In this kickoff episode of season two of Practical Product Management, Leah and Marilyn dive into New Year’s resolutions and their parallels to product management practices. They tackle the common resolutions people set—like losing weight, spending more time with family, and getting out of debt—and reframe them for PMs as trimming backlogs, improving customer and stakeholder relationships, and managing tech debt. The conversation emphasizes the importance of intentionality in meetings, strategic time management, and learning new skills to grow personally and professionally. Leah and Marilyn reflect on flexibility, experimentation, and the value of creating leaner processes in both life and product management.

Key Takeaways

1. Trimming the Fat: Clean up your backlog by removing unnecessary items and outdated features, and keep MVPs truly minimal.
2. Building Relationships: Spend more time with the “family” of your work—customers, stakeholders, and engineering—by breaking down barriers and improving collaboration.
3. Managing Debt: Address tech and relationship debt by honoring commitments, mending connections, and being strategic with budgeting.
4. Intentionality Matters: Reevaluate meeting cadences and communication habits to improve efficiency and focus on high-value activities.

🎄 A Special Holiday Episode to Wrap Up 2024 🎁

In the final episode of Practical Product Management Season 1, Leah Farmer and Marilyn McDonald celebrate the year with a thought-provoking conversation featuring Toni Dos Santos, a B2B product consultant and AI expert. Toni shares his remarkable journey from economics and the music industry to entrepreneurship, offering insights into how startups can find product-market fit faster and build sustainable business models.

This festive season, we reflect on how AI is transforming the world of product management, why solving real problems matters more than chasing trends, and how visionary leadership can light the path for future innovation. Join us as we unwrap the lessons of 2024 and look ahead to a bright, innovative 2025.

Key Takeaways:

1. AI as the Gift That Keeps Giving: Use AI to streamline your workload and focus on what matters most—creating meaningful, human-centered solutions.
2. MVPs: The Perfect Stocking Stuffer: A well-crafted MVP is like the best holiday gift—thoughtful, practical, and exactly what the recipient needs.
3. Visionary Leadership: The North Star: Just like Santa's sleigh, a strong vision guides teams through challenges and keeps innovation on course.

🎅🎄✨

🍂 In this special Thanksgiving episode of Practical Product Management, hosts Leah and Marilyn dive into how product management skills transcend the workplace and enrich everyday life. From communication and prioritization to empathy and feedback loops, they explore how these principles help navigate challenges and build stronger connections outside of work.

The episode features 7 inspiring stories from the PM community, showcasing real-life applications of product thinking. Whether it’s managing family dynamics, planning a garden with a Kanban board, or organizing a dinner party using MVP principles, these stories illustrate how product management skills create clarity and drive results in personal life.

🎙️ Key Highlights:

➡️ Communication builds stronger relationships.

➡️ Prioritization helps focus on what matters most.

➡️ Feedback loops create growth in personal and professional contexts.

➡️ Gratitude for PM skills fosters intentionality and connection.

This Thanksgiving-themed episode is a celebration of the ways product management transforms lives. Tune in to hear practical insights, heartfelt stories, and inspiration for applying PM principles beyond work.