What you Produce: Outputs first (shipped work), then outcomes (goals owned), then impact
What you Bring: The artifacts that prove contribution: PRDs, specs, strategy docs, briefs
Your Operating Model: How you work with others—collaboration, communication, decision-making
Top performers master all three. Most PMs excel at one or two
"Really strong product managers are good at usually two of the three things. The ones who rise and when they are rising, they are performing well on all three axes."
Foundations
Start with Outputs, Never Stop
Early career trap: Jumping to strategy before mastering execution
Output mindset: Ship products, analyze experiments, own go-to-market briefs
The craft: Every artifact matters—PRDs, product notes, design briefs, specs
The shift: As you grow, add outcomes and strategy, but never abandon outputs
Senior truth: Even directors and VPs should be writing PRDs and shipping small wins
Impact on ImpactWorking on a cool product isn't enough. You must also demonstrate you were essential to that success through the artifacts you produce.
The Gojek MomentVikrama lost a major leadership opportunity to a peer—not because his product failed, but because that PM was better at outputs: cleaner launches, sharper experiments, better collaboration on execution.
Leveling Up
The Eight Dimensions PMs Own
Data & Metrics: Can you set the right north star? Interpret experiments?
Design & Research: Do you shape briefs? Partner with researchers?
Technology Skills: Can you translate with engineers? Understand technical constraints?
Strategy: Can you connect product to company vision and goals?
Communication: Can you write clearly? Present convincingly to stakeholders?
Collaboration: Do teams want to work with you? Do you elevate others?
Organizational Skills: Can you run efficient processes and keep teams aligned?
Community: Are you building networks both inside and outside the org?
"You can't improve on every single area. Pick the area with maximum leverage for you and improve that particular aspect and then move on to the next area."
Stakeholder Art
The Three Tenets
Raise difficult issues without being difficult to work with — Surface truth without ego
Bring important topics without drawing importance to yourself — Humble leadership
Get decisions made, not make all decisions yourself — Empower, don't dominate
The Operating Model TestEasy to say, hard to live. These three tenets will be your struggle at every level of your career. That's the point.
Contrarian Truths
What Actually Limits PM Growth
✗Cool product area = automatic growthINSTEAD →✓ Growth comes from mastering craft + showing your contribution through artifacts.
✗Build strategy before executionINSTEAD →✓ Start with flawless execution. Strategy and influence come after you've earned credibility.
✗You need to be "high agency" to succeedINSTEAD →✓ Be a mindful agent. Culture, humility, and stakeholder trust matter as much as drive.
✗Once you're senior, you stop learningINSTEAD →✓ The story you tell yourself becomes your ceiling. Stay humble. Stay learning. Always.