Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 384
Nov 19, 2024 · 17 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyHilary Gridley, a WHOOP product director, argues that AI can help managers become "supermanagers" by scaling their coaching and feedback. She shares five practical strategies, from building custom GPTs that replicate…
SVPG · Marty CaganApr 22, 2019
Apr 22, 2019 · 15 min
Marty Cagan continues his coaching series by describing how managers can help product managers close specific skill gaps identified in an earlier assessment. He covers product knowledge (users, data, industry, business…
SVPG · Marty CaganJan 7, 2009
Jan 7, 2009 · 3 min
Marty Cagan argues that the most important thing a product manager can do is get ideas in front of real target users, since that is where real learning happens. He addresses two kinds of gatekeepers who try to stand in…
SVPG · Marty CaganJan 30, 2011
Jan 30, 2011 · 4 min
Marty Cagan argues that many product companies pride themselves on a 'consensus culture', but in practice this breeds frustration, slowness, risk-aversion and unimpressive products. The root problem, he says, is…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresMay 18, 2022
May 18, 2022 · 5 min
“The product trio leads discovery. But this doesn’t mean that other teams aren’t involved. Being thoughtful about product discovery means staying on good terms with others throughout your company. You might need to get buy-in or support from leadership, you may need to collaborate with user research”
SVPG · Marty CaganOct 31, 2007
Oct 31, 2007 · 3 min
Cagan argues that a great product comes from pairing a real customer need with a solution that has just become technically possible, which makes the product manager and engineer relationship critical. He frames the two…
SVPG · Marty CaganFeb 28, 2011
Feb 28, 2011 · 4 min
Cagan argues that the old model of carefully controlled, consistent product messaging no longer works, because most people first hear about a product from others outside the company's control. Messaging must now engage…
Lenny’s Podcast119 min
Sriram and Aarthi · Mar 12, 2023
Key learnings- Meet peers across your org for coffee with no agenda, asking about their work and who else to meet; two coffees a week compounds…
- Follow up after good first meetings and check in every six months or so; most people never follow through, which wastes the…
- Put your work out publicly (threads, posts, talks, GitHub, video); it acts as a signal that attracts serendipitous opportunities…
SVPG · Marty CaganMay 11, 2010
May 11, 2010 · 8 min
Marty Cagan, a consultant who works mainly with CEOs and product leaders, writes an open letter to designers about common mistakes that undermine their impact on products. He argues that designers should be involved…
SVPG · Marty CaganDec 11, 2014
Dec 11, 2014
Marty Cagan argues that a common and avoidable form of waste in product teams is when one member, often a user researcher, learns something important about customers but the rest of the team doesn't absorb it. Findings…
SVPG · Marty CaganFeb 9, 2010
Feb 9, 2010
Marty Cagan argues that as startups grow and split into functional groups, walls form between product, technology, marketing and design, with product-technology being the most damaging. Teams loyal to their function…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresDec 18, 2012
Dec 18, 2012
Teresa Torres reflects on her first year of blogging at Product Talk, which she started in November 2011. She found that writing sharpened her own thinking, often surprising her with conclusions she hadn't expected, and…
Lenny’s Podcast88 min
Jules Walter · Jan 5, 2023
Key learnings- Build skills one at a time, dedicating a few months to each with weekly practice tied to a concrete outcome rather than just…
- Create a forcing-function outcome when learning something new, then work backwards to the questions you need answered and seek…
- Practice interviewing with dozens of mock interviews, ideally with people skilled at interviewing, since interviewers rarely give…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresApr 8, 2015
Apr 8, 2015 · 6 min
Teresa Torres argues that product managers and designers should not split the work cleanly into 'PM defines the problem, designer owns the solution.' Problem definition and solution generation form a two-way feedback…
Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 252
May 21, 2024 · 13 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyLenny Rachitsky shares how he learned to say no to the constant flow of requests as a solopreneur, arguing that protecting focus on the few things that made you successful is essential. He offers a decision framework…
Lenny’s Podcast132 min
Jason Feifer · Oct 12, 2023
Key learnings- Before pursuing press, define what you need it for, such as awareness, investor credibility, or a new customer segment, the same…
- Choose outlets whose readers can actually buy or use your product; a local business gains little from a national outlet, so…
- Study how a publication covers your category and competitors, then identify the specific writer or editor, since the…
Lenny’s Podcast155 min
Hilary Gridley · Jun 15, 2025
Key learnings- When you feel criticized, skip litigating what others think and instead take one small action that demonstrates the opposite of…
- Use behavioral activation: act first on a small, concrete step, since action tends to lift mood and break negative spirals rather…
- Speak up in meetings with valuable input; fear of saying the wrong thing is the main blocker, and building the skill to take a…
Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 98
Jun 27, 2023 · 21 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyTwo former Reddit leaders outline a four-step framework for building products with a vocal, opinionated user base: measuring trust, listening to representative voices, moving debate into private advisory councils, and…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresJul 1, 2025
Jul 1, 2025
This podcast episode, hosted by Teresa Torres with Petra Wille, examines the difference between organizations that fund projects and those that fund teams. The conversation argues that project-based funding clashes with…
SVPG · Marty CaganSep 3, 2024
Sep 3, 2024 · 4 min
The article introduces a two-way feedback model that the author credits with changing how she coaches people. It argues that one-way "radical candor" style criticism can demotivate, so feedback should give both parties…
Lenny’s Podcast85 min
Matt Dixon · May 30, 2024
Key learnings- Most lost qualified deals end in 'no decision' rather than to competitors, so diagnosing indecision is a core sales skill.
- Customers fear being blamed for a bad choice (messing up) more than missing out, so pushing FOMO late in a deal often backfires.
- Before pushing, judge the buyer's level of indecision using 'pings' that surface whether the hesitation is about choice overload…
Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 26
Jul 21, 2020 · 9 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyLenny Rachitsky addresses the tension managers face between incorporating team input and making firm decisions themselves. He argues that managers must often overrule their teams, and offers five strategies to balance…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresApr 7, 2014
Apr 7, 2014 · 5 min
Teresa Torres recounts a poorly timed home-page redesign that disrupted a live sales demo, and uses it to examine the tension between continuous deployment and the disruption frequent product change causes. She argues…
Lenny’s Newsletter · Free post♥ 16
Oct 1, 2019 · 8 min
Lenny Rachitsky's weekly Q&A newsletter tackles three practical questions: how a startup founder can tell they are approaching product/market fit, what matters most when interviewing for a Director of PM role, and…