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Pub. DateTitleDuration
28 Jun 2022#58 Scott Young: Learning for Real Life01:30:07

Scott Young is an expert on rapid, effective learning. This ep will help you learn new skills effectively and quickly amidst the chaos of real life.

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You can also read this episode here.

Sign up here to get upcoming audio essays emailed to you

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
09 Dec 2021#52 How to get more creative flow in your work day00:31:03

Flow is defined as an optimal state of consciousness, where you feel and perform at your best. This episode will help you get more of it in your day.

Links & resources mentioned are here.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
01 Jun 2021#44 Teresa Torres: Habits for clear thinking and better product bets01:16:47

Teresa Torres teaches an approach to product creation and creative work that will help you think more clearly, make better decisions, and raise the odds your bets will pay off. She's the author of the new book, Continuous Discovery Habits.

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Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already, would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
04 May 2021#42 ARM: A mental model for fulfilling work00:11:15

ARM is a simple mental model to help you intentionally craft more fulfilling work.

Update: I’ve now released a follow-up episode answering four questions about the model that have come up since this episode was released. Check it out here.

Links & resources mentioned are here



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
01 Mar 2022How do I do continuous discovery for a new product, pre-PMF?00:18:38

How to apply continuous discovery techniques to a nascent, early stage product that doesn't yet have product-market fit.

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You can also read this episode here.

Sign up here to get upcoming audio essays emailed to you

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned

Related episodes

#44 Teresa Torres: Habits for clear thinking and better product bets

#31 Marty Cagan: Empowering product teams to do the best work of their lives

People & orgs

Teresa Torres

Ash Maurya

Jeff Patton

Marty Cagan

Books

Continuous Discovery Habits, by Teresa Torres

INSPIRED, by Marty Cagan

Other resources:

Andrew's original Twitter thread

Opportunity Solution Trees - Teresa Torres

Jeff Patton - Story Mapping

Lean(er) Canvas - Ash Maurya

Jobs to Be Done (JTBD)



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
29 Dec 2020#33: 8 Lessons Learned in 202001:00:48

For the last episode of 2020, Andrew reflects on 8 big lessons learned from guests this year, and shares a few reflection questions to ask yourself. Wishing you all a peaceful end to this turbulent year. Here's to making things that matter in 2021!

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
24 Mar 2020#13 Muriel Clauson: Identity, engagement, and being ready for the future of work01:45:08

The first thing you need to know about Muriel Clauson is that she's SUPER passionate about people and sees her mission in life as unlocking human potential to help everyone live radically fulfilling lives.

Muriel is an entrepreneur, researcher, speaker, and advisor to governments and companies globally on creating a better future of work. Her work has been featured in publications such as the Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, and Forbes. She speaks on the future of work globally with organizations including the World Bank, Singularity University, China’s SAI Task Force for Innovation, the Milken Institute, United States Embassies, the Young Presidents Organization, and many more. Muriel was named a 2017 “Game-Changer” by Women at the Frontier as an innovator in science and technology.

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
31 Dec 2019#7 Becky Baybrook: culture, candor, and how Millenials are changing management01:55:12

Books, companies, etc mentioned

The Beak of the Finch

Crucial Conversations - Becky especially recommends chapter 5, "On Safety" to broach challenging topics

Vital Smarts communication training

Radical Candor

Principles,Bridgewater Associates, Radical Transparency (TED Talk), and Ray Dalio

Psychological safety

The Empowered Manager

Mind the Product conference

Matt LeMay

Who

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
07 Apr 2022#56 Ash Maurya: The Innovator's Gift01:05:31

Ash Maurya introduces "The Innovator's Gift" to help you find problems worth solving, and navigate the uncertainty of new product ideas.

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Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned

Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

Ash Maurya - LEANSTACK, TwitterAsh's books:New: Running LeanScaling Lean

Related episodes#55: How does continuous discovery come together for a new product?#44 Teresa Torres: Habits for clear thinking and better product bets

People & orgsBob MoestaTom ChiTom Chi talk @ MindValley: Everything is Connected - Here's HowW. Edwards DemingPeter DruckerSteve BlankEric RiesDave McClureSean Ellis

BooksThey All Laughed: The Fascinating Stories Behind the Great Inventions That Have Changed Our LivesUser Story MappingWhen Coffee and Kale Compete (JTBD) - Alan KlementDemand-Side Sales - Bob MoestaThe ONE ThingThinking in Systems

Other resources mentionedCustomer forces canvasLEAN canvasJobs to Be Done (JTBD)The Milkshake StudyRecency Bias



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
25 Aug 2020#24 Laura Garnett: Find your zone of genius and never fear a job search again01:05:31

You can submit your own audio questions at https://www.speakpipe.com/andrewskotzko

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in (click 'Allow' if you get a popup): : connect@enliven.fm

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider subscribing or leaving a rating/review. It really helps.

For the transcript and full episode notes/resources, go to: http://bit.ly/LauraENLIVEN



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
25 Feb 2020#11 Rian Doris & Conor Murphy: Flow — Cultivating the optimal experience of life (part 1)00:59:56

Flow dramatically increases every measure of performance you can imagine, as well as your subjective quality of life experience. It’s defined as an optimal state of consciousness. This will help you understand and increase your time in flow so you can get the most out of every aspect of your life.

Show notes here: https://blog.makethingsthatmatter.com/p/flow-research-rian-doris-conor-murphy-pt1



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
28 Jan 2020#9 Amy Edmondson: Building teams where people feel safe01:26:50

Show notes

  • "You don't belong to you, you belong to the universe.", Buckminster Fuller [0:03:00]
  • "You might not be in the best position to know why you're special. It's not up to you to decide if you're good enough to be here. You are." [0:05:16]
  • Amy's first day working for Buckminster Fuller [0:06:38]
  • "Work is a place where you learn and grow"... [0:11:07]
  • Guidance for dealing with anxiety [0:14:06]
  • "I think sometimes a feeling of connectedness is THE most important thing you can have in the workplace." [0:15:30]
  • "It's so much more fun to be curious about someone else and what they bring than to be tense about being found out." [0:16:36]
  • Why did "The Fearless Organization" strike such a chord in the world right now? [0:16:58]
  • Why psychological safety is peaking right now [0:17:40]
  • What is psychological safety, and what is it not? [0:19:19]
  • Psychological safety is a sense of felt permission for candor [0:19:42]
  • Psychological safety is NOT about being nice [0:20:18]
  • "Being nice is code for, 'I'm not going to tell you what I really think.'" [0:20:33]
  • Psychological safety is NOT the goal [0:21:31]
  • What's the relationship between psychological safety & courage? [0:24:37]
  • Psychological safety vs culture fit / belonging [0:27:02]
  • "The job is to deliberately reframe reality so we can be more learning oriented." [0:30:11]
  • What are cognitive frames? [0:30:22]
  • How does Amy create psychological safety in the classroom? [0:31:45]
  • What is a "good" question? [0:32:33]
  • The leaders toolkit for psych safety [0:36:43]
  • How psych safety helped turn around Ford between 2006-2009 [0:37:55]
  • Concern: won't psych safety take too long? [0:43:46]
  • Why is psych safety worth it? What's the ROI? [0:45:07]
  • Parallels to self-compassion [0:47:11]
  • Psych safety & Flow [0:49:26]
  • How do we implement a psychological safety initiative? [0:50:30]
  • Using the work itself as the laboratory for culture change [0:53:02]
  • Common failure patterns? [0:54:03]
  • "A culture of nice can often mask a culture of fear"... [0:55:08]
  • How do you measure psych safety & tell if you have a problem? [0:57:34]
  • How to pulse check if your team has psych safety [0:59:12]
  • Does psych safety differ across intra/extraversion, or personality types? [1:01:59]
  • How does psych safety affect hiring processes? [1:04:52]
  • Everyone is different: how adapt building psych safety to this variety? [1:07:58]
  • What is work for, to you? [1:09:54]
  • What ONE thing would Amy have a leader do to build more psych safety? [1:12:37]
  • What happens when leaders apologize for safety violations? [1:13:37]
  • CONTEXT MATTERS [1:16:05]
  • I'm not the boss, what can I do? [1:25:30]

People, books, companies, resources etc mentioned in episode

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
15 Jun 2021#45: The Timeless Way of Leading00:09:32

This adapts the core ideas from "The Timeless Way of Building," a classic of architectural theory, to creative and personal leadership. 

