Future directions and user engagement
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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
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Lenny may b…
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Becoming a conscious leader: Leading without fear, finding your life’s objective function, and getting better at vision and strategy | John Mark Nickels (Uber, Waymo, DoorDash)
6 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 18 min
JM Nickels is a Senior Director of Product Management at Uber. Previously, he was Head of Product for Commercialization at Waymo and led product teams at DoorDash. JM is also a coach and advisor focused on conscious leadership. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• How to sharpen your vision and strategy skills
• What “conscious leadership” means and how to practice it
• Practical techniques for managing stress
• The power of soft skills and emotional intelligence in product leadership
• Lessons from working at Uber, Waymo, and DoorDash
• Keys to living a successful and fulfilling life
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• The Enterprise Ready Conference — For B2B leaders building enterprise SaaS
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/becoming-a-conscious-leader-john-mark-nickels
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Where to find John Mark Nickels:
• X: https://x.com/nickelsjm
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmnickels/
• Website: https://www.rhythmofbeing.com/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to JM
(02:02) Conscious leadership explained
(03:41) The power of soft skills
(07:34) Navigating Uber’s evolution
(12:41) Embracing emotions and inner work
(21:46) Crafting strategy and vision
(41:16) Balancing vision and execution
(46:13) Lessons from DoorDash, Uber, and Waymo
(52:32) The future of autonomous ride-hailing
(55:18) Contrarian corner: Embracing emotions in the workplace
(59:47) Keys to a fulfilling life
(01:04:45) Taking responsibility and agency
(01:07:29) Lightning round and final thoughts
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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
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Lenny ma…
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Thinking like a gardener not a builder, organizing teams like slime mold, the adjacent possible, and other unconventional product advice | Alex Komoroske (Stripe, Google)
3 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 25 min
Alex Komoroske is a strategic leader who merges the practice, theory, and mindset necessary to tackle complex problems. He spent 13 years at Google, where he worked on Search and DoubleClick and led Chrome’s Open Web Platform. He also spearheaded Augmented Reality in Google Maps and developed toolkits to align companywide strategy from the ground up. After serving as Head of Corporate Strategy at Stripe, he is now co-founding a startup aimed at reimagining the web for the AI era. Alex created the popular “Slime Molds” deck, which offers fresh insights into organizational dynamics. He is also the author of the widely read “Bits and Bobs,” a collection of thought-provoking reflections.In our conversation, we delve into: Lees meer
• “Organizational kayfabe”
• “Gardening” vs. “building”
• How AI will soon change how we build product
• How and why to embrace the adjacent possible
• The power of reflection and how to build it into your workflow
• How to create emergent properties in organizations
• How to run effective “strategy salons” or “nerd clubs”
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace
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Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/unconventional-product-advice-alex-komoroske
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Where to find Alex Komoroske:
• X: https://x.com/komorama
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-komoroske-6597336/
• Website: https://www.komoroske.com/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Alex
(01:53) Alex’s Bits and Bobs document
(06:20) The Compendium and note-taking process
(10:10) The impact of AI and LLMs on product development
(14:24) Skills to lean into as a product manager
(19:02) How AI makes us better as individuals
(23:0…
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How marketplaces win: Liquidity, growth levers, quality, and more | Benjamin Lauzier (Lyft, Thumbtack, Reforge)
29 september 2024 · 1 uur 24 min
Benjamin Lauzier has been building and scaling marketplaces for almost 15 years. He was the VP of product and growth at Thumbtack, where he rebuilt the product team and Thumbtack’s growth levers, re-architected their revenue model, and helped double the company’s growth within three years. Prior to Thumbtack, Ben was at Lyft for six years, where he led the supply side of the product organization to a point where 1% of U.S. workers were driving for Lyft every month. Currently, he advises marketplace teams and founders, teaches a Reforge course on marketplace growth, and has recently launched a health tech company called Nurra, which connects users with care advocates to navigate the health-care system. In our conversation, we cover: Lees meer
• What defines a marketplace business
• Strategies for growing supply and demand in the early stages
• How to measure liquidity and other marketplace health metrics
• How to evaluate if a marketplace model is right for your idea
• Lessons from Lyft, Thumbtack, and other successful marketplaces
• The differences between product management in the U.S. and Europe
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Brought to you by:
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
• Paragon—Ship every SaaS integration your customers want
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
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Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-marketplaces-win-benjamin-lauzier
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Where to find Benjamin Lauzier:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminlauzier/
• Ben’s Reforge course: https://www.reforge.com/courses/marketplace-growth/details
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Ben’s background
(02:24) Defining a marketplace
(07:52) Challenges in building a marketplace
(13:28) Methods for growing supply
(15:57) Understanding marketplace liquidity
(21:36) Identifying product-market fit…
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Lessons in product leadership and AI strategy from Glean, Google, Amazon, and Slack | Tamar Yehoshua (Product at Glean, ex-Google and Slack)
26 september 2024 · 1 uur 17 min
Tamar Yehoshua is the president of product and technology at Glean. Prior to joining Glean, Tamar was chief product officer at Slack, where she led product, design, and research as the company scaled, including a 10x increase in revenue, its public listing, and an acquisition by Salesforce. She also led product and engineering teams at Google, working on search, identity, and privacy, and at A9.com, an Amazon company. Tamar has served on the board of directors for RetailMeNot, ServiceNow, Snyk, and Yext. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why you don’t need to be a well-run company to win
• The impact of AI on product management and the future of work
• How to build strong cross-functional relationships, especially with engineers
• Lessons learned from working with leaders like Jeff Bezos and Stewart Butterfield
• Strategies for staying ahead in a rapidly evolving tech landscape
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• Explo—Embed customer-facing analytics in your product
• Sprig—Build products for people, not data points
• Sidebar—Accelerate your career by surrounding yourself with extraordinary peers
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/you-dont-need-to-be-a-well-run-company-to-win-tamar-yehoshua
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Where to find Tamar Yehoshua:
• X: https://x.com/TYehoshua
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamar-yehoshua-886217/
• Newsletter: https://tamaryehoshua.substack.com/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Tamar’s background
(02:09) Key advice for career success
(06:54) Understanding people and motivations
(09:33) The importance of impact
(11:20) Navigating company chaos
(18:40) Career planning: a different perspective
(26:22) Lessons from industry leaders
(37:59) Building stronger cross-functional relationships
(42:00) Streamlining OKR revi…
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Becoming a super IC: Lessons from 12 years as a PM individual contributor | Tal Raviv (Product Lead at Riverside)
22 september 2024 · 1 uur 31 min
Tal Raviv is a product manager at Riverside, where he joined as its first PM. Over his 12-year career as an individual contributor, Tal has been an early PM at Patreon, AppsFlyer, and Wix, working in consumer growth, developer API platforms, and pricing. He started his career by co-founding a profitable SaaS company and also volunteers as a surf instructor for people with disabilities. In our conversation, Tal shares: Lees meer
• Why he has chosen to stay an individual contributor rather than moving into management
• The rise of “super ICs” and how companies can support this career path
• Advice for succeeding as a long-term IC product manager
• How he uses AI to enhance his productivity
• How to build self-reliant teams and make yourself redundant
• Lessons from failures
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• Gamma—A new way to present, powered by AI
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
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Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-super-ic-pm-tal-raviv
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Where to find Tal Raviv:
• X: https://x.com/talraviv
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/talsraviv/
• Maven course: https://maven.com/tal-raviv/product-manager-productivity-system/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Tal’s background
(02:24) Choosing to stay an IC product manager
(07:05) The value of IC roles
(08:31) Compensation and career path
(12:37) Advice for companies on creating space for ICs
(14:33) Leveraging AI for productivity
(22:44) Build your personal PM productivity system
(37:39) Contrarian opinions and insights
(44:32) Book smart vs. street smart decision-making
(51:51) There’s no one right way to get things done
(57:03) Failure corner
(01:19:04) Lightning round
(01:26:50) Living through conflict
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Rethinking SEO in the age of AI | Eli Schwartz (SEO advisor, author)
19 september 2024 · 1 uur 55 min
Eli Schwartz is a leading SEO consultant and the author of Product-Led SEO. He has worked with industry giants like Zapier, Tinder, Coinbase, Quora, LinkedIn, and WordPress to build and execute global SEO strategies that significantly enhanced their organic visibility at scale. In our conversation, Eli shares: Lees meer
• How AI and LLMs are reshaping the SEO landscape
• Why you should be focused on mid-funnel SEO strategies
• How to determine if SEO is the right approach for your business
• Why SEO should be treated as a product rather than just a marketing tactic
• SEO myths
• The future of search in light of recent legal challenges faced by Google
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• Brave Search—A smarter way to search
• OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/rethinking-seo-in-the-age-of-ai-eli-schwartz
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Where to find Eli Schwartz:
• X: https://x.com/5le
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schwartze/
• Website: https://www.elischwartz.co/
• Newsletter: https://www.productledseo.com/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Eli’s background
(02:10) The impact of AI on SEO strategies
(11:34) Understanding search intent
(15:30) Real-world impact and structured vs. unstructured data
(20:19) Top-of-funnel vs mid-funnel SEO strategies
(22:57) Case studies
(31:29) Steps for getting started with SEO
(35:20) Examples of when not to focus on SEO
(39:17) Evaluating SEO investment
(44:00) Understanding the tradeoffs in marketing channels
(46:23) SEO conversion metrics and expectations
(52:09) Understanding the time horizon of SEO
(59:37) The role of AI in content creation
(01:05:26) AI overviews
(01:07:40) Brand building and SEO
…
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The things engineers are desperate for PMs to understand | Camille Fournier (author of “The Manager’s Path,” ex-CTO at Rent the Runway)
15 september 2024 · 1 uur 23 min
Camille Fournier is the author of The Manager’s Path, which many consider the definitive guide for navigating one’s career path in tech. Camille was previously the CTO of Rent the Runway, VP of Technology at Goldman Sachs, Head of Platform Engineering at Two Sigma, and Global Head of Engineering and Architecture at JPMorgan Chase. She is about to release new newest book, Platform Engineering: A Guide for Technical, Product, and People Leaders. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• What product managers do that annoys engineers
• Why major rewrites are a trap
• Why you should have fewer one-on-ones
• Strategies for organizing and working with platform teams
• Tips for new managers
• Advice for transitioning from individual contributor to manager
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• DX—A platform for measuring and improving developer productivity
• CommandBar—AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users
• Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/engineering-leadership-camille-fournier
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Where to find Camille Fournier:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/camille-fournier-9011812/
• Website: https://skamille.medium.com/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Camille’s background
(02:17) Common annoyances between PMs and engineers
(07:09) Avoiding the telephone game
(08:05) Hoarding ideas and over-engineering
(09:55) The importance of involving engineers in ideation
(11:37) The middle-person dilemma
(14:21) Rewriting systems: a big trap?
