Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career
Lenny Rachitsky
Welcome to "Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career," hosted by Lenny Rachitsky. This insightful podcast dives into the evolving worlds of product development, growth strategies, and career advancement. Each episode features expert guests who share their experiences and tips, making complex topics accessible and engaging for listeners. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur, a seasoned product manager, or simply interested in scaling your professional skills, this podcast offers valuable lessons and practical advice drawn from the front lines of industry success. Join Lenny as he explores essential strategies and tools to thrive in today's dynamic business environment. The podcast covers a broad spectrum of topics, from launching successful products and achieving explosive user growth, to navigating career transitions and leadership challenges. With Lenny's expertise and his guests' diverse perspectives, listeners gain a unique insight into creating impact and fostering personal growth in the tech-driven landscape. Tune in to empower your journey and transform your ideas into remarkable achievements.
Episodes
Why not asking for what you want is holding you back | Kenneth Berger (exec coach, first PM at Slack)
In this insightful episode of Lenny Rachitsky's podcast, Kenneth Berger, executive coach and former first PM at Slack, shares his expert advice on the power of asking for what you want. With over ten years of experience as a founder and seven years as a coach, Berger emphasizes that clearly asking for what you desire significantly increases your chances of fulfillment. He outlines common barriers that prevent people from making their needs known, including fear of rejection and the discomfort associated with assertiveness. Through engaging discussions and practical advice, Berger offers strategies to overcome these hurdles, enhance communication, and ultimately, improve personal and professional relationships.
Be fundamentally different, not incrementally better | Jag Duggal (Nubank, Facebook, Google, Quantcast)
In a candid discussion with Lenny Rachitsky, Jag Duggal, the Chief Product Officer at Nubank, delves into the philosophy of making businesses and products that are not just incrementally better but fundamentally different. Duggal shares his insights from his extensive background in product management across major tech companies like Facebook, Google, and Quantcast, and now at Nubank. The conversation covers Nubank's revolutionary approach to banking in Latin America, emphasizing massive growth through word-of-mouth and a deep focus on customer fanaticism. The episode provides a thorough examination of how Nubank leverages bold, disruptive strategies to outperform traditional banks and maintain high growth without relying heavily on conventional marketing.
"Vikrama Dhiman heads all things product at Gojek, including product management, design, program management, and research, across Indonesia, Singapore and India. He has over 16 years of experience building internet products, consults with Fortune 500 companies, and is among the most well-known and respected product leaders in all of Asia. In our conversation, we discuss: • The most common traits among successful product managers • The 3 W’s framework for PM career growth • The Four A’s of leveling up in product management • The right way to push back as a PM • Common pitfalls that stall PM careers • Vikrama’s advice for transitioning into product management • Why intent alone is not enough"
Vikrama Dhiman, a prominent product leader at Gojek, joins host Lenny Rachitsky to explore key strategies for advancing careers in product management. Dhiman introduces a career growth framework called the "Three Ws": What you produce, what you bring to the table, and what your operating model is. He emphasizes the importance of focusing on output early in your career and gradually integrating impactful strategies as you progress. The episode is rich with insights on navigating the challenges and opportunities within the product management landscape, highlighting the necessity of producing tangible results and maintaining a balance between leadership and hands-on involvement.
Business strategy with Hamilton Helmer (author of 7 Powers)
In this insightful episode, Hamilton Helmer, renowned strategist and author of "7 Powers," dives deep into the concepts of sustainable competitive advantages that businesses can cultivate. Helmer discusses the essence and importance of recognizing and developing "powers"—unique advantages that companies can harness to establish and maintain market dominance. He explains how startups can begin to develop these powers early on, the common misconceptions companies have about their strategic advantages, and the critical timing for implementing power strategies. The episode is filled with actionable insights for both business leaders and individual contributors within organizations, stressing the significance of strategy even before achieving product-market fit.
This will make you a better decision maker | Annie Duke (author of "Thinking in Bets" and "Quit", former pro poker player)
Annie Duke, a former professional poker player and author, delves into the art of decision-making with host Lenny Rachitsky. She discusses her transition from poker to helping companies improve decision-making, sharing insights from her books and her mentor, the late Daniel Kahneman. Annie emphasizes the importance of making implicit knowledge explicit to enhance decision quality, especially in complex, long-term decisions. She critiques common misconceptions about intuition and decision-making, advocating for structured approaches that leverage pre-mortems and decision-making rubrics to shorten perceived long feedback loops and improve outcomes.
