Do you have "Product Instinct"?

I recently met a talented young Product Manager who had newly joined the profession because of her passion for making great products. During my conversation with her, she explained to me that the main reason she was going to excel as a PM was because she has excellent “product instinct.” This wasn’t a term I had heard before, and I immediately thought to myself, “Wow, that sounds like a great trait to have -- but wait, do I have product instinct?!?”

What exactly is “Product Instinct”?

We generally think of instinct as being the ability to act without having to analyze, research, or even think much at all. Instinct allows us to make quick decisions and start acting upon them immediately. This ability is wonderfully described in Daniel Kahneman’s best-selling book Thinking Fast And Slow (which is a great read!), in which he details and evaluates the cognitive shortcuts that we all use to make quick and instinctive decisions.

“Product Instinct” does not (yet) have an official definition, but the term is an attempt to describe the quick decision-making abilities that affect the products or features we are building. We’ve all seen examples of these decisions:

• Someone blurts out in a meeting, “Our customers would never pay for that feature!”

• A Product Manager has a gut-feeling that your clients will prefer a mobile website instead of having to install a mobile app.

• Your colleague whispers to you by the coffee maker, “There is no way this product is going to ship on time.”

Their product instincts are the compasses that guide their decisions and actions. Presumably “good” product instinct is when their intuition leads to the “right” decision.

What if you don’t have good Product Instinct?!

Absolutely do not worry if you think you might not have this “talent”!

The ability to make quick and decisive conclusions can be a benefit when decisions are time-critical, but you should never make any decision if you can’t explain your reasoning. In management and design, working quickly is rarely more valuable than working methodically. It is your job to make sure you have gathered all the information available and done the analysis and risk-assessment. Only then will you be able to make an informed decision.

I personally think that the young Product Manager who first told me about her product instinct is doing herself a disservice by assuming that her instincts alone will be a talent that she can rely on in the future. Every product decision should be based on well-understood benefits, risks, costs, and timing. Without understanding these baseline factors, your instincts are bound to let you down (and let your team down!).

Can I improve my Product Instinct?

Though you never should take actions without reasoning, the ability to make quick but methodical decisions can definitely come in handy, especially in the fast-paced world of Agile development. There are a few things you can focus on to help make these decisions easier and more effective:

· Make sure your Product Vision statement is clear, well-understood, and up-to-date. A good Product Vision reflects your company’s strategy, goals for your product, and should serve as your compass when making all product decisions. When making tough decisions, always think to yourself, “How does this align with my Product Vision?”

· Truly understand your customers. Every PM knows they need to understand who their customers are, but to make instinctive decisions you need to be able to think just like them. Speak to real customers whenever you can, ask how they feel, find out their needs and pain-points. Run surveys, hold focus groups, analyze user behavior – whatever it takes to truly understand your customers.

· Think of decisions in terms of risk. As humans, we are actually quite good at instinctually assessing risk and making decisions. When you decide whether or not to wear a bike helmet, or choose to avoid a dark alley at night, or even just decide to bring an umbrella to work on a cloudy day, you are acting based on assessed risk. Think about potential risks and their impact when you make decisions at work--it will help you act quickly.

· Try not to let your emotions influence your decision. Keeping complete control of one’s emotions at work can sometimes be extremely difficult. Make sure that you are able to distinguish when your emotions have the potential to affect your decisions. Remember that acting quickly based on instinct is not the same as acting quickly based on emotion.

The best Product Instinct is self-confidence!

Never be afraid to take a risk and trust your instincts...you’ll be surprised at how successful you can be!