5 main rules for Product Manager
Kill the ego
A Product Manager has more responsibilities than other roles. Obligations bring with them responsibilities. This, in turn, is a negative point. Because the young PM sets very big and distant goals for himself. When they do not reach them, they begin to suffer emotionally and psychologically. A product manager who compares himself to others loses sight of the primary goal of product development. He spends all his strength to hear the praise. This culminates in seeing "important work" as "easy to show work". As a result, it is the product and the customer who uses it that suffers.
You are not an expert
Even if it is said that the Product Manager is the "CEO of the Product", it still does not give him authority in all layers of this product. If there are technical questions, it should be discussed with the technical team or Tech lead, and if there are design questions, it should be discussed with the Designers and come to a common denominator. Accept that your teammates have enough experience in their field and know this job better than you, trust them. Only when you have grounds and evidence can you discuss their proposed solutions. If you try to make yourself smart among both the design and the programmers, you will be left behind in the team. The exception here are companies and startups whose organizational structure is not fully formed. Because in such places, Pm carries several duties.
Make decisions
The technology industry moves at the speed of light and waits for no one. A new PM can become overwhelmed by the decisions he has to make every day, spending too much time thinking about non-important issues. If you just write a 5-paragraph text in response to an email asking for confirmation, you're wasting both your time and the other party's time. You need to be able to justify your decisions (with data, experience, and in some cases intuition), make good judgments and maintain the continuity of the chain. Don't slow down the process by dwelling on minor issues longer than necessary.
Find a method to understand how decisions are made. Unimportant tasks (such as answering a non-urgent email, joining a non-essential meeting, etc.) can be postponed, but related tasks that drive product development require immediate attention. For complex decisions, set aside a dedicated time to examine the details and come to a conclusion. Time is a luxury for us PMs, so be careful how you use it. Try to measure the opportunity cost of the time you spend.
Make peace with uncertainty
If there's one word that can sum up the standard product manager experience, it's uncertainty. A PM's personal to-do list rarely remains the same as what he wrote the day before. This is normal. Many things can change during product development, so be able to adapt to changes. Protect your mental health so that you can handle the unexpected issues thrown at you over time.
Ask the right questions
Time is a non-renewable resource and business people don't like to waste it. If you are a client, stakeholder, team, etc. if you are in meetings, try to ask clear, precise questions so that you can use/use the answers you get in product planning. Asking effective questions is like drilling for oil. If you do your research, prepare, and dig in the right place, you'll be fine and your pain won't last long. Before entering meetings, determine the purpose of the meeting.
