Working notes from product people

Ask the people who’ve done it.

Q:
Answers quote and cite the source notes

01 — TopicsFourteen drawers, sorted.

3 more drawersBrowse all 14 topics →
Open drawer · 06

Leadership & management

560 notes · 139 people · 2005–2026
Lenny’s Podcast100 min

Jenny Wen

Jenny Wen · Mar 1, 2026
Key learnings
  • Classic linear design process (research, diverge, converge) is breaking down as engineers ship prototypes quickly; designers…
  • Design work is splitting into two modes: supporting implementation and setting a vision, where the vision now often spans three…
  • Designers can use coding tools to do last-mile polish and prototype in real code, rather than waiting on engineers for every…
Lenny’s Podcast98 min

Building a long and meaningful career

Nikhyl Singhal · Jun 11, 2023
Key learnings
  • Think about your career as a product: work backward from the end state you want, and plan several steps ahead rather than…
  • Pursue a diverse set of experiences across pre-product-market-fit, scaling, inside-the-building and outside-the-building…
  • Early in your career, pick a lane of expertise (domain, crafting, market, organizational, growth) and build a story of what you…
@joulee · Julie Zhuo on X♥ 228
Too many teams are doing AI transformation poorly, so I wrote down everything I have learned in my journey and in chatting with many other leaders. A long read, so get your coffees.
Lenny’s Podcast71 min

Become a better communicator: Specific frameworks to improve your clarity, influence, and impact

Wes Kao · Apr 6, 2025
Key learnings
  • Spend less time on why an idea matters and more on the specific how: concrete steps, nuances, and examples that let people apply…
  • Cut backstory and preamble; start right before the juicy part of the story, as Wes puts it, 'right before you get eaten by the…
  • Recognize that formats like Twitter or keynotes allow more BS, while courses and cohort settings demand rigor because students…
Lenny’s Podcast95 min

The paths to power: How to grow your influence and advance your career

Jeffrey Pfeffer · Jun 13, 2024
Key learnings
  • Political skill is linked to higher pay, promotions, job satisfaction and lower stress, so treating influence as a learnable…
  • Get out of your own way: stop pre-emptory apologizing, stop doubting you deserve your role, and avoid leaking disrespect or…
  • Prioritize competence and respect over being liked; you were hired to get a job done, so doing the needed work matters more than…
Lenny’s Podcast122 min

Vision, conviction, and hype: How to build 0 to 1 inside a company

Mihika Kapoor · Apr 21, 2024
Key learnings
  • Build a vision that ties together a user pain point, a proposed solution, and a proof point such as a testimonial or prototype…
  • Pull research, design, and engineering feasibility into the vision early so it reflects what users feel and what the team can…
  • Lean on prototypes and mocks before a project gets approved; seeing and feeling the future often persuades more than…
@shreyas · Shreyas Doshi on X♥ 241
ON TOUGH TIMES AT WORK People are different, and different people need different things to get them through tough times at work — times when work is stressful, or you’re dealing with annoying politics, or just when the motivation tank is running low. For some, it’s energizing

02 — FrameworksModels, annotated.

All frameworks →

03 — PeopleWho wrote the notes.

All 10 people →

04 — QuestionsAnswered from the notes.

All 32 questions →

Where notes come from

NewsletterLenny’s Newsletter106 free posts, with a longer excerpt.
Subscriber postsSummary only229 paid posts: our summary, at most two short quotes, and a link.
PodcastLenny’s Podcast322 episodes, each with 5–8 key learnings and timestamps.
EssaysSVPG · The Beautiful Mess499 essays from Marty Cagan and John Cutler.
Substack & blogsShreyas · Julie · Jason · Hiten577 essays and posts from independent writers.
XPosts on product58 posts, filtered for product relevance.