Sometimes Product Managers Should Shut Up

The Problem

Recently I was in an early project brainstorming meeting when a big idea was tossed out. The worst possible thing happened: everyone in the room seemed to like it. From my perspective, this idea was bonkers and was drastically outside the scope and goals of the project. Usually, as the fearless defender of all things scope, I speak up right away and squash these sentiments. Sure, it makes me the bad guy, but these people will drive this project right off the rails unless I intervene!

Only this time I didn’t say anything. I let it play out. The idea made it onto the white board and we moved on. As the vision for the project matured, the idea was crossed off (not by me) and unanimously seen as an unrealistic direction given the constraints of the project.

The Lesson

This was a truly significant moment for me because it helped me realize that I needed to trust the people on my team more. Creative solutions require creative exploration and sometimes that means putting a few out of scope ideas on the board.

A talented product team needs someone to lead the project, but they don’t need a babysitter to stomp on every single suggestion that colors outside the lines of the initial scope. PMs who operate this way crush the creativity in brainstorming meetings and drag everyone along forcefully to the vision they have for the project. I’m finding that when I instead make sure everyone is on the same page in terms of the goals and the constraints of the project (technical, resources, time, etc.), the team is self-policing and we arrive at where we need to be collectively, and the end result is much better for it.

Product Manager Problems is an ongoing series where I share real problems I encounter as a product manager and the lessons I take away from them. Follow along if it’s your cup of tea.