Speed & Quality:
The False Tradeoff

Nan Yu

Head of Product, Linear

2024

The Insight

Competence Looks Like Speed

"You can basically tell how good the output is going to be of their work product by how fast they're going. If they're going really fast and they're not being sloppy, it's because this is second nature to them."

Speed and quality are correlated, not opposed
Experts move fast because excellence is second nature
The only way to iterate is by moving quickly
More iterations = better product

Framework

The 10% Rule: Release Early, Test Often

110%Working
Internal DemoBeta
PartnersGA
Release

10%

Time to Working Version

More Iterations vs. Late Release

∞

Feedback Loops Unlocked

Week 1 (10%): Ship something that works and tests your hypothesis internally
Don't wait for 50% done to validate; you're too invested by then
Use internal users first (Linear uses its own product daily)
Graduated circles: internal → beta partners → wider beta → GA
First version doesn't need to be perfect, just functional

The Core ShiftNo expectation the first version is great. It's your best guess. Some need minor tweaks, some need major rethinking. But you know fast.

Product Philosophy

Protect the IC. Say No to Middle Managers.

The misaligned incentive: Managers want detailed reporting; ICs want simple workflows
What Linear refuses: Customization features for middle management at the cost of IC experience
The bloat trap: One "yes" to reporting customization = cascading feature sprawl that kills engineering joy
The lever: If ICs disengage because tools are painful, no amount of manager reporting matters

The False Trade-off

Sales pressures you to add a feature for the buyer. But the IC never has to use the tool. They choose. One bad workflow = disengagement.

The Real Win-Win

Find where incentives are misaligned. Then solve the actual underlying problem instead of papering over it with features.

Playbook

Ask Like You're Digging for Emotion

Find the specific person with the problem (not a generalized ask)
Understand what emotion they're trying to avoid or achieve
Ask follow-up questions until you feel the same frustration they do
Your mental model of the user is your most valuable asset

Nan's customer talk philosophy"My goal is to feel bad in the same way that customers feel bad." Only then do you truly understand what to build.

The Creative System

How to Think Beyond Your Constraints

✗Speed means sloppy & rushedINSTEAD →✓ Speed is a signal of competence & mastery. The fast ones are the good ones.

✗Wait until 50% to test your ideaINSTEAD →✓ Release at 10%. Test immediately. You're too committed at 50%.

✗A bigger feature set wins dealsINSTEAD →✓ A joyful IC experience wins retention. Protect the user over the buyer.

✗Ask users what they want to buildINSTEAD →✓ Ask users what emotion they're avoiding. Build for that emotion.

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