(20:40) Engineering leadership lessons
(36:02) Moving from IC to management
(40:32) One-on-one meetings
(45:10) Pushing beyond comfort zones
(45:27) Building a balanced work culture
(48:01) Effective time management strategies
(54:15) Advice for…
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Land your dream job in today’s market: negotiation tactics, job search councils, and more | Phyl Terry (Author, “Never Search Alone”)
12 september 2024 · 1 uur 51 min
Phyl Terry is the author of Never Search Alone, which I’ve seen so many people reference as the most impactful guide they read for finding a job. Phyl was on the founding team of the first company Amazon acquired back in the ’90s and then was CEO of pioneering product consulting firm Creative Good, with companies like Apple, Facebook, and Microsoft as customers. Today, Phyl is the founder and CEO of Collaborative Gain, which 20 years ago pioneered bringing councils to senior product leaders and GMs in Silicon Valley. That’s their day job—in addition to that, Phyl runs a free global community for job seekers based on their latest book. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why you should never search for a job alone
• How job search councils work
• How to determine your “candidate-market fit”
• How to conduct a listening tour
• Creating your job mission and OKRs
• How to negotiate job offers
• The art of asking for help
• Tactics for effective networking and interviewing
• Much more
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Brought to you by:
• Sidebar—Accelerate your career by surrounding yourself with extraordinary peers
• Sprig—Build products for people, not data points
• Dovetail—The customer insights hub for product teams
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Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/land-your-dream-phyl-terry
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Where to find Phyl Terry:
• X: https://x.com/phylterry
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phylterry/
• Website: https://www.phyl.org/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Phyl’s background
(01:58) The concept of job search councils
(04:27) The power of community in job searching
(08:55) The scale and structure of job search councils
(12:27) The impact of job search councils
(20:19) The concept of candidate-market fit
(22:50) Writing a Mnookin two-pager
(24:37) Conducting listening tour…
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How LinkedIn became interesting: The inside story | Tomer Cohen (CPO at LinkedIn)
8 september 2024 · 1 uur 9 min
Tomer Cohen is the chief product officer at LinkedIn, responsible for setting the company’s product strategy, leading product development, user experience design, business development, content creation, and customer operations. He also hosts the Building One podcast, where he interviews exceptional builders across various disciplines. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• How LinkedIn transformed its feed into an engaging content and social platform
• Tomer’s famous “We might be wrong, but we are not confused” mantra
• The importance of conviction and passion in product leadership
• LinkedIn’s approach to experimenting with and implementing AI features
• Lessons from Tomer’s rapid career progression at LinkedIn
• Strategies for embracing AI in product development
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Brought to you by:
• Gamma—A new way to present, powered by AI
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Merge—A single API to add hundreds of integrations into your app
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-linkedin-became-interesting-tomer-cohen
—
Where to find Tomer Cohen:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomercohen/
• Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/building-one-with-tomer-cohen/id1726672498
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Tomer Cohen and his role at LinkedIn
(02:28) The mantra “We might be wrong, but we are not confused”
(06:45) Clarity of thought and focus
(13:03) Setting ambitious goals and overdelivering
(16:18) Transforming LinkedIn’s feed: strategy and execution
(22:03) Running experiments at scale
(26:24) Goal setting and identifying opportunities
(30:58) AI’s role in LinkedIn’s evolution
(35:38) The AI-first mindset at LinkedIn
(35:38) Developing an AI-first mindset
(44:49) Letting go of your roadmaps …
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The original growth hacker reveals his secrets | Sean Ellis (author of “Hacking Growth”)
5 september 2024 · 1 uur 44 min
Sean Ellis is one of the earliest and most influential thinkers and operators in growth. He coined the term “growth hacking,” invented the ICE prioritization framework, was one of the earliest people to use freemium as a growth lever, and, most famously, developed the Sean Ellis Test for product-market fit (which a large percentage of founders use today to track if they’ve found PMF). Over the course of his career, Sean was head of growth at Dropbox and Eventbrite; helped companies like Microsoft and Nubank refine their growth strategy; was on the founding team of LogMeIn, which sold for over $4 billion; and is the author of one of the most popular growth books of all time, Hacking Growth, which has sold over 750,000 copies. In our conversation, he shares: Lees meer
• The proper use of the Sean Ellis Test for measuring product-market fit
• How to increase your activation and retention rates
• How to select the right North Star metric for your business
• Case studies from his work growing Dropbox and other products
• How growth strategy has changed over the past decade
• How AI is impacting growth efforts
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Gamma—A new way to present, powered by AI
• CommandBar—AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users
• Merge—A single API to add hundreds of integrations into your app
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-original-growth-hacker-sean-ellis
—
Where to find Sean Ellis:
• X: https://x.com/seanellis
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanellis/
• Website: https://www.seanellis.me/
• Substack: https://substack.com/@seanellis
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Sean’s background
(02:18) The Sean Ellis test explained
(06:28) The 40% rule
(08:06) Case study: improving product-market fit
(12:3…
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Airbnb’s Vlad Loktev on embracing chaos, inquiry over advocacy, poking the bear, and “impact, impact, impact” (Partner at Index Ventures, Airbnb GM/VP Product)
1 september 2024 · 1 uur 37 min
Vlad Loktev spent 10 years at Airbnb, where he started as an IC PM and quickly advanced to lead the core Airbnb marketplace business and then GM the entire homes business, managing over 1,000 people and reporting directly to CEO Brian Chesky. He recently left Airbnb and joined Index Ventures as their newest partner. Vlad was my manager at Airbnb for many years, and is the person I credit most for teaching me how to be a great product manager. Prior to Airbnb, Vlad spent a year at Zynga, where he helped grow Words with Friends to over 14 million daily active users. In our conversation, Vlad shares: Lees meer
• Insight into Brian Chesky’s leadership style
• Why success as a PM is all about impact, impact, impact
• Why chaos can be good
• Why as a leader it’s OK to let some fires burn
• Why you should learn to “poke the bear”
• Balancing product release speed with quality
• Lessons on prioritization, decision-making, and organizational design
• Advice for founders on building company culture
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/impact-impact-impact-vlad-loktev
—
Where to find Vlad Loktev:
• X: https://x.com/vladimirloktev
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladimirloktev/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Vlad’s background
(02:54) Reflecting on transformative years at Airbnb
(04:28) Skills and mindsets for success
(11:03) Impact-driven mindset
(13:16) Saying no and inquiry before advocacy
(17:54) “Poking the bear”
(22:46) Psychological tools for leadership
(30:08) Building and scaling teams
(36:12) Letting fires burn
(47:34) Embracing …
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How to consistently go viral: Nikita Bier’s playbook for winning at consumer apps (co-founder of TBH, Gas, advisor, investor)
25 augustus 2024 · 1 uur 38 min
