Athletics coaching as a lens for Product Manager Management
Apr 4, 2024
TL;DR: one under-recognized skillset in PM Management is how to intelligently load a PM so they can progressively handle more complex and impactful work. Athletics coaching is a good lens to apply to this
Overloading the athlete sets them up for injury
- I can squat a respectable 315 , but if I tried to load up 405 onto the bar tomorrow, I’m likely to injure myself
and no, the premise of this article is NOT just for me to highlight that
- If I injure myself, I have to sit out for 2-3 weeks and lose out on that progress
- Additionally, the next time I try to increase the weight, I’ll probably be scared to do it
alternate metaphors: current level: blue diamond, coach is taking you up a gondola to a black; current level: 10 minute mile, coach is programming 8 800s at 6 minute pace; current level: rental pickleball paddles, coach is facing you off against a couple who brought their own
For PM Managers:
- Think about what “load” looks like for your Direct Reports: complexity of the underlying tech; trickiness of the politics at play; potential for the business
- The thing that you’re asking your PM to own may be too advanced for where they are right now. You need to help spot them or else they’ll injure themselves. Do not be guilty of Managerial Malpractice
You need to make time for conditioning and recovery, not just peak performance
- At a certain point, active training gives diminishing marginal returns. And past that point, injury risk starts to spike. Coaches have to play with that line: keeping the athlete right at the limit (which, ideally, should be increasing with training) without going over
- Coaches also spend time thinking about substitute activities that still improve performance: swimming for non-impact cardio; visualization for calming the nerves; massage and sauna for shuttling lactic acid out of the muscles; Physical Therapy for injury prevention
For PM Managers:
- Are your PMs in meetings for >4 hours a day? When do they get time for work or synthesis or integration?
- Are you getting responses from them at times implying they’re working >10 hr days? Do you believe that human beings can reasonably be expected to output A+ quality for 12 hours per day over weeks?
- Also think about what activities help supplement Product Management: what is the Physical Therapy equivalent for Product? e.g. Product Teardowns with other PMs/Designers/Engs
Overcoming challenges that were believed to be impossible is good for athletes. The coach needs to build and apply taste to know when to push
- Sometimes, the athlete is holding themselves back. They believe they can’t do this. This is what separates the legendary coaches: knowing when and how to push
For PM Managers;
- When was the last time you asked about a Direct Report’s concerns, heard them out, told them that you believed they could do it, and they walked out notably more confident than coming in? And be honest with yourself: were they just telling you what you wanted to hear?
- Similarly, when was the last time a PM came to you and said, “Honestly, I don’t think I can do this”? This is a signal that your Direct Reports trust you enough to be vulnerable
For athletes, you are the one who bears the cost of coaching mistakes
- You need to determine for yourself whether this coach is setting you up for injury, and practice some self advocacy, because ultimately this is your athletic career at stake
For PMs:
- Trust your Manager, but not blindly. Check in with other PMs around the company; join communities like Lenny Slack to get gut checks on this stuff
- Where are you now, from a load standpoint? Are you comfortable with a 315 squat and you feel like the workload is actually at 405?
- Do you feel like you get rest time (but not so much that you’re leaving gains on the table)?
- Do you feel like you’re faster/stronger/better than you were 1 year ago? Has the training been resulting in gains?