Am I a bad product manager? Staying positive in a world of layoffs, reorgs, and tanking metrics.
I’ve doubted my ability as a product manager more than once lately. It can be easy to question your skills and abilities, and the more senior you become, the bigger the challenges you can face.
“Maybe I’m just a bad product manager”?
Have you ever thought to yourself, “Maybe I’m just a bad product manager?” You could be feeling overwhelmed and like you’re not making progress. Maybe you haven’t seen a win in a long time, and that’s when the self-doubt starts to creep in. Staying positive can be a real struggle when there is so much negativity like many of us are seeing right now.
Layoffs have hit the industry (again). Whether you were one of those let go or someone left to pick up the pieces, these challenging times can shake the confidence of the most self-assured of us.
But even in the best of times, I’ve had jobs I’ve excelled in and others where I’ve struggled. Even as I’ve gained more experience, there have been times when being good at product management felt like an uphill battle.
Sometimes, it comes down to the economic environment, the team, the processes, the company’s growth stage, or just how little agency you actually have to change things. You may be doing everything ‘right,’ but your product or company is still struggling.
Feeling this way doesn’t mean you’re a bad product manager.
This post was originally published in my Substack newsletter. See Roadmap Weekly for this post and more, including audio versions.
If you’re questioning or doubting yourself, you’re not alone
Honestly, even in the past week, I’ve doubted my ability as a product manager more than once. It can be easy to question your skills and abilities, and the more senior you become, the bigger the challenges you can face. My company let go of some great people a couple of weeks ago, and there have been a lot of market forces limiting our growth.
Here’s the thing: you care! Otherwise, you wouldn’t be asking yourself these questions. And if you’re here, then I know you’re already putting in the work to avoid being a bad product manager. So, chances are, you’re already a good product manager.
In reality, you won’t get it all right every time. When things in your company are going well, you might feel on top of the world and dropping the ball on a few things might not feel like a big deal. Still, when metrics tank and revenue targets are missed, it can be challenging to know how much of that was within your control vs. out-of-control economic factors, and when layoffs have you in their crosshairs, it can be hard not to take it personally.
Chances are you’re not the only one feeling uncertain. Check-in with your teams; they’re probably feeling the pressure to perform, too.
If self-doubt is creeping in, here are a few things you can try to boost your morale:
- Focus on your past wins and key something up for the near future.
- Zoom out and look at the bigger picture. Is your team the only one struggling?
- Connect with other PMs, join a product community, attend a conference, or find a mentor.
- Review your day-to-day. Are there meetings you shouldn’t be attending?
- Ask your peers what you’re doing well; focusing on the positives can help.
- Discuss with your manager what support you need to do a more effective job.
- It’s possible your manager thinks you’re doing great or doesn’t realize you’re struggling.
- Note the obstacles holding you back from doing your best work.
- Become laser-focused, prioritizing higher-impact work while letting go of lower-impact tasks.
- Take some time off, a mental health day, a vacation, and find a way to recharge.
It’s not about getting everything right all of the time
In the fast-paced world of product management, you will never be perfect. And in reality, your company likely cares about one thing: generating revenue. If you have a growing user base and the company is hitting revenue targets, everything feels great, whether that success is due to skill, timing, or luck.
Right now, though, many companies aren’t hitting their numbers. It’s important to realize that you could be doing everything right, which might still not be enough.
You may do only one good thing in the next year, but that thing saves the company. Would that make you a good product manager?
Maybe you really are a bad product manager (but probably not)
Here are some ‘bad product manager’ habits to avoid:
- Ignoring customer feedback.
- Being reactive, chasing every new request without considering the long-term strategy.
- Overriding engineering or expert decisions without good reason.
- Not communicating clearly or at all.
- Not sharing the credit.
- Having no strategy.
- Ignoring the data.
Dropping the ball on one or two of these doesn’t make you a bad product manager. Most of us are overworked and stretched thin, which makes mistakes inevitable.
The key is to recognize where you can improve and keep going. Because caring about whether you’re a good product manager is already a sign that you’re on the right track.
This post was originally published in my Substack newsletter. See Roadmap Weekly for this post and more, including audio versions.