Nikita Bier is one of the most in-demand consumer, social, and growth experts in the world. He’s the co-founder of TBH (sold to Meta for more than $30 million) and Gas (sold to Discord for millions more) and has helped more consumer apps that have hit #1 in the app stores than any other person I’ve come across. He currently spends his time advising founders on growth, product, and design and is an investor and advisor to some of the best consumer tech companies, including Flo, Locket, Eight Sleep, Citizen, BeReal, Captions, and more. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The inside story of how TBH and Gas achieved explosive growth
• Strategies for building viral consumer apps
• Why teens are such a great audience
• Fighting the human trafficking hoax at Gas
• The challenge of creating durable social products
• His experience working as a PM at Facebook
• Advice for founders on building consumer apps
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• Explo—Embed customer-facing analytics in your product
—
Book Nikita for 1:1 consultation/mentoring: https://intro.co/NikitaBier
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-consistently-go-viral-nikita-bier
—
Where to find Nikita Bier:
• X: https://x.com/nikitabier
• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@nikitabier
• Website: https://intro.co/NikitaBier
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Nikita’s background
(06:08) Nikita’s early ventures: Politify and Outline
(08:42) Transition to consumer apps
(13:45) The birth of TBH
(16:43) Building for teens vs. adults
(20:00) TBH’s viral success
(32:18) Leveraging live chat
(34:08) Lasting lessons from TBH
(37:00) Selling TBH to Facebook
(42:19) Big-tech product management
(48:46) Ni…
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Succeeding as an introvert, building zero-to-one, and why you should PM your career like you PM your product | Deb Liu (CEO of Ancestry, ex-Facebook, PayPal, eBay)
22 augustus 2024 · 1 uur 11 min
Deb Liu is the CEO of Ancestry and former longtime VP of Product at Facebook. At Facebook, Deb led the creation of Facebook Marketplace, developed the first mobile ad product for apps, built the company’s games business, and launched Facebook Pay. She’s also held leadership roles at PayPal and eBay, serves on the board of Intuit, and is the author of Take Back Your Power. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why you should PM your career like you PM your product
• Strategies for incubating new products within large companies
• Creating a successful 30-60-90-day plan when starting a new job
• The pitfalls of perfectionism
• The challenges introverts face in the workplace and how to overcome them
• The value of resilience and turning failures into stepping stones
• How to leverage coaching in your career development
—
Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Webflow—The web experience platform
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/succeeding-as-an-introvert-deb-liu
—
Where to find Deb Liu:
• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@debliu
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahliu
• Substack: https://debliu.substack.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Deb Liu
(02:18) Deb’s career journey and key advice
(09:45) Navigating new roles and challenges
(11:27) Overcoming adversity and failure
(15:07) Building billion-dollar businesses at Facebook
(19:33) Strategies for zero-to-one innovation
(23:40) PM your career like a product
(33:53) Challenges and strategies for introverts in business
(39:19) Reframing self-promotion
(42:25) The power of accountability
(46:15) Growth: a game of inche…
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Unorthodox PM wisdom: Automating user insights, unselling job candidates, logging every decision, more | Kevin Yien (Stripe, Square, Mutiny)
18 augustus 2024 · 1 uur 29 min
Kevin Yien leads product for merchant experiences at Stripe. Before that, he meandered his way from being a technical designer to a product manager, built the restaurants business and ecosystem team at Square, and most recently was head of product and design at Mutiny. He also makes ice cream and teaches for fun. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why aspiring PMs should start in engineering, design, or sales
• The importance of writing skills, and how to become a better writer
• How to automate user research
• Kevin’s “unsell email” technique for hiring
• The value of keeping a decision log
• Insights on AI and its impact on future generations
• Lessons from failure
—
Brought to you by:
• BuildBetter—AI for product teams
• OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/unorthodox-pm-wisdom-kevin-yien
—
Where to find Kevin Yien:
• X: https://x.com/kevinyien
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinyien/
• Website: https://kevinyien.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Kevin’s background
(02:00) The story behind Kevin’s profile picture
(08:41) The role of a product manager
(10:48) Getting started in product management
(12:47) The importance of writing skills
(15:06) Becoming a better writer
(19:10) The PM’s role with engineering and design
(28:41) Drawing the perimeter for your team
(31:37) Feedback tips
(35:13) Decision logs and product sense
(45:36) Unorthodox hiring strategies
(47:01) The unsell email strategy
(54:01) Automating user research
(01:02:27) AI in everyday life
(01:06:05) Lessons from failure
(01:14:34) Lightning round
—
Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrach…
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Improve strategy, influence, and decision-making by understanding your brain | Evan LaPointe (founder of CORE Sciences)
11 augustus 2024 · 2 uur 15 min
Evan LaPointe is the founder of CORE Sciences, which teaches companies and individuals how our brains work and how that translates to improved collaboration, better products, faster decision-making, and more growth. Previously, Evan was the co-founder of Satellite, the fourth-largest analytics product on the internet today (it mostly runs behind the scenes, and pretty much everyone listening will have used it today without knowing it), which was acquired by Adobe, where he later ran product strategy, innovation, and long-range thinking for Adobe’s digital experiences business. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The three different systems of the brain
• How knowing this can help you become more influential
• How understanding different brain states will help you increase productivity and creativity
• How to improve your vision and strategy skills
• How to design a work environment that fosters innovation
• How to build better relationships at work
• Much more
—
Use discount code “LENNY” for $5 off the CORE Sciences personality profile: https://www.core-sciences.com/new-core-identity
—
Brought to you by:
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• Explo—Embed customer-facing analytics in your product
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/understanding-your-brain-evan-lapointe
—
Where to find Evan LaPointe:
• X: https://x.com/evanlapointe
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evanlapointe/
• Website: https://www.core-sciences.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Evan’s background
(02:37) Understanding the brain’s complex systems
(07:17) The three core brain systems: safety, reward, and purpose
(11:03) Applying brain science to team dynamics
(14:27) The role of personality in team performance
(1…
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How embracing emotions will accelerate your career | Joe Hudson (executive coach, Art of Accomplishment)
8 augustus 2024 · 1 uur 19 min
Joe Hudson is one of the most sought-after executive coaches in Silicon Valley. He is the founder of Art of Accomplishment, a transformational coaching program that has helped tens of thousands of people, including many tech executives and founders from companies like Apple, OpenAI, and Google. His unique method of transformation comes from over 25 years of exploring neurological, psychological, and spiritual traditions, tested against real-world challenges. In our conversation, Joe shares: Lees meer
• Why the critical voice in your head is always wrong, and how to change your relationship with that voice
• Why authenticity trumps self-improvement
• The importance of embracing all of your emotions
• How to create more enjoyable and effective meetings
• The power of gratitude in transforming your life
• Practical experiments for personal growth
• Much more
—
Apply for Joe’s Connection Course:
Thousands of students have taken Joe’s most popular experience, the Connection Course. Unlike most online courses, there is no reading, lectures, or written homework. It is a three-week experiential deep dive where you will apply your learnings to real-life problems—how to make your team more productive, communicate more effectively, and resolve conflicts with ease. Apply here and use the code LENNY for $300 off your enrollment: view.life/lenny.
