Product Thinking

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.

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Book: Building A StoryBrand
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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.

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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 many tips on how to do just that. And as we improve little by little, we can see more clearly, be more rational, and embrace the truth, wherever it leads. 

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Book: The Scout Mindset
Weekly newsletter: The Scout Mindset: Book Review

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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.

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Weekly newsletter: Optimizing for Teams Rather Than Management
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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
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Weekly newsletter: Arriving Today: Book Review
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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 or become too onerous. But with a few key tips, we can all make the most of our time, our interviews, and our skills we’d like to showcase.

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Weekly newsletter: Take Home Interview Assignments
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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.

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Weekly newsletter: My Top 10 Books of 2021
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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.

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Weekly newsletter: The Importance of Product Strategy
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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
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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 we’ll be back next week with this month’s book review.

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Weekly newsletter: Some Thanksgiving Week Long Reads
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