Product Thinking

Being confident is good, being overconfident is better. Right or wrong, and especially when wrong, it’s critical that you maintain that level of overconfidence you’ve carefully developed. With the steps we’ve discussed here, you can continue to work on being more and more overconfident in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. And you’ll be better for it. The world will be better for i...

Camping trips are each a learning experience. So are each time we create a new feature or new product. We add to the tools we have in our packs and the experience we can draw on for using those tools in the field.  With each trip, it’s important to understand what’s working and what’s not, what we need for next time and what to leave behind, and how to get better. You can get lots of insight from...

Tony Fadell led the incredibly successful teams that built the iPod, the iPhone, and the Nest Thermostat. He also led or was part of other teams that failed just as big. So his new book Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Worth Making is now one of my new favorites for building meaningful products. A great product management and UX book review to check out. Book: Build by Tony Fadell Don't...

We review the newsletters and episodes from this month, including product principles, extreme open-mindedness, and our book review on How Innovation Works. We also look at other articles on Free Will and podcasts from Product by Design (my other show) to interviews with CEOs and VCs. And a great thread on dragonflies. Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Weekly newsletter: Extreme Open-...

Moving fast is difficult. Moving fast as teams grow is even more difficult. With a million decisions to make each day, how can you ensure everyone is making the right ones? A good vision and strategy will get you part of the way there, but what about the tiny tradeoffs that happen day-to-day?  By establishing principles and tenets for your teams and products, you can ensure everyone is aligned aro...

Extreme open-mindedness is the mark of great thinkers, especially great product thinkers. We are never done taking inputs and creating something new. The world is ever changing, ever evolving, and we must evolve with it. Our products must evolve with it. Our thinking must evolve with it. We cannot close our minds to what is around us, to the new ideas that surround us, and the possibilities that a...

This month we are reviewing the book How Innovation Works: And Why It Flourishes in Freedom by Matt Ridley. Innovation is the reason why life continues to improve so incredibly fast and why we can expect and hope that our lives will continue to improve. It may not always be linear, but doing more, creating more, and making it more valuable is key to innovation. We need to ensure that we cultivate...

There is an old axiom that you are not your customer. And it’s true, you are not your customer. But you should be. Or at least be indistinguishable from your customer and potential customers because you know them so well. Links Follow Product Thinking and Kyle on Twitter Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Weekly newsletter: You Are Not Your Customer: But You Should Be Or just want to...

The Startup Owner’s Manual by Steve Blank and Bob Dorf is an incredibly useful guide for anyone starting a business or building a new product. Creating all the research and documents suggested in the book will be a ton of work for founders and product people. But the effort will create the foundation for a solid company and solid products. Links Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Twit...

Understanding packaging holistically is a key step in the pricing process. And something that should be revisited regularly. Our world isn’t static. Your market isn’t static. And your product (hopefully) isn’t static. So you need to constantly be thinking about the overall product packaging and pricing to ensure you’re correctly “dividing the value you’re delivering” between you and your customer....

This month we’re reviewing the book Building A StoryBrand by Donald Miller. It’s a relatively short book about using stories, and the elements of good storytelling, to create messages that will help our customers understand our products and services so we can help solve their problems. Links: Book: Building A StoryBrand Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Twitter: @kylelarryevans and @...

Good processes can help us be more efficient and lead to good outcomes. But we shouldn’t be slaves to our processes. We should consistently evaluate them and ensure that they are leading us to the right outcomes. Links Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Twitter: @kylelarryevans and @producthinking Weekly newsletter: Processes Shouldn't Be Ends Or just want to leave a tip: buy me a cof...

The Scout Mindset was a splendid book about what it takes to see the world as it is rather than how we’d like it to be.  The scout mindset mirrors the product mindset in so many ways—being endlessly curious, constantly updating our outlook and views with the latest information, and avoiding bias.  None of us is perfect. We can all improve how we approach our work and our lives, and this book has m...

It is the height of laziness for managers to think that the teams they manage exist to make the job of the manager easier. Whether you manage a single team or an entire company of teams, it is not their job to make your job easy. It is their job to solve customer and business problems, and deliver solutions. Your job is to help them make that happen. Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc...

This month we take a look at Arriving Today by Christopher Mims. It is an excellent deep-dive into our supply chain. Getting items from factories to our door is massively complex, and understanding the process feels like it is only going to get more important. Book: Arriving Today Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Weekly newsletter: Arriving Today: Book Review Or just want to leave a...

As managers, take home work can be a powerful tool to understand potential candidates. As candidates, take home assignments can give you more flexibility and an opportunity to go deeper into certain skills you have. But for take home assignments to be effective interview tools, they need to be structured correctly. Assignments should add meaningfully to the discussion and process, not detract from...

It’s that time again — the end of the year. A time to look back on the good and the bad, and create lists. I enjoyed a variety of books this year, many of which came from lists like this one. So I try to pay it forward by giving you some of my favorite reads from the year. Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Weekly newsletter: My Top 10 Books of 2021 Or just want to leave a tip: buy me...

Having a good product vision and strategy is critical to building and shipping good products, and staying viable as an organization. But it is incredibly difficult to do. That’s probably why most companies and product organizations don’t have one. And why many product teams and leaders fail when creating one. But we can overcome the hurdles to create the right direction for our products. Don't for...

The Alchemy of Us was a fascinating read, with marvellous stories about innovation and technology, and how we’ve both created new inventions and have been shaped by those inventions. As professionals and technologists, it is our responsibility to think through the implications of what we’re creating, and to fix many of the problems that have come before. Book: Alchemy of Us Don't forget to subscri...

It’s Thanksgiving in the U.S. this week, which means many of us will be taking time off of work for several days to eat too much, spend time with family, or otherwise relax, myself included. Though it’s hard to believe we’re approaching the end of the year again already. So while you’re taking a break (or working, whatever the case may be), here are some interesting reads to keep you occupied. And...

I personally won’t be losing any sleep over Zillow failing at house flipping. But there are several lessons we can learn from their failure. To create great businesses and great products, we have to focus, think long-term, and understand it’s as much art as science. Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Weekly newsletter: Learning from Zillow Or just want to leave a tip: buy me a coffee...

This month we are reviewing the book Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz. In order to truly understand people, their problems, and ultimately our society, we have to use qualitative and quantitative data effectively. We have to cut through the noise and the lies we tell ourselves and each other, and get to the tr...

Product discovery is critical for building excellent products. And doing good product discovery interviews is critical for good product discovery. To do that, you need to understand your goals, create a plan, talk to your customers, and share what you’ve learned in order to improve your future discussions and ultimately the solutions you offer. Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Weekl...

Understanding our users and our customers is critical for the success of our businesses and products. The best way to do this is to actually talk to them. Not to pitch them or sell them, but to understand their problems and needs and how they are trying to solve these things. Once we develop this understanding and empathy, we can create the best products and experiences. Book: The Mom Test Don't f...

This week I’m highlighting some interesting articles and podcasts that I’ve been reading and thinking about. A little different than our normal format, but lots of good content, including food shortages, labor shortages, wage shortages, Apple's monopoly and the paradox of choice. Don't forget to subscribe at productthinking.cc Weekly newsletter: Supply Chains, Shortages, Monopolies & More Or j...