Twitter's former Head of Product opens up: being fired, meeting Elon, changing stagnant culture, building consumer product, more | Kayvon Beykpour
In this revealing episode, Kayvon Beykpour, the former longest-serving Head of Product at Twitter, shares his journey from being fired during his paternity leave to transforming Twitter's product culture and meeting Elon Musk. Kayvon details his initial days at Twitter, influenced by his acquisition of Periscope, and how he shifted the company from a risk-averse environment to one that rapidly shipped new features. He discusses the challenges of internal culture change, the impact of leadership transitions, and his strategic decisions in product development, highlighting his role in launching significant features like Twitter Blue and Community Notes. The conversation also delves into his personal meeting with Elon Musk after his acquisition of Twitter, where they discussed the future of the company. Kayvon's insights provide a unique look into the complexities of managing product development within a tech giant undergoing significant changes.
How to build deeper, more robust relationships | Carole Robin (Stanford GSB professor, "Touchy Feely")
In this insightful discussion, Carole Robin, known for her transformative course at Stanford's Graduate School of Business, "Touchy Feely," shares her decades of experience in enhancing interpersonal relationships and leadership skills. She explains the concept of "three realities" which challenges individuals to consider not just their own intentions and actions, but also how these are perceived and felt by others. Carole emphasizes the importance of vulnerability in leadership, revealing that exposing one's true feelings—whether fear, sadness, or frustration—can significantly deepen connections and build trust. The episode explores the power of effective feedback, the potential destructiveness of anger as a 'distancing emotion', and the critical need for personal disclosure to foster genuine interactions.
Vision, conviction, and hype: How to build 0 to 1 inside a company | Mihika Kapoor (Product at Figma)
Mihika Kapoor shares insights into her approach to product management at Figma, focusing on building new products from the ground up. Known for her ability to develop a clear vision, she discusses the importance of aligning team efforts towards a shared goal, even amid the inherent chaos of product development. Mihika highlights the role of Figma's internal hackathons in nurturing creativity and allowing the team to experiment with bold ideas. Her philosophy centers on strong conviction and maintaining enthusiasm through ups and downs, which she believes are key to navigating the complexities of bringing new products to market.
Lessons from 1,000+ YC startups: Pivoting, resilience, avoiding tar pit ideas, more | Dalton Caldwell (Y Combinator, Managing Director)
In this enlightening episode, Dalton Caldwell, a seasoned expert from Y Combinator, shares invaluable lessons gleaned from overseeing thousands of startups. He emphasizes the essential survival mantra for startups: "Just don't die," underscoring the necessity of persistence and resilience. Caldwell discusses the common pitfalls of "tar pit" ideas—concepts that seem promising and receive positive feedback but ultimately trap entrepreneurs without progress. He also covers practical advice on making pivotal business shifts towards areas of expertise, and provides an in-depth analysis on why startups fail, highlighting over-delegation and loss of direct customer engagement as critical errors.
The GitLab way: Kindness, transparency, and short toes | David DeSanto (CPO)
In an engaging conversation with Lenny Rachitsky, David DeSanto, the Chief Product Officer at GitLab, unpacks the nuances of working at the world's largest all-remote company. GitLab's distinctive openness includes sharing internal meetings on YouTube and maintaining a comprehensive, publicly accessible company handbook. DeSanto highlights "short toes" as a metaphor for avoiding sensitivities in collaborative efforts, fostering a workspace where feedback is directed at ideas rather than individuals. This episode not only explores the mechanics of GitLab's transparency but also reflects on its implications for remote work, emphasizing proactive communication and the integration of AI in operational tasks.
A framework for finding product-market fit | Todd Jackson (First Round Capital)
In this episode, Todd Jackson shares insights from his experience in product management and venture capital on how to find product-market fit. The discussion revolves around a structured framework that identifies different levels of product-market fit: Nascent, Developing, Strong, and Extreme. Each level reflects a phase in the startup's lifecycle, from just starting out to having a product that not only meets market needs but does so efficiently and at scale. The episode is rich in anecdotes from Jackson's own career and examples from well-known companies that have navigated the path to product-market fit successfully.