—
Brought to you by:
• BuildBetter—AI for product teams
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace
—
Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/embracing-your-emotions-joe-hudson
—
Where to find Joe Hudson:
• X: https://x.com/FU_joehudson
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-hudson/
• Website: https://www.artofaccomplishment.com/
• Podcast: https://www.artofaccomplishment.com/podcast
• Linktree: https://linktr.ee/theartofaccomplishment
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
•…
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Lessons from scaling Uber and Opendoor | Brian Tolkin (Head of Product at Opendoor, ex-Uber)
4 augustus 2024 · 1 uur 15 min
Brian Tolkin is the Head of Product at Opendoor. Previously, he was one of the early employees at Uber, where he was instrumental in launching and growing UberPool, UberHop, and UberExpress and started one of the first product operations teams in tech. In our conversation, we dive into: Lees meer
• How to enable product and ops to work well together
• How to run great product reviews
• How to make good decisions with limited data
• How he uses the jobs-to-be-done framework at Opendoor
• How to stay calm under pressure as a leader
• Wild stories from his time at Uber
• Challenges faced at Opendoor during the pandemic
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• Explo—Embed customer-facing analytics in your product
• Attio—The powerful, flexible CRM for fast-growing startups
—
Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/scaling-uber-and-opendoor-brian-tolkin
—
Where to find Brian Tolkin:
• X: https://x.com/briantolkin
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briantolkin/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Brian’s background
(02:14) Career beginnings at Uber
(02:49) Transitioning from product operations to product management
(06:47) Product and operations synergy
(10:00) Surge pricing at Uber
(12:18) Scaling challenges, and stories
(15:47) Opendoor and Covid adaptations
(25:38) Product reviews and Jobs to Be Done
(40:30) The challenges of A/B testing
(42:23) Increasing conviction in solutions
(44:33) Leveraging intuition in product decisions
(47:07) Partnering with Zillow
(52:55) Staying calm under pressure
(56:25) Finding the “kernel of truth” in product management
(01:00:21) Failure corner: Early days of Uber Pool
(01:06:11) Lightning round and final thoughts
—
Production …
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The ultimate guide to performance marketing | Timothy Davis (Shopify)
28 juli 2024 · 1 uur 42 min
Timothy Davis has led performance marketing for all of Shopify for the past 2.5 years, and as a consultant has helped companies like Pinterest, LinkedIn, Redfin, and Eventbrite kickstart and scale their performance marketing teams. In every one of those cases, he got them so performant at paid growth that they significantly scale spend and investment in these channels. In our conversation, we cover: Lees meer
• When and how to start investing in performance marketing
• Common mistakes companies make with paid ads
• How to build and structure a performance marketing team
• How to get your creatives performing better
• Strategies for optimizing workflows and team efficiency
• How AI will change performance marketing
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• BuildBetter—AI for product teams
• OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/performance-marketing-timothy-davis
—
Where to find Timothy Davis:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothypatrickdavis/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Timothy’s background
(02:31) Understanding performance marketing
(06:31) The importance of paid search
(08:39) Identifying growth potential
(09:54) Case studies: Hairstory and Ipsy
(12:22) Experimenting with new platforms
(18:57) Choosing the right platforms
(20:23) LinkedIn for B2B marketing
(27:56) When to start investing in paid growth
(33:33) Common mistakes in performance marketing
(37:41) Working with agencies and consultants
(40:36) Hiring for performance marketing
(47:33) Metrics that matter
(54:43) Competitor analysis and CPC insights
(56:15) Custom reports and data visualization
(56:38) Understanding impression and click share
(59:10) True competition metrics
(01:02:14) Att…
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5 essential questions to craft a winning strategy | Roger Martin (author, advisor, speaker)
25 juli 2024 · 1 uur 22 min
Roger Martin is one of the world’s leading experts on strategy and the author of Playing to Win, one of the most beloved books on strategy. He’s written extensively for the Harvard Business Review; consulted for dozens of Fortune 500 companies, including P&G, Lego, and Ford; and written 11 other books. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The five key questions you need to answer to develop an effective strategy
• Why most companies get strategy wrong
• How to avoid “playing to play” instead of playing to win
• Real-world strategy examples from Procter & Gamble, Southwest Airlines, Lego, and Figma
• How to think about differentiation vs. low cost
• Shortcomings of current strategy education
• Much more
—
Correction: Roger pointed out that he made an error during our chat. When I asked him about Richard Rumelt (~16 mins), he thought I said Richard D'Aveni.
—
Brought to you by:
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Cycle—Your feedback hub, on autopilot
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-ultimate-guide-to-strategy-roger-martin
—
Where to find Roger Martin:
• X: https://x.com/RogerLMartin
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-martin-9916911a9/
• Website: https://rogerlmartin.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Roger’s background
(02:20) The importance of strategy
(07:00) Challenges in developing strategy
(08:30) Critique of modern strategy education
(14:00) Hamilton Helmer and Richard Rumelt
(17:40) Defining strategy
(19:12) The Strategy Choice Cascade
(23:20) Playing to win vs. playing to play
(24:57) Examples of strategic success
(30:49) Differentiation and moats
(40:23) Applying strategy to real-world scenarios
(43:47) Customer-centric strategy
(44:45) …
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What most people miss about marketing | Rory Sutherland (Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK, author)
21 juli 2024 · 1 uur 25 min
Rory Sutherland is widely regarded as one of the most influential (and most entertaining) thinkers in marketing and behavioral science. He’s the vice chairman of Ogilvy UK, the author of Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life, and the founder of Nudgestock, the world’s biggest festival of behavioral science and creativity. He champions thinking from first principles and using human psychology—what he calls “thinking psycho-logically”—over mere logic. In our conversation, we cover: Lees meer
• Why good products don’t always succeed, and bad ones don’t necessarily fail
• Why less functionality can sometimes be more valuable
• The importance of fame in building successful brands
• The importance of timing in product success
• The concept of “most advanced, yet acceptable”
• Why metrics-driven workplaces can be demotivating
• Lots of real-world case studies
• Much more
Note: We encountered some technical difficulties that led to less than ideal video quality for this episode, but the lessons from this conversation made it impossible for me to not publish it anyway. Thanks for your understanding and for bearing with the less-than-ideal video quality.
—
Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• Cycle—Your feedback hub, on autopilot
• Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/what-most-people-miss-about-marketing
—
Where to find Rory Sutherland:
• X: https://x.com/rorysutherland
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rorysutherland
• Book: Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life: https://www.amazon.com/Alchemy-Curious-Science-Creating-Business/dp/006238841X
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episod…
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Building a world-class data org | Jessica Lachs (VP of Analytics and Data Science at DoorDash)
14 juli 2024 · 1 uur 20 min
Jessica Lachs is the global head of analytics and data science at DoorDash, where she’s built one of the largest and most respected data organizations in tech. In her more than 10 years at DoorDash, she has served as the first general manager, responsible for launching new markets; the head of business ops and analytics; and the VP of analytics and data science. Previously, Jessica founded GiftSimple, a social gifting startup, and started her career at Lehman Brothers as an investment banking analyst. In our conversation, she shares: Lees meer
• How to structure and scale a high-impact analytics organization
• Centralized vs. decentralized data teams
• How to pick the right metric and aligning incentives
• Advice for data people on how and when to push back
• Lessons learned from building a global data team
• How to foster a culture of extreme ownership
• The role of AI in improving analytics team productivity
• Advice for aspiring data leaders without formal training
—
Brought to you by:
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• Anvil—The fastest way to build software for documents
• Attio—The powerful, flexible CRM for fast-growing startups
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-a-world-class-data-org-jessica-lachs
—
Where to find Jessica Lachs:
• X: https://x.com/jesslachs
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-lachs/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Jessica’s background
(04:59) Centralized vs. embedded analytics teams
(10:52) The benefits of a centralized analytics team
(15:10) Balancing proactive and reactive work
(20:45) Advice on how to push back effectively
(24:20) Hiring for curiosity and problem solving
(28:57) Coming from a non-traditional background
(34:40) The early days and culture at DoorDash
(40:39) Encouraging cross-functiona…
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Building product at Stripe: craft, metrics, and customer obsession | Jeff Weinstein (Product lead)
11 juli 2024 · 2 uur 35 min
Jeff Weinstein is a product lead at Stripe, where he helped grow their payment APIs to hundreds of billions in volume and transformed the way founders start companies into a few simple clicks with Atlas. Prior to Stripe, Jeff led several startups and sold companies to Groupon and Box. He’s known for his customer obsession, craft, quality, and building beloved products businesses rely on. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The power of customer obsession and how to operationalize it in the product development process
• How to pick the right metrics and use them to drive impact
• Techniques for getting things done at big companies
• A group practice Jeff started to uplevel product craft, called Study Group
• The story behind Stripe Atlas and its mission to increase entrepreneurship globally
• Lessons from working with the founders of Stripe
—
Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
• Cycle—Your feedback hub, on autopilot
• Anvil—The fastest way to build software for documents
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/creating-a-culture-of-excellence
—
Where to find Jeff Weinstein:
• X: https://x.com/jeff_weinstein
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffwweinstein/
• Email: jweinstein@gmail.com
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Jeff’s background
(10:16) The “go, go, go ASAP + optimistic, long-term compounding” approach
(15:38) The importance of craft and quality
(24:15) Effective customer communication strategies
(28:57) The importance of speed in customer interactions
(33:19) Narrowing your focus
(36:53) Why you should pay attention only to paying-customer feedback
(40:24) Practicing silence when communicating
(45:33) The role of metrics in product success
(54:08) Empowering teams with a…
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Pattern Breakers: How to find a breakthrough startup idea | Mike Maples, Jr. (Founding Partner at Floodgate, ex-Product at Silicon Graphics)
7 juli 2024 · 1 uur 49 min
Mike Maples, Jr. is a legendary early-stage startup investor and a co-founder and partner at Floodgate. He’s made early bets on transformative companies like Twitter, Lyft, Twitch, Okta, Rappi, and Applied Intuition and is one of the pioneers of seed-stage investing as a category. He’s been on the Forbes Midas List eight times and enjoys sharing the lessons he’s learned from his years studying iconic companies. In his new book, Pattern Breakers: Why Some Start-Ups Change the Future, co-authored with Peter Ziebelman, he discusses what he’s found separates startups and founders that break through and change the world from those that don’t. After spending years reviewing the notes and decks from the thousands of startups he’s known over the past two decades, he’s uncovered three ways that breakthrough founders think and act differently. In our conversation, Mike talks about: Lees meer
• The three elements of breakthrough startup ideas
• Why you need to both think and act differently
• How to avoid the “comparison trap” and “conformity trap”
• The importance of movements, storytelling, and healthy disagreeableness in startup success
• How to apply pattern-breaking principles within large companies
• Mike’s one piece of advice for founders
• Much more
Pre-order Mike’s book here and get a second signed copy for free. Limited copies are available, so order ASAP: patternbreakers.com/lenny.