Links & resources mentioned are here.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
14 Jan 2020#8 Paula Daniels: Living on the edge of your own invention01:17:59

Show notes

  • Paula's favorite movie that informs her work [0:02:41]
  • Paula's mentor: Dorothy Green [0:05:20]
  • How Paula originally got involved in environmental work [0:06:56]
  • What did Paula learn from Dorothy? [0:10:45]
  • Being against something vs being FOR something [0:13:35]
  • LAFPC's origin story & what was it like for Paula when the policy passed? [0:14:56]
  • Keeping the light alive & finding the others [0:20:35]
  • The moment that almost killed it all [0:24:49]
  • What did Paula feel when it suddenly became real? [0:26:38]
  • Where is the Center for Good Food Purchasing today? How'd it get here? [0:30:30]
  • How should someone think about working with many types of stakeholders? [0:33:35]
  • "I saw people yelling at a junior staffer, as if he didn't have feelings. So I stood up there and told the story of this human being...sometimes people in government are seen for their role and not for their person." [0:36:40]
  • How does Paula coach somebody to be effective working with people who are different than they are? [0:37:20]
  • Case study: How Paula got the city of LA to change their thinking on stormwater [0:39:00]
  • "Usually it's fear-based thinking. They don't want to mess up. So they're worried about something. If you can figure out what that something is, give them examples of how it's handled differently, then you can start making a difference." [0:40:25]
  • How do you redirect a culture or group of people? [0:41:39]
  • Why government & entrepreneurs is like baseball & surfing [0:42:13]
  • The circular economy: what's catching Paula's attention? [0:44:33]
  • Why is this the time to engage with the idea of the circular economy? [0:49:48]
  • How does Paula teach people to be a systems thinker? [0:53:08]
  • Paula's monthly whiteboard review exercise [0:54:04]
  • Polarity management [0:56:13]
  • How does Paula design an intervention? [1:02:52]
  • What lights Paula up? [1:10:28]
  • Quotes & mantras that inspire Paula [1:11:59]
  • "You're always on the edge of your own invention. And every moment has that opportunity." [1:13:56]

People, books, companies, resources etc mentioned in episode

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
01 Nov 2022#59 Kenny Borg: Identity transformation + embodying fulfillment00:58:41

Kenny Borg helps us explore the ongoing evolution of our identity, deal with imposter syndrome, and embody fulfillment throughout the journey instead of putting it off to the end. He cofounded Ethr, a coaching collective that exists to help you develop a relationship with your own consciousness and actualize your wisdom. Before that, he spent more than a decade as a founder & CEO operating and advising direct to consumer brands. 

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You can also read this episode here.

Sign up here to get upcoming audio essays emailed to you

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
31 May 2022#57 Rob Fitzpatrick: Shaping an Entrepreneurial Career01:21:13
05 May 2020#16 Holly Hester-Reilly: Building a customer-centric team and product culture01:22:15
29 Jun 2021#46 The Infinite Game, by Simon Sinek: Book summary00:18:23

This episode reviews the key ideas from "The Infinite Game," a massively transformative book by Simon Sinek, and explores how to apply them to your work.

Links & resources mentioned are here.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
14 Jul 2020#21: April Dunford - Find your power in the market through positioning01:21:04

See all links & shownotes here.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
02 Jun 2020#18 Josh Seiden: How to create clarity with outcomes thinking01:20:35

Follow Josh Seiden

Twitter @jseiden

LinkedIn

Explore these Resources

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Josh Seiden - Twitter & websiteJosh's book: Outcomes Over OutputsSense & Respond Press

Ryan Jacoby - Making Progress

Alan CooperAbout FaceGoal Directed Design

Eric Ries - The Lean Startup

Alexander Osterwalder - Business Model Canvas

Jeff Gothelf - Lean UX Canvas

Risks dashboard - Giff Constable

Nicole Rufuku

The Logic Model Framework (see page 3 for summary)

Feature Factory

Melissa Perri - The Build Trap

David Marquet - Intent Based Leadership

Steven Bungay - The Art of Action

Taproot Foundation

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
07 Sep 2021#50 Bo Burlingham: Small Giants & the roots of great businesses01:21:03

Best known for his books Small Giants and The Great Game of Business, Bo is an editor-at-large of Inc. magazine and the author of five books which have profoundly impacted values-led business creation. I don't know of anyone that has explored more deeply, through real-world examples, what it means to build a *meaningful* business. 

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Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already, would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
03 Dec 2019#5 Rich Mironov: Building a thriving product organization01:13:53

My guest in this conversation is Rich Mironov (@RichMironov).

Rich is known as the "product mensch" in Silicon Valley, and for good reason. Educated at Yale and Stanford, Rich is a 30-year veteran of product management at multiple enterprises and startups that have gone public who now consults as an interim VP of Product helping companies to get their product organizations working at top notch.

Show notes

How did Rich end up as a product leader? [0:02:30]
Rich's first week in "product" [0:05:01]
How to learn a new space or company when you don't have background in it [0:06:46]
How does Rich figure out what's really going on, and what to do? [0:08:34]
Common failure modes Rich sees [0:09:32]
What does Rich do in his first 4 weeks as head of product? [0:13:33]
How do you build the trust to make the needed changes? [0:18:37]
Roadmaps: common initial challenge [0:20:29]
How to build initial momentum when "engineering can't ship anything" [0:22:17]
"Teams that don't finish anything quit" [0:25:11]
"Caring is probably the #1 most important feature I see in engineering teams that get a lot of really good stuff done" [0:25:21]
What are the conditions that enable a product team to be at their best? [0:25:43]
Lesson: Assume good intent & don't blame people for the system [0:30:13]
"If we design an organization badly, almost everybody we put into that organization fails" [0:30:27]
"As product people we gotta be curious, we gotta look outside ourselves and figure out what's broken. We're analytical, relentless, and we failed them if our product doesn't work." [0:32:08]
Digging into psychological safety [0:34:55]
How to provide top cover for your team [0:36:13]
How do you make it OK to hear truth and speak truth? [0:37:58]
How to keep the exec team aware of what's being built [0:39:19]
The "exclusive or" question to deal with competing roadmap requests [0:40:15]
"Trust starts with delivering the things we said we'd deliver." [0:42:00]
How do you spread outcomes thinking across an organization? [0:44:06]
Roadmaps & outcomes thinking [0:47:13]
How is PM different in a machine learning context? [0:49:16]
"Just because you have a stack of data doesn't mean it's going to tell you anything" [0:52:40]
"Schroedinger's insight" [0:56:05]
How does a product leader think differently about a product portfolio with ML products? [0:56:59]
Impostor syndrome & internalizing impersonal issues [0:59:22]
How do you help the product team level up their skills? [1:06:55]
"The goal of those discussion isn't to focus on some artifact. The goal is to skill up mentally." [1:09:23]
What one change would Rich have product leaders make? [1:11:27]

People, books, companies, resources etc mentioned in episode

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
06 Apr 2021#40 Eric Steege: Treat your culture like a product00:59:38
20 Apr 2021#41 Barry Brown: Work as a pathway of transformation01:20:00

Barry Brown helps leaders be more of who they are and be more effective in making their unique contribution to the world.

-----

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already, would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
11 Feb 2020#10 Susan Basterfield: decentralized team structures and participatory decision-making01:26:04

Show notes

  • How Susan went bungee jumping... and met her husband [0:03:42]
  • What is Enspiral? [0:08:39]
  • What are the different types of roles and engagement within the Enspiral network? [0:10:45]
  • "What we really are at Enspiral is healthy power relationships and practice" [0:17:41]
  • How do things get done in Enspiral? [0:18:02]
  • The greatest gift Enspiral gave itself: culture first, THEN tools [0:19:37]
  • How their decentralized governance tools (Loomio & CoBudget) emerged [0:20:03]
  • How should we think about consensus? [0:24:18]
  • "The most important thing about decision making is deciding how you want to decide, making that transparent, and then also deciding what actually does a real block mean?" [0:25:11]
  • Scaffolding vs frameworks [0:27:21]
  • How does a new venture get set up in Enspiral? [0:29:41]
  • Do ventures have to contribute X% of their profits to the foundation? [0:34:52]
  • How is Enspiral building a deliberately developmental culture? [0:36:20]
  • "If we want to change the possibility for the future, we need to be prepared to come together in configurations and groups of people we've maybe never met before, to do things we've never done before. Organizations provide all of the fodder for us to do our ongoing development, we just don't frame it that way." [0:38:46]
  • How learning & development (L&D) thinking needs to evolve [0:43:28]
  • "We need to create the conditions for us to experiment, to play, to fail, to notice, to reflect." [0:48:46]
  • Why is this an idea whose time has come? [0:50:02]
  • The power of using a check-in to start meetings [0:53:59]
  • Are these ideas that can be added to an existing organization? Or do you need a clean slate? [0:57:09]
  • "Nobody leads all of the time, everybody leads some of the time. Followership is as important a gift as leadership." [0:59:54]
  • Why is it worth it to transition to this way of working? [1:01:53]
  • "You might never change the system, but if you can change the experience for yourself and your comrades, that's a great outcome too." [1:03:58]
  • How can product leaders start implementing this? [1:05:23]
  • How do we make it safe to try practices like this, if it doesn't feel that way? [1:13:51]
  • Why is most feedback unhelpful? [1:20:52]

People, books, companies, resources etc mentioned in episode

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
09 Mar 2021#38 Sarah Avenir: What is people-first growth?01:00:28

Sarah Avenir is a full-hearted leader who models vulnerable strength in her experiments to create sustainable businesses that are good for people.

