{"id":18660,"date":"2025-10-13T16:18:41","date_gmt":"2025-10-13T13:18:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/railsware.com\/blog\/?p=18660"},"modified":"2025-10-13T16:18:42","modified_gmt":"2025-10-13T13:18:42","slug":"how-to-grow-as-a-product-manager-product-lead-explains-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/railsware.com\/blog\/how-to-grow-as-a-product-manager-product-lead-explains-2\/","title":{"rendered":"How to grow as a product manager? Product Lead explains"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\n
\n

Do you think being a product manager means you’ll finally unleash your creative genius? Sorry to burst your bubble, but solution development is way less sexy than you imagined.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n
\n \n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/section><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

If you haven\u2019t read the previous article<\/a>, Sergii Gudkov, a Product Lead with over 15 years in software development, shared his take on how associate product managers can approach their professional growth.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This time, we\u2019re shifting the focus to more experienced product managers (PdMs). Many believe that once you\u2019ve nailed execution as an Associate PdM, the next step is creating solutions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, in reality, most of \u201cdeveloping solutions\u201d is about gathering everyone else\u2019s ideas, choosing the most promising one, and making it work. You are not expected to be the smartest person in the room, but to run a tedious, systematic process that actually delivers results. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, let\u2019s hand it over to Sergii as he explains how to turn this unglamorous work into steady wins and why your \u201cbrilliant ideas\u201d can sometimes be your biggest liability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Solution Development \u2013 unglamorous big lie<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here’s something that took me embarrassingly long to figure out:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n

Solution development isn’t about having the best ideas. It’s barely about having ideas at all.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n
\n \n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

To clarify this, let me share my own experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I once took a PdM job with a very unusual compensation model \u2014 no regular salary, just a percentage of monthly revenue. My income literally rose and fell with the business results. At first, I saw it as the perfect chance to prove my creative genius. When the team shared their ideas, I barely listened. Why would I? I was the PdM. I was supposed to have the best ideas, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A couple of months of insignificant revenue growth later, I had a moment of clarity: “What the hell am I doing? Why am I ignoring good ideas that could increase my income just because they’re not mine?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few more months in, another realization hit me: the CEO didn\u2019t care whose ideas we used. He cared about one thing \u2014 revenue. The more I generated it, the more teammates I got, the more resources, the more responsibility. Nobody tracked or cared about my personal creativity score.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s when it clicked: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n

My job wasn’t to be the idea person. It was to be the idea collector.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n
\n \n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n
\n note<\/span>\n
\n

Tip: Think of yourself as a talent scout. You need to wander around, listen to everyone’s solutions, pick the best bits, and orchestrate them into something that works. Your personal ideas should go into the same pile as everyone else’s without special treatment.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n

What \u201cdevelopment\u201d means for a product manager<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In fact, \u201cdevelopment\u201d means running a process. It is actually a boring, systematic, and often tedious process. Here’s what solution development looks like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n