—
Brought to you by:
• Enterpret—Transform customer feedback into product growth
• Anvil—The fastest way to build software for documents
• Webflow—The web experience platform
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-find-a-great-startup-idea-mike-maples-jr
—
Where to find Mike Maples, Jr.:
• X: https://x.com/m2jr
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maples/
• Substack: https://greatness.substack.com/
• Website: https://www.floodgate.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• …
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Dylan Field live at Config: Intuition, simplicity, and the future of design
30 juni 2024 · 48 min
Dylan Field is the co-founder and CEO of Figma, the collaborative design platform that has revolutionized how product teams work. In my first-ever live podcast, recorded at Figma Config, Dylan and I dig into: Lees meer
• How intuition and product taste drive Dylan’s decision-making
• The challenge of keeping things simple
• Dylan’s thoughts on the future of product management
• Lessons from Figma’s early days
• How Figma built their initial user base
• Dylan’s journey from intern to CEO of a 1,000+-person company
• The future of design tools and AI
—
Brought to you by:
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Anvil—The fastest way to build software for documents
• User Testing—Human understanding. Human experiences.
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/dylan-field-live-at-config
—
Where to find Dylan Field:
• X: https://x.com/zoink?lang=en
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dylanfield/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction
(01:11) Welcoming Dylan Field
(02:36) Highlights and surprises from Config
(06:58) The philosophy of design
(08:01) Raccoon feet and muffin hands
(09:57) Building and refining intuition and product taste
(12:50) How to influence leadership
(16:14) The role of product managers
(21:12) The future of product management
(22:20) The importance of simplicity in design
(26:10) The long road to Figma’s launch
(27:44) Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs
(29:07) Knowing when it’s time to ship
(30:39) Early user acquisition strategies
(35:50) Spotting trends and future innovations
(39:20) Reflections on leadership and growth
(43:16) Lightning round
—
Referenced:
• Mihika Kapoor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mihikakapoor/
• Rick Rubin on the Creative Act—60 Minutes: https://www.yout…
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The social radar: Y Combinator’s secret weapon | Jessica Livingston (co-founder of Y Combinator, author, podcast host)
27 juni 2024 · 1 uur 25 min
Jessica Livingston is a co-founder of Y Combinator, the first and most successful startup accelerator. Y Combinator has funded over 5,000 companies, 200 of which are now unicorns, including Airbnb, Dropbox, DoorDash, Stripe, Coinbase, and Reddit. Jessica played a crucial role in YC’s early success, when she was nicknamed the “social radar” because of her uncanny ability to quickly evaluate people—an essential skill when investing in early-stage startups. She’s also the host of the popular podcast The Social Radars, where she interviews billion-dollar-startup founders, and the author of the acclaimed book Founders at Work, which captures the origin stories of some of today’s most interesting companies. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• How Jessica gained the affectionate title of the “social radar”
• Why defensive founders are a red flag
• How to develop your social radar
• What she looks for in founders during YC interviews
• How YC’s early inexperience in angel investing led to the batch model
• Her favorite stories from interviews with Airbnb, Rippling, and more
• Lessons learned from hosting her own podcast
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Enterpret—Transform customer feedback into product growth
• Anvil—The fastest way to build software for documents
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-social-radar-jessica-livingston
—
Where to find Jessica Livingston:
• X: https://x.com/jesslivingston
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicalivingston1/
• Podcast: https://www.thesocialradars.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Jessica’s background
(02:42) Thoughts on being under-recognized
(07:52) Jessica’s superpower: the social radar
(15:11) Evaluating founders: key traits and red flags
(21:00) T…
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Making an impact through authenticity and curiosity | Ami Vora (CPO at Faire, ex-WhatsApp, FB, IG)
23 juni 2024 · 1 uur 24 min
Ami Vora is the Chief Product Officer of Faire, which connects independent retailers and brands around the world. Before Faire, Ami spent over 15 years at Meta, including as VP of Product and Design for WhatsApp (2B+ users), VP of Product for Facebook’s ads system (now $130B of annual revenue), and director at Instagram. She began her career working on developer tools at Microsoft. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why execution eats strategy for breakfast
• Using metaphor to rally teams around one shared goal
• How to build cross-functional relationships
• “Dinosaur brain,” “Toddler soccer,” and the “hill climbing” metaphors
• A tactic for handling disagreement
• Tips for working well with product-minded founders as a product leader
• The story of Ami’s incredible 15-year journey from temp to VP at Meta
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Sidebar—Accelerate your career by surrounding yourself with extraordinary peers.
• Anvil—The fastest way to build software for documents.
• User Testing—Human understanding. Human experiences.
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/authenticity-and-curiosity-ami-vora
—
Where to find Ami Vora:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amvora/
• Substack: https://amivora.substack.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Ami’s background
(02:00) The myth of perfection in success
(07:55) Emotionally connecting with the job
(09:55) Embracing curiosity in moments of challenge
(13:16) Thinking in feedback loops
(17:17) The “dinosaur brain” metaphor in product reviews
(20:20) Strategies for conducting effective product reviews
(26:33) Using metaphors and imagery to communicate your vision
(29:35) The power of having a shared narrative
(31:55) WhatsApp: an example of metaphor in action
(34:44) Emulating people that inspire y…
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Hard-won lessons building 0 to 1 inside Atlassian | Tanguy Crusson (Head of Jira Product Discovery)
16 juni 2024 · 1 uur 54 min
Tanguy Crusson is the product lead for Jira Product Discovery at Atlassian. In his more than 10 years at the company, he has been instrumental in taking several new products from zero to one, including HipChat, Statuspage, and Jira Product Discovery. In this episode, we dive deep into the struggles of innovating and building new products inside a large company. Tanguy shares candid stories about what worked, what didn’t, and his many hard-won lessons learned about how to successfully build 0 to 1. We cover: Lees meer
• Why large companies with so many advantages still fail at creating new products
• Lessons learned from building HipChat
• How to avoid common pitfalls like competitive myopia and premature scaling
• Lessons learned from the acquisition and integration of Statuspage
• Insights from the success of Jira Product Discovery
• Tactics for protecting your “ugly babies”
• The power of “lighthouse users”
• The importance of having a “why now”
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-0-to-1-inside-atlassian-tanguy-crusson
—
Where to find Tanguy Crusson:
• X: https://x.com/tanguycrusson
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanguy-crusson-99832a
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Tanguy’s background
(02:30) Tanguy’s journey at Atlassian
(07:03) The challenges of innovating in large companies
(10:42) Atlassian's high bar for excellence
(12:58) The HipChat story: successes, failures, and lessons learned
(20:47) Lessons learned from building HipChat
(33:49) Statuspage: a journey of perseverance
(39:48) Acquisition challenges and lessons
(47:22) Strategic…
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The paths to power: How to grow your influence and advance your career | Jeffrey Pfeffer (author of 7 Rules of Power, professor at Stanford GSB)
13 juni 2024 · 1 uur 23 min
Jeffrey Pfeffer teaches the single most popular (and somewhat controversial) class at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business: The Paths to Power. He’s also the author of 16 books, including 7 Rules of Power: Surprising—But True—Advice on How to Get Things Done and Advance Your Career. He has taught at Harvard, the London Business School, and IESE and has written for publications like Fortune and the Washington Post. Recognized by the Academy of Management and listed in the Thinkers50 Hall of Fame, Jeffrey also serves on several corporate and nonprofit boards, bringing his expertise to global audiences through seminars and executive education. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Jeffrey’s seven rules of power
• How individuals can acquire and use power in business
• Networking, and how to do it effectively
• How to build a non-cringe personal brand
• How to increase your influence to amplify your impact
• Examples and stories of people building power
• Tradeoffs and challenges that come with power
—
Brought to you by:
• Uizard—AI-powered prototyping for visionary product leaders
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• Heap—Cross-platform product analytics that converts, engages, and retains customers
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-paths-to-power-jeffrey-pfeffer
—
Where to find Jeffrey Pfeffer:
• X: https://x.com/JeffreyPfeffer
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-pfeffer-57a01b6/
• Website: https://jeffreypfeffer.com/
• Podcast: https://jeffreypfeffer.com/pfeffer-on-power/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Jeffrey’s background
(02:54) Understanding discomfort with power
(04:56) Power skills for underrepresented groups
(07:51) The popularity and challenges of Jeffrey’s class at Stanford
(12:21) The seven rules of power
(13:03) Succ…
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Lessons from a two-time unicorn builder, 50-time startup advisor, and 20-time company board member | Uri Levine (co-founder of Waze)
9 juni 2024 · 1 uur 23 min
Uri Levine is the co-founder of Waze, the world’s largest community-based traffic and navigation app, acquired by Google for over $1 billion. He’s also founded nine other companies, been on the board of 20 companies, and advised more than 50 companies. He’s most recently the author of Fall in Love with the Problem, Not the Solution: A Handbook for Entrepreneurs, hailed by Steve Wozniak as the “Bible for entrepreneurs.” Uri is dedicated to creating impactful startups that solve real-world problems and has seen everything from failure to moderate success to big success. In our conversation, we dig into: Lees meer
• Why falling in love with the problem is key to startup success
• The phases of the startup journey and how to navigate them
• Why firing is more important than hiring
• How Waze iterated to achieve product-market fit
• Tactics for telling a compelling story when fundraising
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• Mercury—The powerful and intuitive way for ambitious companies to bank
• LinkedIn Ads—Reach professionals and drive results for your business
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/lessons-from-uri-levine
—
Where to find Uri Levine:
• X: https://twitter.com/urilevine1
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/uri-levine
• Website: https://urilevine.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Uri’s background
(02:50) Falling in love with the problem
(09:03) Signs this is a big enough problem
(10:54) The importance of passion
(12:06) A pivot example
(14:01) Where to find startup ideas
(21:57) Finding product-market fit at Waze
(29:45) The different phases of a startup journey
(36:47) What investors don’t want to hear
(39:53) Fundraising tips
(48:02) How to make your presentations stronger
(50:32) A wild fun…
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Inside Canva: Coaches not managers, giving away your Legos, and running profitably | Cameron Adams (co-founder and CPO)
2 juni 2024 · 1 uur 3 min
Cameron Adams is the co-founder and chief product officer of Canva. Canva is one of the world’s most valuable private software companies, used by 95% of Fortune 500 companies. Since its launch in 2013, Canva has grown to over 150 million monthly users in more than 190 countries, generating $2.3 billion in annual revenue. Prior to Canva, Cameron ran a design consultancy, worked at Google on Google Wave, and founded the email startup Fluent. He is also an author of five web design books and a regular speaker at global conferences. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why they spent a year building their minimum viable product (MVP) before launch
• Why Canva has no managers, and their unique approach to coaching and performance reviews
• Why they encourage employees to “give away their Legos”
• Insights into Canva’s SEO growth strategy
• Their three-pillar framework for integrating AI into their product
• Stories from the early days
—
Brought to you by:
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Attio—The powerful, flexible CRM for fast-growing startups
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security.
