Dear amazing product leaders,

I've been thinking a lot lately about self-reflection and growth. I spend several hours each week thinking about my work and my life, whether through journaling, conversation with confidants, or yes, therapy. I'm always working on improving in one way or another, trying to shape myself and my life to what I want it to be.

Sometimes, one of these leads to an aha moment, a moment of clarity where I see myself in a new way. I wouldn't call this experience fun, but I'd call it growth. And like Jocelyn Miller says in the first episode of season 4 of the Product Science Podcast, growth is uncomfortable. My take on that is that it's ok, even good, to be uncomfortable sometimes, as long as it's in service of a greater goal.

So this issue's theme is self-reflection and growth. I hope you find inspiration in it.

Keep growing,

Holly

The Jocelyn Miller Hypothesis: Growth is Uncomfortable

The Product Science Podcast

I had such a great time talking with Jocelyn Miller for the first episode of Season 4.  We cover the difference between working in product at places like Google and Amazon versus smaller companies like Zazzle, what role fun should play in our work, and how Jocelyn helps clients find more fulfillment in their careers.

The Feedback Founders Need to Hear - How to Grow Yourself to Grow the Company

First Round Review

In this article, First Round interviews Alisa Cohn about the things she's learned coaching startup founders and CEOs over the past 20 years. It's full of tips for effective self-reflection and ways to grow yourself.

John Cutler's Product Leadership Expertise

Common Cog

In this interesting piece, Cedric Chin performs Applied Cognitive Task Analysis on John Cutler in an attempt to extract knowledge about Cutler's product expertise. John Cutler is one of the most prolific authors I've seen, and as a Product Evangelist at Amplitude for the past several years, he's had the opportunity to help and learn from hundreds of product orgs. Check out this article for some insight into differences across product orgs around the world.

Podcast Season 4 Has Begun

We're working hard on Season 4! In addition to the episode above, check out the second episode or one of these past episodes:

• The 2nd Tommi Forsstrom Hypothesis: Effective CPOs are Executives First and Product Leaders Second
• The Heather Samarin Hypothesis: Customer-Driven Organizations Develop Products People Actually Want
• The Petra Wille Hypothesis: True Product Leaders Focus on the Development of Strong Product People

I was on One Knight in Product with Jason Knight

I had a blast talking truth with Jason Knight on his podcast, One Knight in Product. We cover so many fun topics, including:

• The mission behind H2R Product Science
• The 5 step Product Science Success Path
• Whether life is like the product books
• Using the Built/Learned/Planning demo

Check it out here or on your favorite podcast platform!

I'm Speaking at Dubai UX Design Conference!

I'm excited to be speaking on the topic of High Impact Product Design Experimentation at the Dubai UX Design Conference, May 16-17, 2022. Check it out here.

Brought to you by H2R Product Science

Our team at H2R Product Science partners with startup founders and product leaders to share The Product Science Principles and the accompanying framework, the Product Science Method, which I've developed over my time in tech startups. Through our coaching and consulting work, we help our clients figure out which product growth opportunities they should pursue and build the product management skill to deliver on their goals. Reach out if you'd like to explore working together, whether as a client or a team member!

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