You just got asked to Product Manage a sweet new piece of software, and you're pumped! And why shouldn't you be? Product management is one of the most rewarding, challenging, and, at times, exhilarating jobs a person can get. But it is also one of the most difficult ones.
Ever since joining HubSpot’s Product team a year ago, I have been collecting thoughts, advice and guiding principles from team members who inspire me. I finally got around to go through all my notes and highlight some of the lessons that have helped me thus far. Whether you are in product management, design or the general startup world, I hope you also find these helpful.
If the product needs a bit more to effectively convey the vision for its use and future, then invest that work because you will get a high return on it. This was one of the first lessons I learned from Christopher O’Donnell.
Here is how I started looking at this. Often times you can offer additional functionality with a simple button that performs the needed action. And maybe pressing that button will make sense for the user. And maybe it will be a natural part of the flow you want someone to go through. But does that flow become a building block for your larger vision?