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Please consider taking ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts. It really helps. (Rate/review links at the very bottom of the page.)

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in (click 'Allow' if you get a popup): connect@makethingsthatmatter.com

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
28 Jul 2020Pam Fox Rollin: Be a leader who helps people come alive01:05:36

See all links & shownotes here.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
01 Dec 2020Marty Cagan: Empowering product teams00:59:50

Marty Cagan is basically the godfather of modern tech product management.

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## Links & resources mentioned

Marty Cagan - @cagan

New book: EMPOWERED - coauthored with Chris Jones

Previous book: INSPIRED

Silicon Valley Product Group (SVPG) workshops

Matt LeMay

Teresa Torres

Mind the Product

OKRs vs roadmaps

Books:

Turn the Ship Around

Leadership is Language

Trillion Dollar Coach

No Rules Rules (Netflix culture)



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
19 May 2020#17 Dr Matthew Cook: Identity shifts, beating trauma triggers, and continually recreating who you are01:31:21

Follow Dr Matt Cook

Facebook

Instagram

YouTube

Twitter

Explore these Resources

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

Dr Matthew Cook  (@BioResetMedical)BioReset Medical websiteBioReset podcast website - iTunes / Spotify

Andrew Weil

Functional medicine

Integrative medicine

PTSD

Psycholytic therapy

Limbic system

Dr. Mark Hyman

Ulcer bacteria story

TransTech Conference

Bad Science

"Studying Studies" by Peter Attia

The Drive - podcast by Peter Attia

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
26 Dec 2021#53: Turning over a tough year00:14:38

Some short thoughts on how to review and close out a tough year, and set ourselves up for a powerful, generative new year.

Links & resources mentioned are here.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
18 May 2021#43 Courtney Bigony: Life above neutral with Positive Product Design00:59:03

Courtney Bigony is on a mission to align tech products with the latest science of human thriving.  She's the creator of Positive Product Design and the Director of People Science at 15Five. 

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Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already, would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
11 Aug 2020#23 Soushiant Zanganehpour: Solving systemic problems with social entrepreneurship00:59:14

See all links & shownotes here.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
17 Dec 2019#6 Barry Brown: Shaping the shapers01:20:38

Show notes

Barry's focus [0:02:50]
Putting the body into submission to the mind [0:05:17]
A leader's first transformational relationship [0:06:15]
"So they're reading all these books on leadership, but they're not gonna miss lunch today.""" [0:07:15]
Internal & external measures of leadership [0:07:52]
"You just adorn yourself iwth these external symbols, and if you get enough of them, then people believe you, and that's called 'leadership.' " [0:08:42]
Where "leadership" misses traction [0:09:32]
The relationship between what we do and who we are being [0:10:06]
"You don't need to leave your current job to find yourself. Meaning isn't tied to a different position in another company.""" [0:12:14]
"It starts where you are with what you're doing." [0:13:26]
"There is no escape door out of their own life. They have to enter their own life where they are with a different mindset and embrace.""" [0:16:20]
Discomfort & limitations as aids to our leadership and growth [0:18:17]
What is the reward of being limited? [0:19:56]
"When people see you able to accept your own limit...those around you will empower you.""" [0:21:08]
How do you reconcile our abilty to grow vs accepting our limits? [0:23:19]
How do you learn humility? [0:26:04]
Vulnerability as an opening for connection [0:27:24]
What is the strategic value of a leader showing weakness? [0:29:49]
How can individual limits can make a team stronger? [0:34:01]
Removing the manhole cover [0:37:07]
How do you start this with your team? [0:41:35]
How we use work itself as the vehicle to take us deeper into ourselves [0:42:25]
What if the team doesn't want this? [0:46:13]
How to change culture, bit by bit [0:47:58]
"You raise a flag, and see who gathers at the pole.""" [0:51:13]
How to keep the room safe by setting boundaries as a leader [0:52:47]
"When we make something, we're becoming someone. And then you're not just making the product, you're becoming that kind of person.""" [0:57:36]
The craftsman mindset [1:00:23]
The new kind of leader [1:04:16]
"Shaping the shapers""" [1:05:01]
"The products that we're making are shaping the world. Who's making those products? That's the shapers. And who's shaping the shapers, that are shaping the world?""" [1:05:21]
"The possibilities of production are endless now. The new question is not what can you produce, but what kind of person can be trusted to handle this?'' [1:06:07]
The scarcest resource in the new economy [1:07:38]
"That question alone is not answered by means or capital. That kind of question is answered by the kind of person who can say 'this is what I want. I want to bend the capital and means to this desired end.' And that has to be something authentically human, that makes the world celebrate." [1:08:50]
"Any leader that sustains their impact over time has developed a robust interior spiritual life." [1:12:33]

People, books, companies, resources etc mentioned in episode

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
05 Nov 2019#2 Barry O'Reilly: Unlearning and creating culture change01:34:24

Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in: https://tinyurl.com/ydda8zc6

Show notes

  • Barry moving to America and the "American Dream" [0:06:11]
  • Experimentation as a lifestyle -- the kitchen table talk [0:13:14]
  • Navigating uncertainty [0:15:09]
  • Modeling behaviors [0:22:25]
  • Barry's hack to get new perspectives on problems you don't know how to solve [0:24:12]
  • Stumbling blocks in unlearning [0:26:36]
  • Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and "time to think" [0:31:07]
  • Barry's personal reflection practices [0:33:11]
  • "We're trained for more" [0:35:19]
  • How do I know I need to unlearn? [0:45:27]
  • Hotseat: Barry puts Andrew through unlearning exercise on the spot [0:48:11]
  • Andrew's embarrassing insight [0:54:50]
  • The #1 obstacle to being a learner [1:00:04]
  • "Steve always got it right" [1:02:24]
  • How to make being wrong, feel good [1:04:09]
  • Debunking the 10,000 hour rule [1:07:49]
  • The levels of deliberate practice [1:08:24]
  • Applying deliberate practice to day-to-day life [1:15:12]
  • Building systems & countermeasures around yourself to be successful [1:18:42]
  • The origin of the Enliven podcast [1:22:44]
  • How to start a cultural transformation [1:26:37]
  • Barry's #1 hack for meetings [1:33:01]

People, companies, books, etc mentioned

Quotes

  • "If something important comes up, I'll put it on my calendar. But I'm going to make time for thinking."
  • making two or three bets and exploring them well is better than making one hundred bets and half-assing them"
  • "I've been right a million times...and it's bought me jack s**t."
  • "Innovation is new insight that leads to better action"
  • "we're building these systems that are so example that we don't even know how they work"
  • "in all our meetings we just talk about output, the things we got done...if we're going to be agile we have to talk about outcomes"
  • "organizational transformation is just the collective impact of individual transformation"

Lessons and key takeaways

  • how eager am I to get information that is contrary to my view?
  • the essentials to unlearning: curiosity, ownership
  • reflection is a habit of top performers
  • signs you need to unlearn
    • challenge facing and not living up to expectation
    • place you're struggling or avoiding a challenge
    • tried everything can think of and not getting results you want
  • What's the real outcome you're aiming for?
  • when frustrated with the obstacles, zoom back out to the outcomes in order to discover new things to try
  • we often know what to do...but we can't execute shared things on our own
  • Andy Grove and Steve Jobs "getting it right"
  • create and cultivate a personal board of directors to re-energize and gain new perspectives
  • always have agency for how we show up in a system—so it starts with us—and each of us has a


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21 Apr 2020#15 Sam Fankuchen: Leadership and responding to the needs of the world in a time of crisis01:09:20

If you are a new listener to ENLIVEN, we would love to hear from you. Send us your questions so we can feature you on our next “Ask Me Anything,” episode! HERE  

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05 Nov 2019#1 May Lindstrom: The power of having a North Star01:50:25

