🔨 I've a productivity addiction, what about you? / PM Snacks #57

Learn how to fix execution problems, how to write better (especially important in a growingly remote world), and how to recognise a "productivity addiction"

I just opened up the first PM position @uku.wtf. This job involves a lot of creativity and discovery, while offering the opportunity to join a true product-centric company. Learn more.

1️⃣  12 contrarian thoughts on product management
Mar 2022 • 4 min read • #execution #manageyourself
I share many of the beliefs presented in this post, some of them I learned the hard way, others had a big impact on the way I work. My favorites are number #4, #6, #8 and #12. On the last one: according to me it’s more about the expectations you create: what level of preparation is acceptable? which channels do you read & how often? What about you?

2️⃣  Ten Things Getting in the Way of Your Execution
Mar 2022 • 8 min read • #execution
Here is quite an exhaustive list of root causes that can explain why execution sucks at your company. Learning to recognize them is definitely the first step to get things moving again. Be sure to read. Actually, be sure to read the entire blog!

3️⃣  Writing Tips for Product Managers
Jul 2020 • 4 min read • #manageyourself #execution
This is a short & actionable article, with advice like “Adverbs and adjectives… are imprecise and don’t contribute to decision-making… they weaken the writer’s point”. Make sure to read it & maybe even use some of the recommended tools like Grammarly or iAWriter/Hemingwayapp, to facilitate editing your texts. I will surely try to apply it to this newsletter 😅

4️⃣  Productivity addiction: when we become obsessed with productivity
Mar 2022 • 6 min read •  #manageyourself
Since I started a company, I can really feel the effects of this productivity trap: I don’t like “wasting” time (be it an ill-prepared meeting or chitchatting w/ colleagues), it’s hard not to work on week-ends and sometimes I rush other activities to get back to work… I’m not proud of these behaviours but fortunately the author has a few recommendations if you feel the same 👇
1/ make space for self-reflection (journaling or quiet time). Question the rewards you are after, the patterns that lead you to hurtful behaviour, and so on
2/ take more breaks. Actively deconstruct your notion of time and go for a walk/run/errand during working hours.
3/ create your own system. In my case it’s a notion dashboard summarising my monthly objectives, this week’s objectives & my todo list. I stick everything on the same page to remember the context. Every night I finish by listing what has to be done the next day. Every Friday I do the same for next week tasks. I like to stop working with a clear mind.

⏳  Building Products at Airbnb
Mar 2021 • 8 min read • #productculture #1yearago #pmsnacks33
I shared in edition #4 a few differences between Google & Apple product cultures. Here is a cool series by Ken Norton deep diving into leading companies. The first article is about Airbnb & here are some take aways: 
1/ They are not design-led, like any other companies, progress is achieved through team effort (often led by PMs). But they are definitely vision-led (= clear intent) and they go as far as creating storyboards (or movies) to visualise it
2/ Their culture is more top-down than most people would think. Nothing wrong about that. But PMs who thrive need to be good at relationship building & storytelling.

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A warm welcome to the 38 new subscribers, we are now 1984 readers strong!

Thank you for reading me.
Have a great week!

Olivier Courtois 
10y+ in product, co-founder of 🥕 uku.wtf, coach & advisor

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