TE
TechEcho
Home24h TopNewestBestAskShowJobs
GitHubTwitter
Home

TechEcho

A tech news platform built with Next.js, providing global tech news and discussions.

GitHubTwitter

Home

HomeNewestBestAskShowJobs

Resources

HackerNews APIOriginal HackerNewsNext.js

© 2025 TechEcho. All rights reserved.

Ask HN: Good resources to become a better Product Manager?

12 pointsby cgb223about 4 years ago
I’m trying to improve my skills as a PM to better work with my team, customers, and help define the best features, goals, and products to help my company grow.<p>Given that Product Management is a little bit more nebulous in terms of specific skill sets, I’m looking for great books, blogs, videos, or courses that will help me become a better PM, not just for myself, but for my team.<p>What help you become a better PM?<p>How did you take your skills to the next level?

5 comments

coopremeabout 4 years ago
Learn the technical stuff you are avoiding. ideas are cheap, execution is hard. Understanding the depth of the problem your team faces will make you a better project manager, increase their happiness by knowing they’re working for someone with technical depth, and ultimately make you more valuable and harder to replace than just another product owner&#x2F;scrum master. I get at least 10x more resumes for PM&#x2F;PO that those with engineering skills. Guess what we don’t need more of...
bwh2about 4 years ago
Specifically to your question of defining the best features, goals, and products, I recommend these books:<p>* 20 YC Lessons<p>* Outcomes Over Output (a lightweight version of The Lean Startup)<p>* Strategy Rules<p>* How Google Works<p>Here&#x27;s the rest of my Product Manager book reviews: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.briansnotes.io&#x2F;audience&#x2F;product-manager&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.briansnotes.io&#x2F;audience&#x2F;product-manager&#x2F;</a>
akg_67about 4 years ago
A list of books I posted in another thread:<p>* Start with Steve Blank’s The Startup Manual or Four Step to Epiphany. Other books:<p>* Dan Olsen, The Lean Product Playbook<p>* Mart Cagan, Inspired<p>* Ryan Singer, Shape Up<p>* Jake Knapp, Sprint<p>* Jeff Patton, User Story Mapping<p>* Stephen Wunker, Costovation<p>Also checkout &#x2F;r&#x2F;productmanagement subreddit.
joegahonaabout 4 years ago
Marty Cagan and Dan Olsen’s work helped me the most. You can find tons of their videos on Youtube, or get their books. I listen to Cagan’s books when I walk my dog.
Jugurthaabout 4 years ago
Recycling some replies. More context on <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26182988" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26182988</a>: Pick and choose:<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=19924100" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=19924100</a> (understanding codebases, etc.)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26591067" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26591067</a> (testing pipelines, scaffolding, issue templates)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22873103" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22873103</a> (making the most out of meetings, leveraging your presence)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22827841" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22827841</a> (product development)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=20356222" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=20356222</a> (giving a damn)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=25008223" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=25008223</a> (If I disappear, what will happen)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24972611" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24972611</a> (about consulting and clients, but you can abstract that as &quot;stakeholders&quot;, and understanding the problem your &quot;client&quot;, who can be your manager, has.)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24209518" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24209518</a> (on taking notes. When you&#x27;re told something, or receive a remark, make sure to make a note and learn from it whether it&#x27;s a mistake, or a colleague showing you something useful, or a task you must accomplish.. don&#x27;t be told things twice or worse. Be on the ball and reliable).<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24503365" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24503365</a> (product, architecture, and impact on the team)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22860716" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22860716</a> (onboarding new hires to a codebase, what if it were you, improve code)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22710623" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22710623</a> (being efficient learning from video, hacks. Subsequent reply: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22723586" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22723586</a>)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21598632" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21598632</a> (communication with the team, and subsequent reply: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21614372" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21614372</a>)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21427886" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21427886</a> (template for taking minutes of meetings to dispatch to the team. Notes are in GitHub&#x2F;GitLab so the team can access them, especially if they haven&#x27;t attended).<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24177646" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=24177646</a> (communication, alignment)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21808439" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=21808439</a> (useful things for the team and product that add leverage)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=20323660" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=20323660</a> (more meeting notes. Reply to a person who had trouble talking in corporate meetings)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22715971" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=22715971</a> (management involvement as a spectrum)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=25922120" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=25922120</a> (researching topics)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26147502" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26147502</a> (keeping up with a firehose of information)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26123017" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26123017</a> (fractal communication: communication that can penetrate several layers of management and be relevant to people with different profiles and skillsets)<p>- <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26179539" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26179539</a> (remote work, use existing tooling and build our own. Jitsi videos, record everything, give access to everyone so they can reference them and go back to them, meetings once a week or two weeks to align)