Valuable Lessons for Product Managers — Part 2
Lessons that are learned only from experience
As promised in my last article Valuable lessons for product managers — part 1, here is part two of the valuable lessons that I have learned over the years being a product manager. When I first started in this role, I dreamt of creating products that will change the world or significantly impact our lives. I started from a background in marketing and advertising, where everything was decided based on numbers. The reach and conversation rate is the only truth about how successful or unsuccessful a particular campaign went. This was one of my strong suits of being data-driven and that brings me to my first big learning:
Innovation needs an entrepreneurial mindset.
Innovation is a change that unlocks new values
Don’t get me wrong, (here) I am, not saying you shouldn't be data-driven. Being data-driven will help you make decisions based on facts. What I am saying is Innovation needs looking beyond data. Analyzing deeper/wider context than what is in front of you, taking a risk, and still doing it.
I always remember one quote from Henry Ford ‘If I asked people what they want, they would say faster horse.’ Your user base will tell you what their problem with the existing feature is, but don't look for solutions or answers from them. They don't know what they want. That's your job to figure it out. To innovate means to fail a lot and…
