HEY World · Jason FriedJan 5, 2026
Jan 5, 2026 · 3 min
“My folks are in town visiting us for a couple months so we rented them a house nearby. It’s new construction. No one has lived in it yet. It’s amped up with state of the art systems. You know, the ones with touchscreens of various sizes, IoT appliances, and interfaces that try too hard. And it’s terrible. What a regression.…”
Product Talk · Teresa TorresJun 18, 2013
Jun 18, 2013
Teresa Torres describes mentoring a design intern with no prior design background, who is learning interaction design over a summer. Her approach blends reading (Don Norman's and Alan Cooper's books), iterative…
Lenny’s Podcast76 min
Kristen Berman · Oct 2, 2022
Key learnings- Pick an uncomfortably specific behavior to change rather than a vague outcome like 'engagement'; teams should align on the exact…
- Map every step required to perform the target behavior (a behavioral diagnosis) and attach the psychological barriers at each…
- Reduce logistical and cognitive barriers to make desired behaviors easier, since people default to the path of least resistance…
@joulee · Julie Zhuo on X♥ 86
The software of the future promises more power and flexibility for more imagination. We started with use-case software, moving to platform software, moving to all-purpose coding agents. Interface design is shifting rightward. A few things to keep in mind for designers: 1. Make the interface…
Lenny’s Podcast58 min
Dylan Field · Jun 30, 2024
Key learnings- Treat intuition as a hypothesis generator: propose hunches, then debate them and test them against data before committing.
- Read customer feedback constantly and dig past stated requests to find the real underlying problem users are trying to solve.
- Ship early to get feedback faster, but hold a firm quality bar, since software can be iteratively improved after launch.
Lenny’s Newsletter · Free post♥ 244
Jun 2, 2023 · 15 min
Sho Kuwamoto, Figma's VP of Product, argues that Figma's success comes from putting customer needs first, a philosophy built into its culture from the early private beta. He describes how customer support became…
Lenny’s Podcast121 min
David Singleton · May 4, 2023
Key learnings- Co-create new products with a small, carefully chosen group of early users, sharing product regularly and expanding only once…
- Engineers at Stripe are expected to act like PMs, so hiring and developing product-minded engineers can reduce the need for early…
- Use friction logging: pick a specific user persona, walk through the product end-to-end, and note every point of friction to find…
Lenny’s Podcast173 min
Jeff Weinstein · Jul 11, 2024
Key learnings- Treat a customer who takes time to complain as a rare gift; respond quickly and personally, since speed signals that you care.
- Before investing in craft or polish, confirm the product solves a burning problem customers would pause their day for; polish…
- Discount feedback from friends and casual users; focus on the specific target customer who has the problem and would pay to solve…
Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 335
Sep 26, 2023 · 15 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyLenny Rachitsky profiles how Linear, the project-management tool, builds its product, based on an interview with CEO Karri Saarinen. The post's core argument is that a small, craft-focused setup works well: no dedicated…
Lenny’s Newsletter · Free post♥ 46
Mar 23, 2021 · 13 min
Katie Dill, a design leader who has worked with hundreds of PMs, offers five practical tips for building a strong product management and design partnership. She argues that PMs and designers share the same goal of…
Lenny’s Podcast99 min
Jessica Hische · Oct 20, 2024
Key learnings- Startups can launch with a quick, internally made logo, then invest in a custom refresh once the company is more stable, avoiding…
- Signs it's time to upgrade a logo include a broader rollout of the brand, printing swag or hosting events, or needing assets that…
- A custom logo or typography makes your brand harder to copy than a freely available font, which matters once success attracts…
The Looking Glass · Julie Zhuo♥ 75
Sep 9, 2026
Subscriber post — summary onlyJulie Zhuo's paid essay opens with Andy Warhol's point that every Coke tastes the same regardless of who drinks it, then uses that idea to frame a discussion of software. The piece appears to argue that digital products…
HEY World · Jason FriedNov 18, 2025
Nov 18, 2025
Jason Fried, co-founder of Basecamp, praises the Concept2 RowErg indoor rowing machine as a benchmark of product quality. He describes its simple, durable construction, low maintenance, easy assembly and compact…
SVPG · Marty CaganMar 24, 2025
Mar 24, 2025 · 19 min
Marty Cagan and Bob Baxley argue that in the Generative AI era, strong product managers and product designers become more essential, not less, but only when those roles are defined by their specific, demanding skill…
SVPG · Marty CaganJan 26, 2007
Jan 26, 2007 · 4 min
Marty Cagan argues that Apple's repeated success in redefining consumer markets comes from product discipline rather than marketing. Written around the iPhone's debut, the essay contends that Apple gets the ordering of…
Lenny’s Podcast99 min
Nancy Duarte · Jun 1, 2023
Key learnings- Make your audience the hero of the story and approach every presentation with empathy, since the audience ultimately holds the…
- Position yourself as the mentor who helps the audience get unstuck, offering them a practical tool and an inner resolve for the…
- Use the 'what is / what could be / new bliss' contrast structure to build tension and longing for a future state, even in short…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresJun 23, 2026
Jun 23, 2026
Teresa Torres talks with Petra Wille about how she and co-organizer Arne design experiences rather than mere events at Product at Heart and related leadership gatherings. Petra explains that intentional sensory details…
SVPG · Marty CaganJul 27, 2007
Jul 27, 2007 · 5 min
Marty Cagan reflects on his first weeks with the original iPhone to extract product lessons. He argues that breakthrough products cannot come from focus groups or pundits, since users only describe incremental…
SVPG · Marty CaganJul 14, 2005
Jul 14, 2005 · 3 min
Marty Cagan uses General Patton's quote about telling people what to do rather than how to do it to argue that product managers should specify outcomes, not implementations. He identifies two failure modes: customers…
SVPG · Marty CaganApr 29, 2008
Apr 29, 2008 · 4 min
Marty Cagan argues that high-fidelity prototypes are one of the most powerful tools for discovering a product that is valuable, usable and feasible. He lists ten benefits, including testing ideas with users before major…
Lenny’s Podcast115 min
Max Schoenig
Key learnings- Prototyping in code forces you to understand the medium, so designers and PMs gain better judgment about what the real product…
- Agency, the willingness to treat your company and role as malleable, matters more than any single skill as AI tools make…
- Start by making things; tinkering builds the belief that the world around you can be changed, which Max sees as the root of…
Lenny’s Podcast106 min
Josh Miller · Mar 19, 2023
Key learnings- Optimize for the feeling you want users to have (joy, speed, surprise, focus) and use metrics as an honesty check rather than the…
- Track one tight engagement metric that captures retention, engagement, and growth together, such as how many users return five of…
- Hire people who show up with heartfelt intensity and something to prove, then give them an ambitious prompt and get out of their…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresApr 2, 2026
Apr 2, 2026
This episode of Just Now Possible features the founders of Banani, a canvas-first AI product designer aimed at giving solo founders and small teams access to tasteful UX. The conversation covers how the company grew…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresAug 14, 2012
Aug 14, 2012 · 3 min
Teresa Torres interviews Laura Klein, who moved from interaction design and user research into a product role at a small company. Laura argues the transition felt natural because good designers and researchers already…