Show notes

  • Why does May's company have all new employees read "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"? [0:03:29]
  • What does May's company really do? [0:05:27]
  • May's rural upbringing and why she left home [0:07:17]
  • "The goal was to go until I hit the ocean or ran out of money" [0:09:24]
  • "I come from a small town, but I'm not a small woman" [0:10:01]
  • How did an artist end up as a formulator? [0:12:48]
  • What is the job of the artist? [0:14:16]
  • Being an idea manager [0:15:32]
  • The tension between dreams and what can be made real [0:17:21]
  • The responsibliity of a leader to keep dreaming [0:20:27]
  • Success, self-sabotage... now what? [0:20:53]
  • Exploring shame, success, scarcity, and abundance [0:22:54]
  • Instagram perception vs reality [0:28:23]
  • Dealing with imposter syndrome [0:29:40]
  • The Infinite Game [0:34:26]
  • Intentionally craeting a company culture and environment [0:36:07]
  • The beauty of having your customers as your investors [0:37:47]
  • What May Lindstrom skin REALLY does [0:38:23]
  • The job of the Care Bear — and how to idenify one [0:40:30]
  • The hardness of "soft" skills [0:43:26]
  • What's expensive? Dropping your values [0:45:17]
  • The beauty of bootstrapping [0:47:51]
  • Challenges with retail alignment [0:48:24]
  • May's north star: delivering love [0:49:57]
  • Making tough revenue decisions [0:51:21]
  • Retail inventory management issues [0:52:54]
  • Walking away from 25% of her business [0:57:59]
  • Canaries in the retail coal mine [0:58:23]
  • How do you turn values into behavior in your org? [1:01:53]
  • "Tells" that indicate a bad patrner fit [1:08:29]
  • May's BIG product recall [1:10:55]
  • The challenge of natural products [1:13:14]
  • "I knew when I sent that email, there was a chance it could take us under... and it was the right thing to do" [1:19:43]
  • What enables May to make hard calls that others wouldn't? [1:27:12]
  • The cost of knowing what other people are doing [1:28:41]
  • Fear of boredom - what keeps it interesting? [1:30:31]
  • Choosing your "top of the mountain" [1:39:24]
  • Who inspired/inspires May? [1:42:30]
  • "The music is in the space between the notes" [1:46:08]
  • What is the change May seeks to make in the world? [1:48:53]

People, books, etc mentioned

Quotes

"The goal was to go until I hit the ocean or ran out of money" [0:09:24]

"I can have a can of cold potatoes for dinner if I can finish it with a butterfinger."

"What I am is an idea manager, and so it is my job to see, to hold the vision and build the space in which we can make that vision into a reality. And that is actually my job."

"I come from a small town, but I'm not a small woman."

"This is the first time where the reality far exceeds what I thought I was building...now is when I get to dream again."

"It's my responsibility to keep dreaming otherwise we stay here. And here is great, but there is just so much more potential."

"At the end of the day, we're a love company"

"What's expensive is dropping your values"

"What I'm asking of our retailers is that they treat us like milk."

"Anyone who's too sure that they've got it...they don't."

"I knew when I sent that email that there was a chance it could take us under...but I knew there was absolutely no other right call to make."

"The music in the whitespace... it's in the space between the notes"

"I can't have my North Star be love if I'm operating from fear! You can't do love from fear."

 

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12 Jan 2021#34 Will Toms: The power of creative community00:50:23

Will Toms is the cofounder of REC Philly, an incubator, community, and resource center aimed at helping independent creatives make a sustainable living. In short, he's out to challenge the narrative of the starving artist and create an international community of creatives who control their own destinies. 

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For the transcript and full show notes, go to: https://bit.ly/2XtS3HE

Please consider taking ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts. It really helps. (Rate/review links at the very bottom of the page.)

If you have a moment, I’d love it if you could give me a little feedback via this SurveyMonkey link. (It only takes one minute.)

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09 Feb 2021#36 Michael O'Bryan: The mechanics of our humanity01:02:57

Michael O'Bryan is on a quest to make truly humane systems by transforming how organizations understand and support human development, interaction, and performance. 

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For the transcript and full show notes, go to: https://bit.ly/3tDQhma

Please consider taking ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts. It really helps. (Rate/review links at the very bottom of the page.)

If you have a moment, I’d love it if you could give me a little feedback via this SurveyMonkey link. (It only takes one minute.)

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16 Jun 2020#19: Dan Gould — Fighting unconscious bias and attacking systemic problems with entrepreneurship01:13:37
27 Jul 2021#48 ARM redux: 4 nuances of fulfilling work00:13:58

This episode explores four nuances of creative and fulfilling work. It share lessons from follow-on conversations to ep42 about ARM, a mental model for fulfilling work.

Links & resources mentioned are here.



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05 Nov 2019#3 Christina Wodtke: Unleashing potential with extraordinary teams01:46:20

Contact Christina:

Christina's books:

People, articles, resources mentioned:

SHOW NOTES

Coming to California [0:03:23]
Christina's start in tech [0:06:39]
How did Christina get here? [0:07:36]
How do older & younger students affect each other in Christina's classes? [0:11:11]
What is Christina learning from her students lately? [0:12:41]
Christina's "unfortunate" personal quality [0:16:48]
Managing and teaching — do you need answers? [0:18:58]
What had Christina write THIS book? [0:20:16]
Treating your life like a startup & finding Product-Market Fit in your life [0:20:37]
How to validate a book idea, lean startup style [0:21:15]
Christina's big realization - what made OKRs work? [0:24:03]
The 3 things teams actually need [0:24:41]
What types of teams are there? [0:26:37]
Moving from a workgroup to a team [0:28:05]
What makes a team into a learning team? [0:28:49]
What makes a mindful, autonomous team? [0:30:16]
Radical Focus vs OKRs [0:32:56]
Trust & psychological safety [0:33:25]
The kinds of trust [0:34:25]
How trust is built differently across cultures [0:36:17]
In America, do we act like everyone is a robot? [0:37:11]
How can I chip away at cultural constructs? [0:38:50]
When is each type of team/group the right choice? [0:40:50]
What does it take to be a mindful team? [0:45:02]
How should people approach implementing these ideas? Giving feedback? [0:49:29]
Christina's "GASP" feedback framework [0:50:31]
Integral theory: I-We-It [0:57:51]
How long is this going to take? [0:59:50]
Where to start turning around a culture: compensation [1:02:20]
How does this team-level model integrate with the surruonding company environment? [1:05:48]
Can you make a healthy team in a dysfunctional company? [1:06:38]
Which team to start with [1:09:39]
Team health red flags to look out for [1:13:09]
GASP vs GROW? [1:16:15]
Your job as a leader [1:19:58]
The 9X process [1:22:30]
Goals, roles, and norms — and what people miss [1:23:41]
Isn't this too many meetings? [1:27:07]
How to create a lightweight meeting structure [1:29:28]
The thing that really makes the difference in goals [1:31:51]
Isn't this stuff all too "touchy feely"? [1:38:12]
Engineers are humans too [1:40:32]
The reality of work: nobody is in charge [1:41:59]
How to make a mindful team happen [1:42:47]
What impact does Christina want this book to have? [1:44:00]

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23 Feb 2021#37 C Todd Lombardo: Ask better questions to unlock clarity01:03:39

C Todd Lombardo brings a blend of humanity, rigor, and innate curiosity to the questions that shape what we do. Learn to ask better questions and unlock clarity in your work.

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Links & resources mentioned



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23 Mar 2021#39 Melissa Perri: Product strategy and the missing middle in organizations00:54:19

Melissa Perri is on a mission to grow great product leaders. This conversation will help you to become more strategic and multiply your impact. 

-----

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Links & resources mentioned



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19 Nov 2019#4 Marshall Mosher: tough product calls & acclimating to fear01:58:10
07 Apr 2020#14 Derik Mills: Cultivating a faculty of wonder in business and life01:47:23

Follow Andrew Skotzko 

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Explore these Resources

In this episode, we mentioned the following resources:

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08 Sep 2020#25 Karl Kuhnert: How to find strength in vulnerability and live your values as a leader00:51:52

See all links & shownotes here.



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11 Jan 2022#54 David Kadavy: Creative self-actualization01:19:14

David Kadavy will help you follow your curiosity, find your way to creative self-actualization, and learn to discern what you really want.

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Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned

Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

David Kadavy: website, Twitter, podcastDavid's podcast: Love Your WorkDavid's newsletter, Love MondaysDavid's books:Design for HackersThe Heart to StartMind Management, Not Time ManagementDigital Zettelkasten: Principles, Methods, & Examples

Related episodes#9 Amy Edmondson: Building teams where people feel safe#49: Founders Pledge - Thoughts on entrepreneurship and philanthropy

People & orgs80,000 HoursEffective Altruism

BooksWork, by James SuzmanDoing Good Better (effective altruism)Why We Make Things and Why It Matters, by Peter KornFlow, by Mihaly CsikszentmihalyiThe Time Paradox, by Philip ZimbardoBorn Standing Up, by Steve MartinSo Good They Can't Ignore You, by Cal NewportThe Case Against Education, by Brian CaplanThe Art of Learning, by Josh WaitzkinMy Creative Space, by Donald Rattner

Other resources mentionedDonald Rattner on David's podcastFounders PledgeEzra Klein podcast with James SuzmanSteve Jobs 2005 Stanford commencement addressSocial desirability biasTheranos - Elizabeth HolmesTaylorismNaNoWriMo



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10 Mar 2020#12 Rian Doris & Conor Murphy: Flow — Cultivating the optimal experience of life (part 2)01:04:43

Flow dramatically increases every measure of performance you can imagine, as well as your subjective quality of life experience. It’s defined as an optimal state of consciousness. This will help you understand and increase your time in flow so you can get the most out of every aspect of your life.

