Networked thinking, Product thinking... and your life

We all have different levels of knowledge in different fields – whether it's for our jobs, casual interests, research, curiosity, or hobbies. Ideas and principles from one field can be used in another, leading to new solutions and ideas through a fruitful cross-pollination.

Taking this a step further – when different people collaborate, we have even more dots to connect, between even more areas, with more links and more perspectives. That's the power of networked thinking, described as "another quiet revolution" by Anne-Laure Le Cunff, in her piece on the topic, where it’s explained in-depth.

Last years, I was asking myself some big questions: how can we create better products? and how can we live better lives? And even though I'm a huge fan of tools for thought and concepts like networked thinking, in all honesty, I did not live this. As people working in product, we prioritize, reframe problems, experiment, focus on value etc. but I was not using these skills and principles in my life. Or at least not using them to the extent I'd like to.

This project and the upcoming book should help apply product thinking in your life.

It is a result of networked thinking and cross-pollination: extracting value for life, from the field of product management. The collaboration at a network level comes into play with this newsletter, building the book in increments, learning in public, and incorporating your feedback.

How can this be of value to you? And who is this for?

I hope the book will help you with some principles and perspectives for living better. If you work in product, I hope it will help you in your work as well.

I believe it can spark curiosity and give some reference for you to take this further, connect the dots for yourself and your context, and see what works.

This means it is not intended for product professionals only, but in case you do work in product, my hope is that it would also be helpful for your work.

Some areas we'll look into (in no particular order)

Value

What's value? Value creation, and value capture. Pareto principle (80/20 rule). Prioritization, tradeoffs and decision making.

Discovery

Reframing opportunities and problems. Mapping them. Defining outcomes and setting goals. Experimenting. Shortening the fedback loops.

Collaboration

Relationships and interaction. Conflict resolution. Getting buyin. Having hard but valuable conversations. 'Managing' upward and sideways. Sharing ideas. Negotiating.

Delivery / Execution

Agile approach and incremental work. Pacing yourself for sustainability. Attention to excellence.

Any areas I’m missing?
What would you like to see covered?

Please share your opinions with me – and share this project with a friend who would like it.

Milos