Lenny’s Podcast88 min
Jonny Miller · Jan 28, 2024
Key learnings- Calm the body first: changing breath and physiological state tends to shift thoughts and feelings faster than trying to reason…
- Use a longer exhale than inhale (e.g., 4-4-8 breathing) to downshift; a longer inhale or energizing breath can raise activation…
- Build a daily practice of two to five minutes in the morning so calming techniques come naturally in stressful moments, since…
SVPG · Marty CaganApr 28, 2020
Apr 28, 2020 · 4 min
Marty Cagan responds to a critique of the Spotify model of scaled Agile by arguing that the critic overlooks Spotify's business outcomes and Fitbit's decline after adopting the process the critic favored. He contends…
SVPG · Marty Cagan
The source text provided is only navigation and site chrome from the Silicon Valley Product Group articles index, with no body content from the essay titled "Experts Lead Experts." Because the actual argument cannot be…
Lenny’s Podcast112 min
Nan Yu · Jan 30, 2025
Key learnings- Speed and quality aren't a trade-off; true craftspeople move fast because they are competent, so aim to get a workable version…
- Treat the first version as a best guess to test key assumptions, not a polished deliverable, and release it to internal users…
- Refuse feature requests that add customization for middle-manager reporting at the expense of individual contributors' workflows…
Lenny’s Podcast93 min
Chip Conley · Aug 3, 2025
Key learnings- When working for a founder, open meetings by aligning on the goal, what defines success, and what the meeting must accomplish…
- Build credibility with demanding leaders by getting close to customers, such as visiting hosts in their homes, so your input…
- Keep decks short and principle-focused so they still make sense when a combustible founder derails the meeting.
Lenny’s Podcast91 min
Jess Lachs · Jul 14, 2024
Key learnings- Treat analytics as a business-impact function with a seat at the table, answering 'so what do we do now?' rather than only…
- A central analytics org with pods mapped to partner teams keeps talent bars consistent, creates growth paths, and avoids…
- Carve out intentional time for self-directed deep dives, such as hackathons, because exploratory work is the first thing to slip…
@lennysan · Lenny Rachitsky on X♥ 59
“If we truly believe that AI is changing how we work, then ICs should get paid more than managers, because an IC can drive more impact than a manager could in the pre-AI system.” — @ElenaVerna
@shreyas · Shreyas Doshi on X♥ 272
The most important idea that most product people forget somewhere along the way: Everything you do with your product originates in your thinking, so the best (and really the only) path to consistently build successful products is to greatly improve the quality of your thinking.
Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 278
Jun 17, 2025 · 14 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyLenny Rachitsky follows up his tech worker sentiment survey by investigating how people who avoid or effectively manage burnout do it. Drawing on open-ended video surveys and interviews, he introduces ARMOR, a five-part…
Product Talk · Teresa TorresApr 1, 2015
Apr 1, 2015 · 6 min
“Jim, like many product mangers, spends most of his day with his engineering team. He clarifies requirements, triages bugs, and seeks out hidden dependencies. Sally, on the other hand, spends most of her time with customers. She's understanding their context, uncovering pain points, and identifying opportunities to delight. What’”
SVPG · Marty CaganAug 9, 2019
Aug 9, 2019 · 8 min
Marty Cagan argues that real collaboration in an empowered product team is very different from how many product managers assume they work. It is not consensus, democracy, artifact-producing requirement handoffs, or…
The Looking Glass · Julie Zhuo♥ 17
Sep 16, 2025
Subscriber post — summary onlyAn open, personal letter from a manager to a younger, overconfident college graduate she once worked with. The author reflects on how the young person's arrogance was hard to see past at the time, and frames the piece…
Lenny’s Podcast74 min
Laura Modi · Apr 13, 2023
Key learnings- Build culture first: if the team internalizes that the supply side or users come first, growth and better tools tend to follow.
- Connect your brand to the top worries your customer already has, rather than trying to convince them they have a new problem.
- When a crisis threatens customers, be willing to pause growth, like Bobbie did by turning off its site to protect current…
Lenny’s Podcast86 min
Graham Weaver · Jan 16, 2025
Key learnings- Ask yourself what you would pursue if you knew you wouldn't fail, then work backward from that goal to find a path toward it.
- Write down your limiting beliefs and fears on paper; once externalized they lose power and become concrete to-do items you can…
- Build accountability through an executive coach, a like-minded friend, or a weekly written form tracking goals and next steps.
Lenny’s Podcast80 min
Adam Fishman · Oct 13, 2022
Key learnings- Use a competency model (growth execution, customer knowledge, growth strategy, communication and influence) to hire for a…
- Before hiring a growth leader, agree on what you need and where the gaps are, and use the model as a reverse interview to see…
- Give specific feedback by naming the exact competency to improve, instead of vague comments like 'be more strategic'.
produxlabs.com · Melissa PerriJul 9, 2020
Jul 9, 2020 · 3 min
The article argues that Chief Product Officer roles have multiplied since 2020 as companies become more customer-centric, but the title is inconsistently applied and poorly defined. It distinguishes the CPO, who sets…
SVPG · Marty CaganSep 30, 2016
Sep 30, 2016 · 24 min
Marty Cagan revisits his earlier essay on the product manager role, arguing that confusion persists and that the role is more critical than ever. He contrasts three working modes: escalating everything to the CEO (a…
Substack · Shreyas Doshi♥ 315
May 31, 2026
Shreyas Doshi argues that many ambitious mid-career people in tech feel dissatisfied not because of a single failure but because their career growth has stalled relative to their own expectations. Drawing on years of…
SVPG · Marty CaganJun 1, 2016
Jun 1, 2016 · 4 min
Marty Cagan pays tribute to Bruce Williams, a Silicon Valley marketing leader and close friend who died of pancreatic cancer in May 2016. The essay uses Williams's life to explore two topics important to product people…
SVPG · Marty CaganJun 9, 2021
Jun 9, 2021 · 5 min
Marty Cagan argues that the product management field suffers from a widespread problem: many people become product managers after only a Certified Scrum Product Owner course, which teaches delivery-process rituals…
SVPG · Marty CaganOct 11, 2021
Oct 11, 2021 · 5 min
Marty Cagan argues that product teams should actively seek out critical, negative feedback, since qualitative insight about why users don't adopt, buy, or stay is more valuable than most quantitative data. He observes…
Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 101
Mar 22, 2022 · 19 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyLenny Rachitsky lays out a practical playbook for interviewing product managers: a multi-stage funnel with screens, a full-day loop, and panel debriefs. He covers which skills to test, sample questions, how to design…
Lenny’s Newsletter♥ 46
Jun 29, 2021 · 6 min
Subscriber post — summary onlyLenny answers a new PM's question about how to judge day-to-day performance by proposing three priority-ordered checks: whether the team delivers business impact, whether the individual contributes to strategy and team…
SVPG · Marty CaganJun 21, 2023
Jun 21, 2023 · 4 min
Marty Cagan argues that as companies shift from stakeholder-driven feature teams to empowered product teams, the relationship between product teams and stakeholders must change on both sides. Creating a solution…