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/inside-canva-with-cameron-adams
—
Where to find Cameron Adams:
• X: https://twitter.com/themaninblue
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/themaninblue
• Website: https://themaninblue.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Cameron’s background
(02:00) Reflecting on the success of Canva
(04:50) Reflecting on hard times
(10:01) Canva’s product-obsessed culture
(12:02) Why they prioritize internal promotions and hires
(13:56) What makes Canva unique
(16:31) The concept of giving away your Legos
(21:44) Why Canva has no managers
(24:29) Product management at Canva
(27:56) Reflections on wo…
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The surprising truth about what closes deals: Insights from 2.5m sales conversations | Matt Dixon (author of The Challenger Sale and The JOLT Effect)
30 mei 2024 · 57 min
Matt Dixon is one of the world’s foremost experts in sales and the author of The Challenger Sale, which sold over a million copies worldwide and was a #1 Amazon and Wall Street Journal bestseller. His most recent book, The JOLT Effect, focuses on overcoming customer indecision—one of the biggest challenges to closing deals. Outside of writing, Matt co-founded DCM Insights, a boutique consultancy helping organizations understand customer behavior, and is a frequent contributor to the Harvard Business Review, with more than 20 print and online articles to his credit. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why 40% to 60% of qualified sales opportunities are lost due to customer indecision
• Why dialing up FOMO doesn’t work, and what to do instead
• The “pings and echoes” technique to catch issues early
• The JOLT method for overcoming indecision
• Key lessons from The Challenger Sale
• Practical examples of how to apply these principles to close more deals
—
Brought to you by:
• Enterpret—Transform customer feedback into product growth
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• Heap—Cross-platform product analytics that converts, engages, and retains customers
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/close-more-deals-matt-dixon
—
Where to find Matt Dixon:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewxdixon
• Website: https://www.jolteffect.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Matt’s background
(01:57) The research behind Matt’s books
(06:08) Insights from The JOLT Effect
(10:15) FOMO vs. FOMU
(18:18) An example of selling software
(26:04) The JOLT method Step 1: Judge their level of indecision
(29:41) The “pings and echoes” technique
(34:49) Step 2: Offer a recommendation
(38:36) Step 3: Limit the exploration
(41:43) Step 4: Take risk off the table
(45:58) …
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Unorthodox frameworks for growing your product, career, and impact | Bangaly Kaba (YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Instacart)
26 mei 2024 · 1 uur 42 min
Bangaly Kaba was an early growth PM at Facebook, head of growth at Instagram, and VP of Product at Instacart and is currently Director of Product at YouTube overseeing a global team working on creator monetization. Bangaly has also been a growth advisor to dozens of companies, including Twitter, on the board of multiple companies, and is an active angel investor. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• A simple framework for choosing where to work and what to work on
• The importance of “understand work”
• The “adjacent users” theory and how it can help you drive growth
• Advice for coaching product managers
• Invaluable lessons from his time at Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Uizard—AI-powered prototyping for visionary product leaders
• Mercury—The powerful and intuitive way for ambitious companies to bank
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security.
—
Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/frameworks-for-growing-your-career-bangaly-kaba
—
Where to find Bangaly Kaba:
• X: https://twitter.com/iambangaly
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iambangaly/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iambangaly/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Bangaly’s background
(06:31) Choosing where to work and what to work on
(08:39) The impact factor
(10:53) Evaluating the environment
(15:53) The manager component
(18:27) The skills part of the equation
(23:49) Advice on finding a mentor
(25:42) The power of “understand work”
(31:17) Operationalizing understand work
(37:55) Balancing understand work
(41:25) Managing complex change
(45:26) Effective management of product managers
(51:35) The role of product managers as coaches and team leaders
(54:52) Driving growth through flywheels and value proposition
(01:03:14)…
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Why not asking for what you want is holding you back | Kenneth Berger (exec coach, first PM at Slack)
19 mei 2024 · 1 uur 14 min
Kenneth Berger coaches startup leaders on how to prevent burnout, advocate for their desired lifestyle, and make a meaningful impact on the world. He’s spent more than 20 years in the tech industry, is a former founder backed by top investors, and was the first product manager at Slack. Kenneth’s core mission is to help startup leaders change the world by learning to ask for what they want, living with integrity, and building genuine relationships even with the people they find most challenging. Currently he is writing a book, Ask for What You Want, in which he aims to share his actionable strategies for creating change in the world. In our conversation, we explore: Lees meer
• Why asking for what you want is so impactful
• Three steps to effectively ask for what you want
• Challenges that arise when people struggle to ask for what they want
• Why hearing “no” is a normal part of the process
• The “dream behind the complaint” technique for uncovering desires
• Kenneth’s experience of being fired three times from Slack
• How embracing fear and discomfort is key to getting what you want
• Why discipline is overrated
—
Brought to you by:
• Sidebar—Accelerate your career by surrounding yourself with extraordinary peers
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/ask-for-what-you-want-kenneth-berger
—
Where to find Kenneth Berger:
• X: https://twitter.com/kberger
• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@kberger
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kberger/
• Website: https://kberger.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Kenneth’s background
(04:31) The importance of asking for what you want
(06:36) Challenges that arise when people struggle to ask for what they want
(08:09) A personal exam…
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Be fundamentally different, not incrementally better | Jag Duggal (Nubank, Facebook, Google, Quantcast)
16 mei 2024 · 1 uur 35 min
Jag Duggal is chief product officer at Nubank, a decacorn neobank founded in Brazil. It’s valued at over $30 billion, is bigger than Coinbase, Robinhood, Affirm, and SoFi combined, has 100 million customers (more than Bank of America!) while only operating in three countries in Latin America, and 80% to 90% of its growth comes through word of mouth. Prior to Nubank, Jag was a director of product management at Facebook, a senior vice president at Quantcast, and a product leader at Google. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• How Nubank builds a fanatical user base
• Tactics for driving word-of-mouth growth
• Measuring customer love through the Sean Ellis score
• The importance of strategic clarity
• The role of category design in creating successful products
• Why companies should strive to be “fundamentally different,” not “incrementally better”
• Nubank’s vision for an AI-powered banking future
—
Brought to you by:
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Mercury—The powerful and intuitive way for ambitious companies to bank
• OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/be-fundamentally-different-jag-duggal
—
Where to find Jag Duggal:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jagduggal/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Jag’s background
(04:34) Nubank’s remarkable achievements
(06:01) Nubank’s product development process
(11:23) Nubank’s values
(12:16) Building products people love fanatically
(15:21) The Sean Ellis score
(21:27) An example project using the Sean Ellis score
(25:07) Picking up the phone and calling customers
(28:20) The importance of starting small and iterating
(30:42) Pushing back effectively
(34:10) Uncovering pain points through customer research
(37:53) An example…
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A framework for PM skill development | Vikrama Dhiman (Gojek)
12 mei 2024 · 1 uur 12 min
Vikrama Dhiman heads all things product at Gojek, including product management, design, program management, and research, across Indonesia, Singapore and India. He has over 16 years of experience building internet products, consults with Fortune 500 companies, and is among the most well-known and respected product leaders in all of Asia. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The most common traits among successful product managers
• The 3 W’s framework for PM career growth
• The Four A’s of leveling up in product management
• The right way to push back as a PM
• Common pitfalls that stall PM careers
• Vikrama’s advice for transitioning into product management
• Why intent alone is not enough
—
Brought to you by:
• Uizard—AI-powered prototyping for visionary product leaders
• Webflow—The web experience platform
• Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-framework-for-pm-skill-development
—
Where to find Vikrama Dhiman:
• X: https://twitter.com/vikramadhiman
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vikrama/
• Website: https://www.vikramadhiman.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Vikrama’s background
(03:56) Three common traits among great PMs
(07:09) The first W: What you produce
(15:40) The second W: What you bring to the table
(18:58) The third W: What’s your operating model?
