Ideas worth stealing
The ever-evolving playbook of a product leader
I. The Thought
I once heard Scott Galloway, a well-known entrepreneur and podcaster, say “if you want to know what a leader will do at a company, just look at their last two jobs.”
Imagine a snowball rolling down a hill, gathering size with each turn. This is how I view my playbook of ideas and tactics. At its core are tiny seeds—ideas that originated elsewhere, sticking in my mind like burrs to socks as you wander through a field. These seeds, once modest and inconspicuous, evolve into battle-tested strategies that define and drive successful projects, or they are discarded in favor of new approaches.
My playbook is less a manifesto of original blueprints and more a collection of remixed concepts—a testament to the collaborative spirit of innovation. These ideas, which I've "stolen" with pride from the companies that shaped my journey, have not only influenced my approach but have also been reshaped to fit new contexts and challenges.
Take these ideas. Tweak them, and make them your own. After all, some of our greatest tools are often found, not forged.
Single Source of Truth: At Google, I learned the art of corralling the chaos of large projects with a single, evolving document. These documents detailed everything from initial ideas to final outcomes, providing clarity for anyone new to the project.
Snippets: Google encouraged weekly summaries of our work. Despite initial resistance and occasional procrastination, I've come to treasure this practice. These summaries prove invaluable during performance reviews and ensure continuous communication with managers, peers, and direct reports.
Kickstarter
Design Principles: At Kickstarter, every project began with high-level statements that unified collaborators and maintained focus. These principles acted as a compass, guiding us when project scopes began to drift, ensuring we remained true to our initial goals.
Milestone-Based Review Process: I introduced a review process where all design projects were evaluated at various stages. Initially a design-only practice, it soon expanded to include product management and research, adapting the feedback to match the project phase and attendees.
Stripe
Gavel Blocks: At Stripe, we used decision logs, known as gavel blocks, to prevent revisiting settled debates—a much-needed breadcrumb trail to keep meetings focused and forward-moving.
Quality Audits: Team leaders regularly inspected their areas of responsibility, measuring them against established standards. This practice helped to foster a shared understanding of "good enough," motivating the team to invest in improving existing features alongside pursuing new ventures.
The beauty of collecting ideas is that it is inherently collaborative and evolutionary. Each career stop has contributed to my playbook, enhancing my approach and enabling me to contribute in different environments. Feel free to take these ideas, adapt them, and make them your own. In the world of design, we're all part of a grand, ongoing remix.
II. The Links
3 Body Problem. Netflix show based on a bestselling book triology by a Chinese computer scientist and author, and produced by the creators of Game of Thrones. I don’t know what’s going on yet, but it’s beautiful and I’m hooked.
The Limitless Pendant. The company behind Rewind, a popular AI assistant that allows you to search everything you’ve ever looked at on your computer or phone, teased an “always listening” pendant last year which has been renamed Limitless. Given the dead-on-arrival nature of Humane’s AI Pin, my hopes are low, but there are some interesting ideas here.
III. The Jobs
Design Director, Biden for President. Want to manage the design team behind the President’s re-election campaign and ensure it has a cohesive brand identity? Here’s your shot.
Director of UX, Reddit. Hot off their IPO, Reddit is hiring a design leader to manage brand identity, elevate the quality and efficiency of their design systems, and lead new product efforts.
A gazillion design roles, Stripe. Stripe is having a hiring binge. Calling all brand design designers, design engineers, product designers, and UX researchers.
Great breakdown of ideas you’ve taken and made your own! Is there a particular format you like to use for your Snippets? Doing a weekly reflection sounds beneficial for all sorts of reasons and I want to give it a go.
This also made me think of a saying I heard and said many times in the classroom: “The best teachers are thieves.” Looking for what works and then adapting it for ourselves is useful in almost any context!