Member-only story
My top lessons from startup product management: the product mentality
In part seventeen of this series, I want to go over why you should consider becoming a Startup Product Manager. This includes some of my learnings from being a product manager, and I hope it can be helpful to evaluate whether you want to be a PM at a startup. The product mentality is a series of ten lessons I have learned from working in product management at startups so far. Here is the previous post from this series.
My Top Ten Lessons From Startup Product Management
1. As a product manager, you learn to solve a diverse set of problems. You learn to anticipate problems and discover opportunities to become a better problem solver.
When you become a startup product manager, you develop a mindset of generalist thinking. You are exposed to several different types of problems on a weekly basis, and your brain adapts better to various situations over time. You gain an ability to determine a path to solving almost any problem that you can identify. Product managers either solve problems themselves or enlist the help of their team members. You develop a skill for scavenger hunts, identify patterns by thinking connectively, and learn to solve problems efficiently. This ability will be something you continue to grow over your career.
As a startup product manager, your experience of finding and solving problems compounds over time. You understand how to prioritize and navigate challenges more effectively. You anticipate how to improve. You are always thinking about how to become better. These lessons can be applied to anything you pursue after.
You’re always asking who, what, where, when, and why. Who is the target customer we are solving for? What are their primary pain points? Where can the existing experience be improved or optimized? When do our customers experience these pain points? Why are these problems important for us to solve?