Show notes here: https://blog.makethingsthatmatter.com/p/flow-research-rian-doris-conor-murphy-pt2



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15 Dec 2020#32 Alex Hillman: How to play the long game of business00:59:32

For the transcript and full episode notes/resources, go to: https://bit.ly/3qR4Fpz

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06 Oct 2020Hope Gurion: What nobody told you about being a product leader00:58:27

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03 Nov 2020#29: One year of the podcast! And a new show name.00:06:18

Links & resources mentioned

All year one episodes:

May Lindstrom: The power of having a North Star (#1) 

Barry O’Reilly: Unlearning and creating culture change (#2) 

Christina Wodtke: Unleashing potential with extraordinary teams (#3) 

Marshall Mosher: tough product calls, acclimating to fear & what it feels like to be Iron Man (#4) 

Rich Mironov: Building a thriving product organization (#5) 

Barry Brown: Shaping the shapers (#6) 

Becky Baybrook: culture, candor, and how Millenials are changing management (#7) 

Paula Daniels: Living on the edge of your own invention (#8) 

Amy Edmondson: Building teams where people feel safe (#9) 

Susan Basterfield: decentralized team structures and participatory decision-making (#10) 

Rian Doris & Conor Murphy: Flow — Cultivating the optimal experience of life (part 1) (#11) 

Rian Doris & Conor Murphy: Flow — Cultivating the optimal experience of life (part 2) (#12) 

Muriel Clauson: The Future of Work — identity, engagement, and being future-ready (#13) 

Derik Mills: Cultivating a faculty of wonder in business and life (#14) 

Sam Fankuchen: Leadership and responding to the needs of the world in a time of crisis (#15) 

Holly Hester-Reilly: Building a customer-centric team and product culture (#16) 

Dr Matthew Cook: Beating trauma, identity shifts, and continually recreating who you are (#17) 

Josh Seiden: How to create clarity and lead strategically with outcomes thinking (#18) 

Dan Gould: Fighting unconscious bias and attacking systemic problems with entrepreneurship (#19) 

Nilofer Merchant: Unleashing Onlyness to benefit from the ideas and potential in every person (#20) 

April Dunford: Find your power in the market through positioning (#21) 

Pam Fox Rollin: How to be a decisive leader who helps people come alive (#22) 

Soushiant Zanganehpour: Solving systemic problems with social entrepreneurship (#23) 

Laura Garnett: Find your zone of genius and never fear a job search again (#24) 

Karl Kuhnert: How to find strength in vulnerability and live your values as a leader (#25) 

David Dylan Thomas: Understand cognitive bias to create positive impact in your work (#26) 

Hope Gurion: What nobody told you about being a product leader (#27) 

Rob Walling: Build a great business and let that be enough (#28) 



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26 Jan 2021#35 Dianne Frommelt: Building products to help people become their best selves00:54:22

Dianne Frommelt is the Chief Product Officer for 15Five, a company I am a longtime fan of. They're on a mission to create high performing, highly engaged teams, and to create a product that helps everyone who uses it to be and become their best selves.

-----

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-----

Links & resources mentioned



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09 Nov 2021#51 Two years in: Making things that matter00:16:13

Wow: two years of making things that matter! Andrew checks in with lessons learned in year two, impactful episodes and show updates.

Links & resources mentioned are here.



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22 Sep 2020David Dylan Thomas: Understanding cognitive bias00:59:43

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20 Oct 2020#28 Rob Walling: Build a great business and let that be enough00:58:19

For the transcript and full episode notes/resources, go to: https://bit.ly/3m2WTpl

And if you have a moment, I’d love it if you could give me a little feedback via this SurveyMonkey link. (It only takes one minute.)

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30 Jun 2020#20: Nilofer Merchant — Unleashing Onlyness to benefit from the ideas and potential in every person01:07:13

See full links and shownotes here.



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13 Jul 2021#47 Matt Kressy: Love as creative fuel01:10:35

Matt Kressy is the founding director of the Integrated Design & Management (IDM) program at MIT. This conversation is a heartfelt exploration about art, design, and the inner drives that fuel our creative work.

-----

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Links & resources mentioned



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10 Aug 2021#49: Thoughts on entrepreneurship and philanthropy00:49:53

This episode flips the script and makes Andrew the guest, exploring his views on entrepreneurship and philanthropy.

Links & resources mentioned are here.



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17 Nov 2020#30 Natalie Nagele: Building a people-first company at Wildbit00:59:46

This is the first episode released under the new name of the show, Make Things That Matter! If you're curious, listen to ep29 for more on the rebranding.

For the transcript and full episode notes/resources, go to: https://bit.ly/3nwvyfX

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Click here to directly email Andrew your questions, comments, and feedback! He reads everything that is sent in (click 'Allow' if you get a popup): connect@makethingsthatmatter.com

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If you enjoy the podcast, please consider subscribing and leaving a rating/review. It really helps!



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
07 Feb 2023Bob Moesta: Prototyping to learn & applying JTBD theory01:01:36

Bob Moesta is one of the pioneers of Jobs To Be Done (JTBD) theory, which has fundamentally changed the way we think about building products and discovering what progress people actually need and want from the products they hire.

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Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

LINKS & RESOURCES MENTIONED

Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

Bob Moesta: The Rewired Group, LinkedIn, Twitter

Bob’s books and podcast Learning to Build Demand-Side Sales 101 Jobs to be Done Handbook The Circuit Breaker podcast

RELATED EPISODES:

April Dunford: Find your power in the market through positioning

PEOPLE & ORGS:

W. Edwards Deming

Clayton Christensen

Genichi Taguchi

Willie Hobbs Moore

Tim Davis

Claire Sullentrope

April Dunford

Ryan Singer

Basecamp

Intercom

BOOKS:

Learning to Build

Competing Against Luck

Grit

Introduction to Quality Engineering

Orthogonal Arrays and Linear Graphs

Shape Up

How Will You Measure Your Life?

Never Split the Difference

OTHER RESOURCES:

Orthogonal arrays

Magic squares

L9 prototype



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
07 Mar 2023Double click on the love00:10:41

What do you do when one of your top three KPIs is stagnant, and the product isn't growing? A micro case study in debugging retention and unlocking growth.

You can read the original article here: https://tinyurl.com/2hdmy2zp

LINK: STARTING CONDITION CHART: https://tinyurl.com/2fnemasz

LINK: DEEPER DIVE PIE CHART: https://tinyurl.com/2lyjalyp



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
28 Feb 2023Petra Wille: Building a community of practice00:50:40

Petra Wille is a product leadership coach and the author of Strong Product People, my go-to book for the people development side of being a product leader. In this conversation, we dive deep into why and how a community of practice can level up your team and save training budget.

You can also read this episode here.

Sign up here to get upcoming essays + episodes emailed to you.

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

Links & resources mentioned:

Petra Wille:

Website

Twitter @loomista

LinkedIn

• Book: Strong Product People

• Conference: Product at Heart

Related episodes:

Amy Edmondson: Building teams where people feel safe

People & orgs:

Robert Kegan

Tolingo (translation company)

Books:

Strong Product People

An Everyone Culture

The Culture Map

Selling the Dream

Other resources:

Product Communities of Practice: Everything You Need to Know

Dan Pink - Autonomy, mastery, purpose

The (product) cultural iceberg



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
27 Mar 2023Rob Walling: The SaaS playbook and gut intuition00:55:43

The SaaS Playbook will shave years off your learning curve if you want to build a SaaS. Rob Walling is a serial entrepreneur and the internet godfather of indie SaaS businesses who has built six companies and has been a long-standing voice in creative, independent paths into product building and entrepreneurship since 2010.

Links & resources mentioned

* Book: The SaaS Playbook

* Back the Kickstarter

* Startups for the Rest of Us podcast & MicroConf YouTube

* TinySeed

* MicroConf

Related episodes:

* Rob Walling (ep28): Build a great business and let that be enough

* DJ DiDonna: Navigating sabbaticals and career breaks

People & orgs:

* TinySeed

* MicroConf

* Dr Shelly Walling

* Justin Jackson - choosing a market

Books:

* The SaaS Playbook

* The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Keeping Your Sh*t Together

* Start Small, Stay Small: A Developer's Guide to Launching a Startup

* The Zen Founder Guide to Founder Retreats

Other resources:

* MicroConf

* IndieHackers

* The 5PM idea validation framework

* Survivorship bias

* Stair step method of bootstrapping



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
11 Apr 2023Mike Saloio: Leadership, meditation, ego, and ubuntu00:50:16

Mike Saloio is the CEO and cofounder of Huddle, a startup that brings together fractional swat teams of expert builders to help startups generate real momentum on their most important projects within a week.

This is a candid conversation about leadership and how our egos, sense of identity, and personal practices shape our company cultures. In particular, I think you’ll find practical benefit from our discussion about decoupling the concepts of morality and integrity to have healthier team dynamics.

