I never thought there will be the day when I start a blog. I am a terrible writer. If you ask me what was the worst torture of my life that I have voluntarily signed up for — it was writing a thesis. I did two Master’s and I very well remember those long days when I was literally squeezing words out of myself.

So I kept pigeonholing this idea while my notes kept growing. That — on the opposite — is something I am really good at. I take short notes anywhere and at any time. I find this quality one of the most important supports for creative people. And I said to myself that if I ever gonna start a blog — I should be enjoying it.

Why product creation?

I was working on digital products for more than 10 years in 4 different countries and two years ago I’ve reached the point when I started mentoring and coaching startups. The shit that I’ve seen since then would be enough to keep this blog running for the next 5 years. From the best dream startups everyone would like to work for to the worst mad circuses that would make you question reality once you are inside. I had a chance to work with the most talented people in this entire world at the same time dealing with megalomaniac dictators whose sole ambitions slowly destroyed businesses like rust.

I believe that whatever you work on — whether it is an API, a new blanket or a dating app — has to be created having end user in mind and must be treated as a product. I call this creation because management just doesn’t seem precise enough — it has to be initiated correctly before you can manage it.

Ok but why millennials?

Being a millennial myself, I‘ve been questioning status quo since I remember myself. The establishment always gave me a hard time and even though they had many things to learn from, I could never accept this stubborn manner to explain simple concepts in the most complex wording. Look at all these modern product/project management guidelines like PMP and PRINCE2. Is it possible that any 20 year-old would voluntarily read any of them unless forced by specific job requirements? I doubt so.

At the same time, my consulting practice shows that it’s mostly millennials who having no experience and willingness to learn from others believe they can create the next Shazam and iPod just because they are so creative and open-minded. And it’s a shame when a really bright and potentially impactful idea gets screwed up by not following the process that has a reason to exist for decades.

In this blog I will teach you how to create good products in simple words, the words that the dumbest guy from your graduate school would understand. I always hated those authors that explain a very simple matter in the most complex wording as if they are fucking James Joyce. Or they are trying to be overly nice because they are afraid of criticism or whatever. I am not and this is my first advice which also works for products: being responsive towards criticism is the best way to improve. I am infinitely grateful to my life mentors who sometimes grabbed me by the collar like a dog and threw me into that pile of shit I just made.

So I will be tough on you. But most importantly you have to be tough on yourself. If at any point you get insulted by what I say — close this tab, go to your mom and listen once again what a talented person you are. This blog is not for those who want to stay a loser. It is for those who want to step over themselves and achieve something.

Let’s dive straight in.

So, why nobody downloads your shitty app?

Is it because you don’t have a fuckillion of money that other companies are lucky to have? Or maybe you have the wrong people on board? We can come up with another 1000 reasons why you are not break-even after 5 years of burning your cash and people but the real reason of your failure is you.

Yes, I will repeat it once again. If you have a product-oriented company and it doesn’t grow — YOU most likely haven’t done your homework. Being woken up in the middle of the night, you should be able to answer at least the following questions without a delay:

Who are your customers?

What is their regular day like without your product?

What kind of change does your product bring?

Who are your competitors?

What is your unique value proposition?

And many many more in fact. The sad truth is that most newborn CEOs and product managers hardly have any answers to these questions. My typical dialog at accelerator is:

-So what’s the killer feature of your product?

-Mmmh our high-performance sensor is able to capture a 0.000000(1) microshitster change of electromagnentic field in particle colliders of the next generation.

-Ok great but how do I benefit from it as your customer?

All you hear in response is either silence or the same sentence rephrased in a form that doesn’t bring any clarity whatsoever.

SERIOUSLY???

You’ve spent N months and N millions on developing a product and you still don’t know what kind of problem it solves? I am not even asking how exactly it solves — we are not that far yet — but

How can you possibly create a solution to an unknown problem of an unknown customer?

I can’t say how many times I have repeated this phrase but I’ll never get tired: if you don’t know whose problem you are solving, you can never come up with a solution. Most startup failures are hidden in this simple statement.

You have an insane churn rate? You are not break-even after 10 years in business? A competitor that launched 6 months ago already gained a 20% market share? Remember: nobody would buy your product just because you worked very hard on it. If it doesn't solve their problem — you’re out. This is how market economy works; unless you live in a dictatorship with a state-regulated economy and lucky enough to be the local monopolist, you have to listen to your customers and bring the solution they are CRAVING FOR.

In the next chapters I will start digging into details of how successful products are initiated and executed. In the meantime get comfortable with the thought that your intuition is not enough to create a successful product. You will have to sweat and bleed it out.

Brainwasher of the day

Successful products are always customer-centric.

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