(20:36) Three traits that make you a great PM to work with
(21:49) How to improve the quality and quantity of your outputs
(23:26) The art of the pushback
(26:55) Common factors that impede career growth
(33:39) Vikrama’s personal reflections
(39:33) Choosing which skill(s) to focus on developing
(46:28) The ambiguity of the PM role
(51:47) The 8 axis for PM growth
(56:57) Contrarian corner: Why intent alone is not enough
(59:30)…
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Business strategy with Hamilton Helmer (author of 7 Powers)
5 mei 2024 · 1 uur 8 min
Hamilton Helmer is one of the world’s leading experts on business strategy and the author of the seminal book 7 Powers: The Foundations of Business Strategy, which provides a comprehensive framework for understanding what it really takes to achieve and sustain a competitive advantage. With more than three decades of experience in the strategic consulting industry, Hamilton has advised over 200 companies—from burgeoning startups to Fortune 100 giants—on how to identify, build, and leverage their unique strategic powers. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Potential sources of power that startups should develop from an early stage
• Common misconceptions among companies about the types of power they possess
• How power relates to strategy
• The difference between a moat and a power
• Practical strategies for non-leaders to leverage insights about power and strategy in their work
• AI’s impact on competitive advantages and barriers to entry
—
Brought to you by:
• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• Paragon—Ship every SaaS integration your customers want
—
Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/business-strategy-with-hamilton-helmer
—
Where to find Hamilton Helmer:
• X: https://twitter.com/hamiltonhelmer
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hamilton-helmer-42983/
• Website: https://7powers.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Hamilton’s background
(04:08) When power becomes important
(08:24) How strategy relates to power
(12:09) How power informs strategy
(14:46) The sequence of powers
(21:13) Common misconceptions
(24:39) Network effects vs. network economies
(26:58) Uber’s success
(29:16) Moats vs. powers
(31:12) Strategies for non-leaders to leverage…
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This will make you a better decision-maker | Annie Duke (author of “Thinking in Bets” and “Quit,” former pro poker player)
2 mei 2024 · 1 uur 21 min
Annie Duke is a former professional poker player, a decision-making expert, and a special partner at First Round Capital. She is the author of Thinking in Bets (a national bestseller) and Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away and the co-founder of the Alliance for Decision Education, a nonprofit whose mission is to improve lives by empowering students through decision skills education. In our conversation, we cover: Lees meer
• What Annie learned from the late Daniel Kahneman
• The power of pre-mortems and “kill criteria”
• The relationship between money and happiness
• The power of “mental time travel”
• The nominal group technique for better decision quality
• How First Round Capital improved their decision-making process
• Many tactical decision-making frameworks
—
Brought to you by:
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security.
• UserTesting—Human understanding. Human experiences.
• LinkedIn Ads—Reach professionals and drive results for your business
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/making-better-decisions-annie-duke
—
Where to find Annie Duke:
• X: https://twitter.com/AnnieDuke
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annie-duke/
• Website: https://www.annieduke.com/
• Substack: https://www.annieduke.com/substack/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Annie’s background
(03:53) Lessons from Daniel Kahneman: humility, curiosity, and open-mindedness
(09:15) The importance of unconditional love in parenting
(15:15) Mental time travel and “nevertheless”
(20:06) The extent of improvement possible in decision-making
(24:54) Independent brainstorming for better decisions
(35:36) Making sure people feel heard
(42:41) The “3Ds” framework to make better decisions
(44:49) Decision quality
(55:46) Improving decision-making at First Round Capital
(01:05:…
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Twitter’s former Head of Product opens up: being fired, meeting Elon, changing stagnant culture, building consumer product, more | Kayvon Beykpour
28 april 2024 · 1 uur 35 min
Kayvon Beykpour was the longest-serving head of product at Twitter and was GM of Twitter’s consumer division until the platform was acquired by Elon Musk. He originally joined Twitter in 2015 through the acquisition of his company, Periscope, the largest live video streaming platform at the time. Periscope pioneered technology that inspired Instagram Live, TikTok Live, Facebook Live, and other social networks’ expansion into video streaming. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The story of being let go from Twitter after Elon’s acquisition
• How he turned Twitter’s stagnant culture around
• Kayvon’s thoughts on the limitations of frameworks like Jobs to Be Done
• Why Periscope failed
• Advice for building consumer products
• When to copy, when to innovate
—
Brought to you by:
• Enterpret—Transform customer feedback into product growth
• OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster
• Heap—Cross-platform product analytics that convert, engage, and retain customers
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/twitters-former-head-of-product-kayvon-beykpour
—
Where to find Kayvon Beykpour:
• X: https://twitter.com/kayvz
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kayvz/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Kayvon’s background
(04:31) Getting Elon up to speed at Twitter
(11:34) The story of being let go from Twitter after Elon’s acquisition
(21:09) Changing the product culture at Twitter
(29:44) Building the “hide replies” feature
(32:02) Sacred crows, taking bold bets, and reigniting growth
(34:28) Aquihires and their impact
(42:40) Tips for successful acquisitions and staffing
(47:00) The limitations of frameworks like JTBD
(53:20) Signs you’ve gone too far with a framework
(57:44) Lessons from building Periscope
(01:00:41) Reasons why Periscope failed
(01:07:24) The chal…
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How to build deeper, more robust relationships | Carole Robin (Stanford GSB professor, “Touchy Feely”)
25 april 2024 · 1 uur 27 min
Carole Robin spent over 20 years teaching the Stanford Graduate School of Business course Interpersonal Dynamics, affectionately known as “Touchy Feely.” After leaving Stanford, she founded a nonprofit called Leaders in Tech, which applies the Touchy Feely principles to help Silicon Valley executives build their leadership and interpersonal skills. Carole co-authored the popular book Connect: Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends, and Colleagues, which shares key insights from her decades of teaching these courses. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The benefits of building robust relationships, in life and work
• The 15% rule, and how it will help you build better relationships
• The power of vulnerability
• Examples of how to practice vulnerability
• Why mental models you build early in life hold you back later
• The “three realities” and “the net”
• The art of inquiry
• Practical tips for avoiding defensiveness when getting feedback
• The impact of long Covid on Carole’s life
—
Brought to you by:
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
• CommandBar—AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users
• The a16z Podcast—Featuring conversations with the founders and technologists shaping our future
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/build-robust-relationships-carole-robin
—
Where to find Carole Robin:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carole-robin/
• Email: carolerobinllc@gmail.com
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Carole’s background
(05:17) The importance of building robust relationships
(10:20) The “Touchy Feely” course at Stanford
(13:29) An example of the in-class experience
(17:19) Leaders in Tech: developing interpersonal competence
(21:36) Progressive disclosure and the 15% rule
(24:28) Appropriat…
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Vision, conviction, and hype: How to build 0 to 1 inside a company | Mihika Kapoor (Product at Figma)
21 april 2024 · 1 uur 41 min
Mihika Kapoor is a design-engineer-PM hybrid at Figma, where she was an early PM on FigJam and is now spearheading development on a new product at the company that’s coming out this June. She’s known as the go-to person at Figma for leading new 0-to-1 products, and, as you’ll hear in our conversation, beloved by everyone she works with. Her background includes founding Design Nation, a national nonprofit focused on democratizing design education for undergraduates; spearheading product launches at Meta; and community building within the NYC AI startup scene. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• How to effectively take ideas from 0 to 1 at larger companies
• How to craft a compelling vision
• The importance of vulnerability and feedback
• The role of intuition and product sense in making decisions
• How to practically communicate your vision
• How to balance collaboration and strong opinions
• Advice for building a strong team culture
• Pivoting with grace and enthusiasm
• The current AI revolution and its impact on PM
—
Brought to you by:
• Paragon—Ship every SaaS integration your customers want
• Lenny’s Talent Team—Hire the best product people. Find the best product gigs
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/vision-conviction-hype-mihika-kapoor
—
Where to find Mihika Kapoor:
• X: https://twitter.com/mihikapoor
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mihikakapoor/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Mihika’s background
(04:29) Core attributes of great product managers
(07:34) Crafting a compelling vision
(12:12) The vision behind FigJam