* Mike Saloio - Twitter, LinkedIn

* Huddle

Related episodes:

* Barry Brown: Work as a pathway of transformation

People & orgs:

* Steph Golik (cofounder)

* TechStars

* EXPA

* Rick Rubin

* Alfred Adler

* Ray Dalio

* Russell Simmons (+ meditation book)

Books and media:

* The Courage To Be Disliked

* Article - Polarities

* Polarity Management (book)

* Success Through Stillness

* Rick Rubin book

* Huddle launch article

* The Playbook

Other resources:

* Ikigai

* “You must become somebody before you become nobody

* Ubuntu

* Transcendental Meditation

* Four minute mile effect - Bannister effect



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
17 May 2023Adam Thomas: Operationalizing your product strategy00:54:01

Adam Thomas is a coach that helps product teams operationalize strategy so they spend more time focused on building the right products and less time fighting fires.

Sign up here to get upcoming essays + episodes emailed to you.

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned:

* Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

* Adam Thomas: website, LinkedIn, Twitter

* Adam’s Maven workshop: Survival Metrics

Related episodes:

* Melissa Perri: Product strategy and the missing middle

Books and media:

* Good Strategy, Bad Strategy

* The Crux

Other resources:

* Warhammer 40K

Timestamps:

[00:01:48] War gaming shaped product strategy

[00:03:22] Warhammer 40K

[00:07:11] Michael Jordan's Winning Shot

[00:11:22] The whole person equation

[00:14:15] Emotions in the workplace

[00:17:54] Survival metrics

[00:23:08] Implementing survival metrics

[00:27:26] Trust issues in product development

[00:30:05] Internal value exchange

[00:34:33] Being "Product Led" is Misleading

[00:36:26] Using survival metrics consistently

[00:39:23] Focusing on important outcomes

[00:45:12] Complying with regulations in finance

[00:50:13] Questions to ask yourself



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
30 May 2023Donna Lichaw: The leader's journey01:00:23

Donna Lichaw is an executive coach for unconventional leaders, and the author of the newly-released book The Leader’s Journey.

Donna brings a background in design and product to her executive coaching and helps unconventional leaders take control of the story to drive impact for themselves and within their teams. We go deep on:

* how to handle managing our own stories in healthy conflict

* creating psychological safety

* what it looks like to “give yourself an A” so you feel freed up to invent new possibilities

Listen now on Apple, Spotify, Google, Overcast, or Youtube.

Links & resources

* Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

* Donna Lichaw: website, LinkedIn, Twitter

* Donna’s new book: The Leader’s Journey

Related episodes:

* Mike Saloio: Leadership, meditation, ego, and ubuntu

People & orgs:

* Neuroleadership Institute

Books:

* The Art of Possibility

* Rethinking Positive Thinking

* The Upside Of Your Dark Side

* Nonviolent Communication

* Radical Candor

Other resources:

* Donna’s toolkit

* The SCARF model (psych safety)

* 3F model



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
19 Jul 2023Thank you, and a brief update00:02:16

It's been quiet around here because I'm in deep in the creative process of reimagining this show, and I need your help. Podcast analytics are terrible, and I want to know more about YOU.

Please fill out this short, 5-ish minute survey. Your help on this goes a LONG way, and I appreciate you taking the time!

Click here to complete our listener survey

https://makethingsthatmatter.com/survey



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
10 Aug 2023MJ Jastrebski: How to build resilience and stay buoyant as a CPO01:15:10

MJ Jastrebski is the CPO of Stylitics, a rapidly scaling retail technology company that helps retail websites automate styling and bundling for their consumers.

Click here to fill out the MTTM listener survey form by August 16, 2023: https://makethingsthatmatter.com/survey

In this episode, we cover:

(00:07:20) Understanding product roles/levels, influence, and career growth.

(00:13:10) Product and process management at different levels.

(00:19:22) Leadership training emphasizes accountability among executive teams, prioritizing cross-functional exec peer relationships & alignment.

(00:28:27) The importance of buoyancy.

(00:36:17) How mindfulness and empathy are important for effective leadership.

(00:43:41) What Stylitics is doing and how it's scaling up

(00:47:12) Expanding internationally and into new verticals. Emphasis on shipping and team muscle building.

(00:55:38) Creating product families to address pain points, setting expectations, iterating with alpha, beta, and GA stages, building retailer relationships, understanding different market needs.

(01:02:08) Changing roles, building skills, and evolving identity.

(01:11:30) Creating psychological safety is crucial for innovation. It allows people to take risks without fear of judgment or failure. This enables organizations to gather more information and make better decisions.

Links & resources mentioned

• You can end episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

• Guest: MJ Jastrebski & Stylitics

Related episodes:

Mike Saloio: Leadership, meditation, ego, and ubuntu

Amy Edmondson: Building teams where people feel safe

Kenny Borg: Identity transformation

People & orgs:

Stylitics

Carlota Perez

Books:

Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages

The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership

Multipliers

Other resources:

Give away your legos

How to craft your product team at every stage, from pre-PMF to hypergrowth

The 3 lenses of innovation



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
27 Sep 2023Eisha Armstrong: Pragmatic Strategies for Managing Change00:43:38

Zooming in on three common change management issues: forecasting, role transitions, and departmental power dynamics.

Topics discussed

(00:03:01) Companies transforming into product organizations

(00:05:01) Revenue shift: smaller now, longer-term impact

(00:08:30) Practical topics: forecasting, transition, change management

(00:10:04) Identifying leading measures and assumptions in forecasts

(00:14:25) Seeking tech-enabled scale, revenue visibility, innovation

(00:20:29) Power shifts in organizations impact staffing and funding

(00:22:12) Evolving organizational model for product-centric strategy

(00:27:23) Key considerations for acquiring a company: purpose, integration, impact

(00:31:18) Leaders modeling simple mental health practices shift organizations. Organizational change requires supporting structures and models

(00:35:38) Quieting the mind to connect and trust

(00:37:33) Organizations need specific change management for success

(00:40:40) "Name fears, tame them; face personal insecurities."

Links & resources mentioned

Full transcript at: https://podcast.makethingsthatmatter.com/eisha-armstrong-pragmatic-change-management-strategies/#transcript

* Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

* Guest: Eisha Tierney Armstrong - LinkedIn

* Book: Fearless: How to Transform a Services Culture and Successfully Productize

Related episodes:

* #2 Barry O’Reilly: Unlearning and creating culture change

* #9 Amy Edmondson: Building teams where people feel safe

* #59 Kenny Borg: Identity transformation and embodying fulfillment

Books:

* Fearless: How to Transform a Services Culture and Successfully Productize (Eisha’s book)

* "Leading Change" by John Kotter

* “Managing Transitions: Making the Most of the Change” by William Bridges



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
10 Oct 2023Pam Fox Rollin: Growing Groups Into Teams00:56:24

Pam Fox Rollin is an executive coach and strategist. This is a conversation about the conversations that leaders are not having. These are THE difference between building a truly committed team that delivers the future you care about… and having a group which is a team in name only.

Topics discussed:

(00:03:55) Writing a book about teams as a team.

(00:11:41) Teamwork failure due to individual mindset silos.

(00:14:51) Telling the difference between hard work and commitment

(00:18:40) OKRs align and drive team objectives.

(00:20:54) Incentive structures and team behaviors

(00:24:02) Shared promise vital for effective team; align goals and coordinate efforts.

(00:28:25) Leaders build futures that matter through conversations.

(00:33:08) Finance team doubts engineering's budget needs.

(00:36:23) Trust: vulnerability in actions and five dimensions.

(00:38:21) Dimensions of trust

(00:42:23) Design conversations as a leader to level up.

(00:46:01) Challenges of remote work and trust.

(00:49:05) Missing conversations hinder team building efforts.

(00:53:44) Collaboration needed in achieving desired outcomes.

Links & resources mentioned

Find the full transcript at: https://podcast.makethingsthatmatter.com/pam-fox-rollin-growing-groups-into-teams/#transcript

* Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

* Pam Fox Rollin: LinkedIn, Altus Growth Partners

* New book: Growing Groups Into Teams

* Altus’ Growth podcast: Missing Conversations

Related episodes:

* #22 Pam Fox Rollin: Be a leader who helps people come alive

People & orgs:

* Bob Dunham - Institute for Generative Leadership

Books:

* Growing Groups Into Teams

* The Thin Book of Trust - Charles Feltman

Other resources:

* IBM study: “Augmented work for an automated, AI-driven world”

* Paper: On the Folly of Rewarding A, While Hoping for B



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
01 Nov 2023Nacho Bassino: How to build your first product strategy01:02:46

Nacho Bassino is a veteran product leader and the author of Product Direction, one of my go-to books on how to actually generate a product strategy. There are many excellent books out there on strategy as a whole, but surprisingly few that specifically cover product strategy.

