Petra Wille is an independent product leadership coach who has been helping product teams expand their skills since 2013. She is also the author of Strong Product People, which she published in 2021. In addition to her freelance work, Petra Mind curates and co-organizes The Product Engage Hamburg. She started her career as a software developer and joined Xing, a German social media site, in 2008, where she learned from two incredible product leaders: Marty Cagan and Jason Goldberg. In today's podcast we talk about Petra's book and how you can help your team grow as a product leader. Petra also talks about how to improve your storytelling skills, become better at public speaking, and why community is so important for product managers.

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Find the full transcript here: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-be-the-best-coach-to-product

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Where can you find Petra Wille:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/loomista
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petra-wille-b8b1329/?originalSubdomainde
• Website: https://www.petra-wille.com/

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Where can you find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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Thanks to our wonderful sponsors for making this episode possible:

• Flatfile: https://www.flatfile.com/lenny
• Mixpanel: https://mixpanel.com/startups
• Editing: https://www.assemblyai.com/?utm_sourcelennyspodcast&utm_mediumpodcast&utm_campaignnov27

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referred to:

• PMwheel framework: https://www.strongproductpeople.com/pmwheel
• Marty Cagan's assessment: https://www.svpg.com/coaching-tools-the-assessment/
• PM Daisy: https://pmdaisy.com/
• The Eisenhower Prioritization Matrix: https://www.productplan.com/glossary/eisenhower-matrix/
• Continuous Discovery Habits: Discover products that create customer and business value: https://www.amazon.com/Continuous-Discovery-Habits-Discover-Products/dp/1736633309
• Curriculum Mochary method: https://docs.google.com/document/d/18FiJbYn53fTtPmphfdCKT2TMWH-8Y2L-MLqDk-MFV4s/edit
• Matt Mochary on Lenny's podcast: https://www.lennyspodcast.com/videos/how-to-fire-people-with-grace-work-through-fear-and-nurture-innovation-matt-mochary/
• Hans Rosling's Ted Speeches: https://www.ted.com/speakers/hans_rosling
• Sarah Kay: If I Had a Daughter: https://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_kay_if_i_should_have_a_daughter?
• Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t: Why That's the Way and What to Do About It: https://www.amazon.com/Nobody-Wants-Read-Your-Sh-ebook/dp/B01GZ1TJBI
• Selling the Dream: https://www.amazon.com/Selling-Dream-Guy-Kawasaki/dp/0887306004
• Nancy Duarte's website: https://www.duarte.com/
• The 72 Rules of Storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/72-rules-commercial-storytelling-jeremy-waite/
• The Art of Clear Thinking: https://www.amazon.com/Art-Thinking-Clearly-Rolf-Dobelli/dp/0062219693
• Results Over Output: https://www.amazon.com/Outcomes-Over-Output-customer-behavior/dp/1091173265
• Martin Erickson's Decision Stack: https://martineriksson.com/the-decision-stack
• Present Yourself Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/womentalkdesign/present-yourself-a-public-speaker-book
• The Product Experience Podcast: https://www.mindtheproduct.com/the-product-experience/
• Product podcast in German: https://www.produktmenschen.de/
• Watch New Amsterdam on Peacock: https://www.peacocktv.com/stream-tv/new-amsterdam
• Harvest accounting and time registration: https://www.getharvest.com/
• Qanto: https://qonto.com/en

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In this episode we cover:

(00:00) Petra's background
(05:51) The things product team leaders don't always understand
(09:33) Why Petra wrote the book Strong Product People to help managers of product teams
(11:21) The coaching method with five ingredients
(17:00) Why Petra usually recommends starting coaching with a development plan
(19:31) Why time should be set aside every week for 'human development'
(21:16) How to define a competent PM in your organization and tools to help you
(24:06) Petra's PM Wheel and how she developed it
(27:36) Other product information will be helpful in Petra's book
(30:46) Tips for coaching your team
(35:17) How to improve your stories
(40:56) How to get better at public speaking
(44:45) Why it's important to develop good storytelling and public speaking skills
(53:36) The importance of a community of practice for product people
(56:14) Why people tend to stick around when they are supported and growing in a community
(57:53) What to look for in a community
(1:06:48) Lightning lap

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