(18:25) Delivering a vision without design or engineering skills
(21:52) Creating momentum
(26:36) The importance of strong conviction
(27:45) Direct communication
(32:48…
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Lessons from 1,000+ YC startups: Resilience, tar pit ideas, pivoting, more | Dalton Caldwell (Y Combinator, Managing Director)
18 april 2024 · 1 uur 21 min
Dalton Caldwell is Managing Director and Group Partner at Y Combinator. Prior to YC, he was the co-founder and CEO of imeem (acquired by MySpace in 2009) and the co-founder and CEO of App.net. During his time at YC, he’s advised more than 35 YC unicorns, including DoorDash, Amplitude, Webflow, and Retool, and has worked across 21 different YC batches. He’s also racked up more than 6,500 office hours with founders. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why founders need to adopt the mindset “Just don’t die”
• The most common reason startups fail
• When to pivot, and characteristics of a good pivot
• The concept of “tar pit ideas” and examples of bad startup ideas
• Why investors say no to startups
• The importance of market size in investment decisions
• The pitfalls of founders over-delegating
• Effective ways to talk to customers
• 20 ideas Dalton is looking to fund
—
Brought to you by:
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• Coda—The all-in-one collaborative workspace
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/lessons-from-1000-yc-startups
—
Where to find Dalton Caldwell:
• X: https://twitter.com/daltonc
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daltoncaldwell/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Dalton’s background
(04:41) The value of simple advice
(07:04) Dalton’s advice: “Just don’t die”
(08:39) Knowing when to stop
(11:45) Deciding to pivot
(14:26) Characteristics of a good pivot
(17:53) Knowing when to pivot
(19:03) Zip’s journey and finding a market
(21:22) Why Dalton says to “Move towards the mountains and the desert”
(23:45) Tar pit ideas
(26:49) Understanding why investors say no
(29:14) The importance of market size
(32:16) Avoiding over-delegation and hiring senior people too early
(36:43)…
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The GitLab way: Kindness, transparency, and short toes | David DeSanto (CPO)
14 april 2024 · 1 uur 22 min
David DeSanto is the chief product officer of GitLab, which is the largest remote-only company in the world. They share many of their team meetings on YouTube, and they’ve grown from being an open-source code management product competing with GitHub to a multi-product platform that covers security, compliance, continuous integration, project management, and deployment tools, many of which are infused with AI magic. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• How GitLab operationalizes transparency
• The philosophy behind recording and sharing team meetings on YouTube
• Their extensive public employee handbook
• GitLab’s core value of having “short toes”
• Challenges and advice for doing remote work well
• Strategies for ensuring effective communication in a remote work environment
• GitLab’s breadth-over-depth strategy
• The company’s unique approach to AI
• The value of using humor in high-stakes conversations
—
Brought to you by:
• Orb—The flexible billing engine for modern pricing
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
• Paragon—Ship every SaaS integration your customers want
—
Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-gitlab-way
—
Where to find David DeSanto:
• X: https://twitter.com/david_desanto
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ddesanto/
• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@david.the.beard
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) David’s background
(04:20) Maintaining an epic beard
(05:29) Why GitLab publicly shares team meetings
(09:49) The GitLab Handbook
(11:30) GitLab’s issue tracker
(14:29) How to successfully build a culture of transparency
(18:11) Benefits of operating with transparency
(19:55) The value of building in public
(21:53) How GitLab implements their core value of kindness
(25:16) What it means to have “short toes”
(27:41) Other…
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A framework for finding product-market fit | Todd Jackson (First Round Capital)
11 april 2024 · 1 uur 27 min
Todd Jackson is a Partner at First Round Capital. Before moving into venture capital, he played a crucial role as VP of Product and Design at Dropbox, guiding the company until its IPO in 2018. Prior to Dropbox, Todd led product management for Twitter’s Content and Discovery teams after selling his startup, Cover, to Twitter in 2014. Before Cover, Todd oversaw product development for Facebook’s Newsfeed, Photos, and Groups. He kickstarted his career at Google as an associate product manager and eventually led product for Gmail, witnessing its growth from beta to 200 million users. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Why product-market fit (PMF) matters
• First Round Capital’s four-part PMF framework
• Level one: Nascent product-market fit
• Level two: Developing product-market fit
• Level three: Strong product-market fit
• Level four: Extreme product-market fit
• Examples of companies at each level
• How to know if you’re stuck at a level, and how to get unstuck
• What to change if you’re stuck: persona, problem, promise, and product
• The goals and challenges at each stage
—
Brought to you by:
• WorkOS—The modern API for auth and user identity
• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
• CommandBar—AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users
—
Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-framework-for-finding-product-market
—
Where to find Todd Jackson:
• X: https://twitter.com/tjack
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddj0/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Todd’s background
(06:07) First Round Capital’s PMF framework
(09:07) Why product-market fit is so important
(11:02) Who can benefit from this framework
(12:55) The product-market fit method
(16:54) Broad overview of the framework
(21:35) Level one: nascent product-ma…
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Bending the universe in your favor | Claire Vo (LaunchDarkly, Color, Optimizely, ChatPRD)
7 april 2024 · 1 uur 28 min
Claire Vo is the chief product officer at LaunchDarkly and the founder of ChatPRD, likely the most popular PM-specific AI product out there. Before LaunchDarkly, she was a longtime chief product officer at Color and Optimizely. Claire has founded and managed two other companies, Pretty HQ and Experiment Engine, the latter of which Optimizely acquired in 2017. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• Knowing what you want in your career and being clear about it
• Finding your zone of genius and how to operate within it
• How to maintain a fast pace in larger companies
• How to make it easy for your boss to help you achieve your goals
• Advice for navigating the tech industry as a woman
• The role of a CPTO and the benefits it brings to organizations
• Why she built ChatPRD
• Tips for building your own AI tools
• The impact of AI on product management and what skills will continue to be important
—
Brought to you by:
• Orb—The flexible billing engine for modern pricing
• Dovetail—Bring your customer into every decision
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
—
Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/bending-the-universe-in-your-favor
—
Where to find Claire Vo:
• X: https://twitter.com/clairevo
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairevo/
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@chiefproductofficer
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Claire’s background
(04:50) How to achieve career progression
(10:11) Avoiding promotion obsession
(13:50) How Claire stepped into leadership roles
(17:24) Operating in your zone of genius
(23:03) How to maintain a fast pace
(27:46) Setting a high bar for quality and talent
(29:54) Normalizing feedback
(33:09) Being a woman in tech
(47:09) The role of a CPTO
(54:19) Building ChatPRD
(59:39) Tips for building a GPT
(01…
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Zigging vs. zagging: How HubSpot built a $30B company | Dharmesh Shah (co-founder/CTO)
4 april 2024 · 1 uur 42 min
Dharmesh Shah is the co-founder and CTO of HubSpot (currently valued at $30 billion) and one of the most fascinating founders I’ve ever met. Dharmesh is the keeper of HubSpot’s Culture Code, built ChatSpot (an AI chatbot built on top of HubSpot CRM) and a game called WordPlay (which grew to 16 million users), and also founded and writes for OnStartups, a top-ranking startup blog and community with more than 1M members. He’s also invested in 100+ startups including OpenAI, AngelList, Coinbase, and Dropbox. In our conversation, we discuss: Lees meer
• The biggest lessons he has learned from building HubSpot
• The importance of leaning into your strengths
• Dharmesh’s data-oriented approach to public speaking
• How he developed HubSpot’s culture code
• The decision-making process at HubSpot
• His contrarian approach to building products
• Why founders and product teams are all fighting the second law of thermodynamics
• How “flash tags” can save your teams time
• How to decide what ideas are worth investing in
—
Brought to you by:
• Explo—Embed customer-facing analytics in your product
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
• LinkedIn Ads—Reach professionals and drive results for your business
—
Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/lessons-from-30-years-of-building
—
Where to find Dharmesh Shah:
• X: https://twitter.com/dharmesh
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dharmesh/
• Website: https://dharmesh.com/
—
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
—
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Dharmesh’s background
(04:20) Fun facts about Dharmesh
(06:31) His data-oriented approach to public speaking
(11:45) Advice for adding humor to your presentations
(15:28) Why he has no direct reports
(18:46) You can shape the universe to your liking
(20:02) Lessons from building HubSpot
(23:43) Contrarian way…