Topics discussed:

(00:02:12) Nacho's journey into product leadership

(00:09:23) How leaders can adapt to others' communication and cross-cultural preferences

(00:10:50) Strategy: defining problems and prioritizing solutions

(00:19:44) Painful, but typical; a fake strategy

(00:24:20) Time and team needed for first big strategy creation

(00:30:17) Three key aspects of quarterly reviews: OKRs, roadmaps, and Opportunity Solution Trees

(00:35:33) Connection between impact, outcomes, and initiatives with revenue generation

(00:40:11) Empowerment: teams' accountability and autonomy

(00:51:36) Nacho's hard product leadership call

(00:58:15) Strategy for startups vs larger companies

(00:59:02) How the opportunity space expands with company growth

Links & resources mentioned

Find the full transcript at: https://podcast.makethingsthatmatter.com/nacho-bassino-build-your-first-product-strategy/#transcript

• Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

• Nacho Bassino: Website, LinkedIn

• Book: Product Direction

• Podcast: 100 Product Strategies

Related episodes:

#68 Adam Thomas: Operationalizing product strategy

Books:

Product Direction

The Culture Map

Playing to Win

Product Roadmaps Relaunched

Other resources and articles:

A product strategy acid test

What is "strategy"?

• Burnout as a strategy problem

Should leaders be prescriptive about strategy?

Product strategy: focus vs prioritization

Does strategy matter before product-market fit (PMF)?

Execs care about revenue. How do we get them to care about outcomes?



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
12 Dec 2023Chris Smith: How to think about adding AI to your product01:13:41

Chris Smith is a longtime engineering leader who has been in the trenches of building with AI & machine learning for years. He’s led the development of data systems & strategies at tech giants like early Google, Yahoo, and Sun; S&P 500's like Live Nation; and a wide variety of startups.

Topics discussed:

(00:00) AI industry at inflection point, causing chaos

(09:05) Machine learning, neural nets, and generative AI

(14:03) Generative AI: LLMs + broad understanding

(21:56) Open source models improve specialized problem solving

(25:06) Access to data leads to competitive advantage

(32:53) AI training improves productivity and learning speed

(42:51) Reduced investment in GPT models speeds results

(48:47) Expectation mismatch leads to brand perception risks

(53:54) Non-technical work is crucial for AI product success

(57:30) Building a computer vision product from scratch

(01:03:14) A strategic approach to refining and testing prototypes

(01:08:04) Closing learning loops

Links & resources mentioned

Find the full transcript at: https://podcast.makethingsthatmatter.com/chris-smith-how-to-add-ai-to-product/#transcript

Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

Chris Smith:

LinkedIn

X / Twitter: @xcbsmith

• Bluesky @xcbsmith

Related episodes:

#75 Chris Smith: Simple guidelines for AI investment sizing

People & orgs:

Dr. Marily Nika - AI Lead, Meta Reality Lab

Travis Corrigan - Head of Product, Smith.AI

Books:

Evidence Guided - Itamar Gilad

Other resources:

GPT = “generative pre-trained transformer”

Wizard of Oz experiment

Tom Chi - learning loop

Joel Spolsky: The iceberg secret, revealed

ML Ops

Computer vision

Precision-Recall curves

Leaked Google memo: “There is no moat”

Universal basic income (UBI)

Stop-loss order



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
12 Dec 2023(Bonus) Chris Smith: Simple guidelines for AI investment sizing00:20:23

Chris Smith is a longtime engineering leader who has been in the trenches of building with AI & machine learning for years. This is a short, bonus episode to go along with our main conversation: https://pod.fo/e/20a5ef

Topics discussed:

(00:00) AI tooling allows for cost-effective testing.

(06:02) Scoring and statistical measures to track progress.

(09:22) Costs if model needs rebuilding or hyperparameter tuning

(11:31) Order of magnitude investment estimates

(15:10) Decide upfront when to cut bait.

(17:12) Investment essentials for meaningful results and outcomes.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
23 Jan 2024Randy Silver: The conversations that create impactful products00:58:08

Randy Silver is a product leadership advisor, podcast host, and global product community weaver. We explore the conversations needed to drive impact and perception of value.

You can also read this episode here.

Topics discussed:

(04:00) Moving from a journalistic editor to product editor

(07:34) Parallels between product management film production

(09:53) Missed opportunities & the need for collaboration

(15:21) Alignment with stakeholders

(18:24) Sales misalignment and restructures

(21:10) Diagnosing teamwork challenges with partners

(25:02) Diagnosing your new org via informational interviews

(28:05) Creating a manager README

(30:11) Roles and responsibilities convo for better understanding

(35:19) Guiding conversations and change

(44:22) Did reorganization at Airbnb address strategy misalignment?

(46:18) Defensive reaction within product community to Airbnb

(52:14) Coordinating while scaling

Links & resources mentioned

Find the full transcript at: https://podcast.makethingsthatmatter.com/randy-silver-conversations-create-impact#transcript

Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

Randy Silver: website, LinkedIn, Twitter

MTP talk: “Getting aligned with your exec team by Randy Silver”

• Podcast: The Product Experience

• Book: “What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of Crisis”

The product environment canvas

Stakeholder Informational interview template

Related episodes:

Andrew on Randy’s podcast, The Product Experience

#72 Pam Fox Rollin: Growing groups into teams

#44 Teresa Torres: Habits for clear thinking and better product bets

#18 Josh Seiden: Create clarity with outcomes thinking

#5 Rich Mironov: Building a thriving product organization

#3 Christina Wodtke: Unleashing potential with extraordinary teams

People & orgs:

Georgie Smallwood

Matt LeMay

Alan Albert - value based pricing

Itamar Gilad

Books:

Growing Groups Into Teams

Evidence Guided

The Team That Managed Itself

Continuous Discovery Habits

Outcomes Over Output

Making Things Happen: Mastering Project Management

Other resources:

Product, it’s time to grow up

• The 11 Laws of Showrunning

Rich Mironov: The slippery slope of sales-led development

The Journey to Empowered Teams - Twitter, Airbnb & Tumblr

Product Strategy Acid Test

OODA loop

• Manager README: The Indispensable Document for the Modern Manager

Roman Pichler - the decision making chart

Relentless equanimity



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
13 Mar 2024Marty Cagan: Moving to the product model01:01:45

Marty Cagan joins me for real talk about what it takes to transform into a strong product company.

You can read the episode transcript here.

Topics discussed:

(00:00) The process and challenges in writing a book

(12:27) Real world products need tech for results

(17:28) Deciding on investments, solving problems, and changing processes

(28:11) Understanding disconnects

(36:00) Top leadership support crucial

(40:28) How product coaches help

(44:57) "Being agile" doesn't always mean "doing agile"

(49:52) Handling objections well

(54:45) How it comes together in an organizational operating model

Links & resources mentioned:

Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

Marty Cagan

LinkedIn, website

• New book: TRANSFORMED

• Previous books: INSPIRED, EMPOWERED

• SVPG

Related episodes:

#31 Marty Cagan - Empowering product teams

Books:

The Crux

• Good Strategy, Bad Strategy

The Art of Action

Other resources:

Product Management Theater

Product Leadership Theater

• Transformation Theater

• So You Want To Write a Book?



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
15 Apr 2024Martina Hodges-Schell: Understanding your operating model00:55:39

Martina Hodges-Schell is a transformation coach and consultant that helps organizations adopt a Silicon Valley approach to innovation. She spent 25 years leading design and innovation in tech companies, and now she loves providing a fresh, outside perspective to help teams develop and mature their product practice.

In this conversation, we…

* define transformation and what it means for your company operating model

* explore how a company operating model might be shifted by adapting AI technology

* Discuss how embodied leadership practices like equine coaching can give leaders the most honest feedback

Enjoy!

Topics discussed

(05:31) A horse's feedback reflects your behavior and communication

(06:51) Feedback on your actions and decision making

(10:48) Leaders MUST be involved in change process

(13:57) Control is equated with power, active involvement important

(18:58) Change is difficult, people resist it

(19:45) Balancing ideas within organizations, encouraging participation

(25:37) Four lenses for an operating model

(29:18) How AI transforms operating model: structure and collaboration challenges

(31:36) Organizational structure should promote collaboration and communication

(37:17) Optimistic about innovation, promoting change and collaboration

(39:55) Focus on broad possibilities, capabilities, and brand

(43:16) Closing the loop from teams to leadership

(50:20) Guiding questions in life

(52:49) Book recommendations

Links & resources mentioned

Find the full transcript at: https://podcast.makethingsthatmatter.com/martina-hodges-schell-operating-model/#transcript

* Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

* Martina Hodges-Schell: website, LinkedIn

* Book: Communicating the UX Vision: 13 Anti-patterns That Block Good Design

Related episodes:

* #72 Pam Fox Rollin: Growing Groups Into Teams

* #75 Chris Smith: Simple guidelines for AI investment sizing

* #74 Chris Smith: How to think about adding AI to your product

* #77 Marty Cagan: Moving to the product model

* #39 Melissa Perri: Product strategy and the missing middle in organizations

People & orgs:

* Noelle Saldana

Books:

* The Build Trap

* Growing Groups Into Teams

* TRANSFORMED

* Managing Transitions

* Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes

* Leading Change

Other resources:

* Martina’s OMG (operating model goals) canvas

* North Shore - AI transformation blog series



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
31 May 2024Christian Idiodi: Telling the story of transformation01:05:45

Christian Idiodi is a partner at Silicon Valley Product Group (SVPG). Before SVPG, he profoundly shaped or reshaped the culture and products of CareerBuilder, Snagajob, and led the product transformation in Datasite, the first SaaS for due diligence in the finance industry.

