Trust grows when care takes the form of action.

Teams don’t excel in comfort; they grow through accountability. A challenge, a nudge or a push is a signal of shared commitment. Speaking up shows someone values the team enough to stay invested and engaged.

Without trust, feedback sounds like conflict. With trust, it becomes progress.

Behaviours shape how others perceive us, often without our awareness. Some actions we accept as part of who we are. Others remain hidden, unnoticed until someone highlights them.

In the workplace, these unnoticed behaviours can affect team dynamics. If something seems inappropriate, a direct conversation is the best approach.

The Situation-Behaviour-Impact model simplifies these conversations, keeping feedback focused on specific actions and their effects.

Saying no is a leadership skill.

It’s not about rejecting ideas, it’s about protecting focus. When everything feels important, nothing is. Saying no clears space for what truly matters—what drives impact, not just activity.

Yes, it will sting. People will take it personally. But prioritisation isn’t about popularity; it’s about progress.

Every “no” to distractions is a “yes” to momentum.

Agile is everywhere and it’s lost its edge. What once symbolised adaptability now often signals chaos.

The problem isn’t the methodology itself. Agility is a framework for delivering results, not a replacement for thoughtful strategy. True agility allows teams to pivot efficiently when markets shift but only within the boundaries of a clear plan.

Without one, "agile" becomes an excuse for reactive, directionless decisions that waste resources and frustrate teams. Strategy grounds agility. It ensures flexibility serves a purpose, not a whim.

Agility thrives when paired with strategy. Let’s stop mistaking movement for progress.

Asking for help drives progress.

The strongest teams thrive on trust, communication and self-awareness. Silence in struggle delays outcomes and keeps answers out of reach.

Great leaders create environments where asking for help feels safe. Confident individuals know when to lead, when to listen and when to ask.

If you visit Japan, don’t expect to find almond milk for your coffee or rubbish bins on every corner. But what you will find are plenty of adorable logos and cute instructions.

A strategy document should guide, not confuse.

The purpose of strategy is to align and direct an organisation toward shared goals. When it's overly complicated, it fails its primary mission. Strategy should be simple, clear and actionable.

As a product manager, your role is to create alignment. Work with your team and stakeholders to ensure clarity. If the strategy you're handed is unclear, don't sit with confusion. Simplify it.

Great decisions hinge on trade-offs. Success isn’t about doing everything - it’s about choosing what not to do. Feature prioritisation proves this.

• Apple dropped keyboards for the iPhone's sleek touchscreen, sparking a revolution.
• Tesla's Model 3 focused on affordability and range, skipping luxury extras to meet customer needs.
• Amazon sacrificed short-term profits for rapid delivery, reshaping e-commerce with convenience.

Clarity is a PM’s superpower. Early in a career, speed feels like the ultimate skill. Later, strategy seems like the key. Over time, it becomes clear - strong communication makes the difference.

Brilliant strategies crumble without understanding. Clear communication creates alignment. Alignment builds trust. A team that trusts your judgement will follow your lead, and leadership confident in your clarity will give you room to excel.

Great PMs don’t just build products. They build trust by making the complex simple and the ambiguous clear.

Hesitating to share a weird idea kills creativity. Fear of judgement silences potential brilliance.

Most unconventional ideas won’t work. But the rare one that does can change everything. What seems absurd in one moment might solve a problem in another. Creativity thrives on the unexpected and bold ideas are the spark for breakthroughs.

By embracing the bizarre, teams unlock new possibilities. Instead of dismissing “stupid” ideas, explore them. Confidence to share fuels progress and every idea becomes a seed for innovation.

Tell me you got sick without telling me you got sick...

A successful product balances execution and vision. As Melissa Perri highlights, it’s not just about delivering but steering in the right direction. Markets shift. Challenges arise. Opportunities emerge. Pivoting with purpose defines lasting success.

A good company strategy should be made up of two parts: the operational framework, or how to keep the day-to-day activities of a company moving; and the strategic framework, or how the company realizes the vision through product and service development in the market.

Bold ideas unlock progress.

When crafting new products or features, it's easy to focus on safe, incremental improvements. These solutions feel achievable and practical but they rarely break new ground.

Adding a bold concept into the mix forces the team to think beyond limitations. Even if the daring idea doesn’t make it to launch, it creates a spark. It pushes boundaries, reshapes how problems are viewed and reveals opportunities overlooked in safer designs.

A bold solution isn’t just a backup plan. It’s a catalyst for better work.

Osaka at night feels alive. The big glowing Running Man sign in Dotonbori lights up the busy streets. Food stalls fill the air with yummy smells.

Good managers know when to step back.

Intervening too often stifles creativity, ownership and morale. Teams thrive when leaders provide clear direction, trust their abilities and give them space to execute. Micromanagement creates bottlenecks, while autonomy pushes innovation and accountability.

The best work happens when leaders empower, not overshadow.

Visited Osaka Castle. The castle has been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times due to wars, lightning strikes and natural disasters. The current structure dates back to 1931.

A short post about trust between a founder and their first Head of Product: Scaling with a Head of Product.

In Osaka today.
Fun fact: Osaka brought the world the sushi train in 1958!

Feedback often triggers defensiveness. Misunderstood intent feels like an attack.

Clarity is your shield. When offering feedback, state your purpose plainly. Highlight the goal—helping, not harming.

Good feedback strengthens, never wounds. Make your intent impossible to misread.

Leaders thrive on connection. Taking time to engage with teams builds trust and fuels collaboration.

The risk lies in misreading commitment. Valuing late nights over outcomes sends the wrong message, tying effectiveness to hours rather than impact.

Great leadership doesn’t trade presence for results. It inspires through balance and focus.

One of the smartest things the new CEO did was start an “open door” policy. His version of that was walking around and getting to know people, but also inviting anyone and everyone to stop by his office after 4 p.m. to talk; there was no agenda. He let them know that he would stay as late as necessary if they wanted to chat. Many nights he didn’t leave the office until 8 or 9 p.m.

David Rohlander, The CEO Code