Topics discussed

(08:56) An unusual childhood leads to survival skills, creativity

(12:25) Aspiring doctor turned innovator seeking problem-solving opportunities

(18:33) Guiding others through transformation, not crafting it

(21:31) Thriving on tech success, driven by motivation

(28:40) Cycle of innovation: growth, stagnation, reversion, reaction

(36:45) Reading biographies as a leader to improve your decision-making

(37:40) Key to career success: leadership, insight, humility

(47:23) Transitioning roles, what were key mindset shifts?

(56:30) Prioritizing practice before game day

(01:03) Choose kindness, support, and do good work

Links & resources mentioned

Find the full transcript at: https://podcast.makethingsthatmatter.com/christian-idiodi-telling-the-story-of-transformation/#transcript

* Christian Idiodi - SVPG

* New book: TRANSFORMED

* Inspire Africa Conference

* Innovate Africa Foundation

Related episodes:

* Marty Cagan: Moving to the product model

* Martina Hodges-Schell: Understanding your operating model

* Product Therapy - What is product sense?

People & orgs:

* Jay Acunzo

Books:

* Turn the Ship Around - L. David Marquet

* An Everyone Culture - Robert Kegan

* Build - Tony Fadell

* Walter Isaacson - Steve Jobs

* Team of Rivals - Abraham Lincoln

* Invention: A Life of Learning Through Failure

* Sam Walton: Made In America



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
28 Jun 2024Steve Portigal: Improving your user research process01:14:19

Steve Portigal is a veteran user research leader and consultant who helps companies mature their research practices. He’s the author of Interviewing Users, a classic in the field, and the host of the design leadership podcast Dollars to Donuts. In this conversation, we explore:

• how to use creative practices to develop your voice as a leader and storyteller

• how to be a smart consumer of research findings when you aren’t an expert in the craft of research

• one simple question leaders can ask to set their organizations to make the most of research

• and how to create the conditions for high-impact, effective creative work in your team

Topics discussed

(10:21) Experimenting with writing and finding one's voice

(15:47) Feedback model: GASP - goals, attempts, successes, possibilities

(19:53) Workshops, creativity, and self-doubt

(27:06) Embrace authenticity, find your unique facilitation style

(28:10) Appreciating different approaches, understanding executives' skepticism

(34:37) Engage with compassion

(39:29) Research is essential for informed decision-making

(49:01) Compassion and reflection are crucial for leaders

(50:48) Create a safe learning space for engagement

(56:03) Assessing code quality and marketing effectiveness

(01:00:39) Research raises questions, timing and deployment important

(01:10:31) Stay fascinated with the world around you

Links & resources mentioned

• Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

• Steve Portigal: website, LinkedIn

• Book: Interviewing Users

• Podcast: Dollars to Donuts

Related episodes

#3 Christina Wodtke: Unleashing potential with extraordinary teams

#62 Sahil Lavingia: Independent Thinking & Pricing at Gumroad

Books

Interviewing Users

Don’t Make Me Think

Other resources

Great User Research (for Non-Researchers)

When to Use Which User-Experience Research Methods

Nielsen: Why You Only Need to Test with 5 Users



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
30 Jul 2024Itamar Gilad: the GIST of product discovery01:04:31

Itamar Gilad is the author of Evidence Guided, which is my favorite book out there on how to practically DO product discovery. Prior to becoming a product consultant and trainer, he had a long product career at Google where he led the creation and launch of products that are now used by over a billion people.

In this conversation we explore the GIST approach to product discovery through the origin story of Gmail's tabbed inbox, to help you see what great product discovery looks like in practice.

Topics discussed

(01:33) Creating frameworks and coming up with catchy models

(10:02) GIST: the meta framework organizing model concept.

(15:02) Illustrating GIST through the story of Gmail tabbed inbox

(21:06) Refocusing goals led to stronger, simpler idea.

(25:08) Prioritize, filter, and reevaluate for effective ideas.

(29:02) Usability and value risks, low confidence, evolution.

(35:43) Key results drive achieving goals, engaging company.

(40:07) Inquiring about applying startup approach to enterprises.

(45:32) Navigating uncertainty in strategy with evidence and discovery.

(50:44) Emphasizing iterative nature of product discovery process.

(59:10) Encouraging analysis for companies hesitant about changes.

(01:01:18) Evaluate, test, experiment, launch, measure, impact, outcomes

Links & resources mentioned

• Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

• Itamar Gilad : website, LinkedIn

• Evidence Guided (book) - website, Amazon

Related episodes:

#55: How does continuous discovery come together for a new product?

#44 Teresa Torres: Habits for clear thinking and better product bets

Books:

• Evidence Guided: website, Amazon

Other resources:

Itamar’s downloadable frameworks & resources

The GIST framework

Confidence meter for ICE scoring

Creating Product Strategy with Multiple Strategic Tracks (MuST)

Marty Cagan: The four big risks

Gibson Biddle: proxy metrics (within product strategy)



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
27 Dec 2022DJ DiDonna: Navigating sabbaticals and career breaks01:05:59

DJ DiDonna helps us approach taking REAL time off and evolving our identity along with our career.

Whether you’re feeling like you need to take time off, or if you’re curious about what sabbaticals are and why they might be good for both you and your organization, have a listen. You’ll learn about how your interests and identity can evolve along with your career, but not be bound by your career.

Links & resources mentioned

• Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

DJ DiDonna: LinkedIn

The Sabbatical Project

Related episodes:

#59 Kenny Borg: Identity transformation and embodying fulfillment

People & orgs:

The Sabbatical Project

Books:

Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life

Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes

Pivot: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next One

How Will You Measure Your Life?

The Lies of Locke Lamora

Other resources:

TED talk: Stefan Sagmeister: The power of time off

DJ’s TEDx talk: Sabbaticals: Time [off] well spent

LinkedIn career break feature

Research: “The three meanings of meaning in life: Distinguishing coherence, purpose, and significance”

Exercise: 2022 Reflection + 2023 Goal Setting



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
10 Jan 20235 Takeaways from a week with some of the world's best product coaches00:15:29

Five things I (re)learned from spending a week with SVPG + some of the best product coaches in the world.

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You can read this episode here.

Sign up here to get upcoming audio essays emailed to you

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn! 

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and  take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned

Send episode feedback on  Twitter @askotzko , or via email 

Related episodes

#60 DJ DiDonna: Navigating sabbaticals and career breaks 

People & orgs

Marty Cagan & SVPG 

Books

The Thin Book of Trust

Other resources mentioned

Vision example: SpaceX

Vision example: Microsoft productivity

Vision example: Apple’s Knowledge Navigator

Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe)

Original agile manifesto 



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com
25 Jan 2023Sahil Lavingia: Independent Thinking + Pricing Changes at Gumroad01:03:47

Sahil Lavingia has had an epic journey as an entrepreneur: he dropped out of college to become employee #2 at Pinterest and then went on to found Gumroad, one of the largest platforms for creators to sell their work and earn a living online. After the company failed to meet its VC-driven growth timeline and almost died, Sahil had to lay everyone off and build it back up into the resilient, streamlined, and fully distributed company it is today.

Episode web page.

Sign up here to get upcoming essays + episodes emailed to you.

Follow the MTTM journey on Twitter or LinkedIn!

If you haven't already would you do me a favor and take ~40 seconds to rate/review the show on Apple Podcasts ? It really helps. (Scroll to bottom of page for rate/review links.)

Links & resources mentioned:

• Send episode feedback on Twitter @askotzko , or via email

• Sahil Lavingia: Gumroad, Twitter, personal site

• Book: The Minimalist Entrepreneur

• “Reflecting on My Failure to Build a Billion-Dollar Company”: essay + talk

Sahil’s early stage investment fund

Related episodes:

#42 ARM: A mental model for fulfilling work

People & orgs:

Gumroad

USC

Patreon

BandCamp

Substack

Daniel Vassallo tweet about money he’s made Gumroad

Paul Graham: “You've found market price when buyers complain but still pay.”

Books:

The Minimalist Entrepreneur

Essentialism

Only the Paranoid Survive

Other resources:

• How Gumroad is run: No Meetings, No Deadlines, No Full-Time Employees

• Video: Gumroad Q4 2022 board meeting - where pricing change was announced

• “Reflecting on My Failure to Build a Billion-Dollar Company”: essay + MicroConf talk

What is a transformer model (AI)?



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blog.makethingsthatmatter.com

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