Lenny's Podcast: Product | Career | Growth
01:20:52 · Lenny Rachitsky, Adam Ward
[01:20:52] S0: Yeah, absolutely. I completely agree. It's interesting. There's go-to-market engineers. Every function is going to have their version of engineer over time. [01:21:00] S1: Yeah. Yeah. [01:21:00] S0: Engineers, engineers. Well, Adam, with that, we've reached our very exciting lightning round. [01:21:05] S1: Okay. [01:21:05] S0: I've got five questions for you. Are you ready? [01:21:07] S1: Yeah. Yeah. [01:21:08] S0: All right. What are two or three books that you find yourself recommending most to other people? [01:21:13] S1: Yeah, this is super nerdy. So there's two. There's one that I read in undergrad that has stuck with me, and it's Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman. And it's the rise of EQ as an important piece of it. And I just feel like emotional intelligence right now more than ever is so important in this AI age. And so it was super transforming to me way back then, and I think is really important now. And the other one I love for founders is just the High Growth Handbook by Elad Gil. I'm a big fan of a book where you can just jump to a chapter and get an answer, and it's not this linear piece you got to work through. And so I think it's such a great reference guide on different problems. And for the most part, building companies, the components are the same. The core principles, even when that came out several years ago, I still think hold true, so I like the High Growth Handbook. [01:22:12] S0: A Stripe Press shout out, High Growth Handbook. I imagine you've read Scaling People by Claire Hughes Johnson- [01:22:18] S1: Yeah. Love her.
01:22:18 · Adam Ward, Lenny Rachitsky
[01:22:18] S1: Yeah. Love her. [01:22:18] S0: ... who feels really up your alley. [01:22:19] S1: Yeah. Love her. [01:22:20] S0: Yeah. Another Stripe Press. [01:22:22] S1: Yeah. [01:22:23] S0: Amazing. I love that. Yeah, Eli's book is still useful. I don't know how many years later? Amazing. [01:22:28] S1: Yeah. [01:22:29] S0: Favorite recent movie or TV show you really enjoyed? [01:22:31] S1: Yeah, I have not seen a movie in years. I feel like my life- [01:22:38] S0: Because you are. This is [inaudible 01:22:38]. [01:22:38] S1: ... my life is at 20-minute chunks. But I have been watching a series, The Pitt. And I'm from Western Pennsylvania, so from the Pittsburgh area. And not only is it extremely well done, but two, it makes my life feel less frantic. Living hour... It's about the only thing that can make my life feel less frantic is living an hour in an ER and all they go through. And I often try to tell my team around the gravity of things. I was like, "Hey y'all, we get to work for this amazing company and product things, but people are not living and dying every day by decisions that we make." In The Pitt, they a. Re. So it just gives this leveling part. And then third, I think they just capture the ethos of that region, which is my core, which is Western Pennsylvania, blue collar, grinder. And I just think they do a really good job of capturing that. So I've been watching that when I can on some airplanes. [01:23:42] S0: I love that for most people that show is very stressful, and for you it's calming, because it's less stressful to your life.
01:23:42 · Lenny Rachitsky, Adam Ward
[01:23:42] S0: I love that for most people that show is very stressful, and for you it's calming, because it's less stressful to your life. [01:23:47] S1: Just the relative nature of things is helpful. [01:23:51] S0: Have you watched The Bear? Because I feel like that'd be another example. [01:23:54] S1: Yeah. I think if I was probably a Chicago guy, that would probably resonate. Although I have seen it. Yeah. [01:24:00] S0: Oh, man. Okay. A few more questions. Your favorite product you've recently discovered that you really love other than Cursor? [01:24:07] S1: Yeah, I think there's two. I think one is semi-recent and one is... I'm a huge Granola fan. I think I was super early on Granola, and I love that they continue to innovate and really just great product decisions, easy to use. They're great on feedback too. If you've ever given them feedback, they're phenomenal. The second I've been using a lot is Wispr Flow, and just trying to get out quick notes to my team. I am better this than this on terms of my thoughts. And so Wispr has been amazing on the go to drop notes to my team. [01:24:44] S0: Listen to this, Adam. You may not know this. [01:24:47] S1: I don't. [01:24:47] S0: Subscribers to my newsletter get a year free of not only Cursor, but also Granola and Wispr Flow. [01:24:48] S1: I did not know that. [01:24:57] S0: And 30 other incredible products, Replit and Google and Lovable, and it's out of control. [01:25:04] S1: I love that. [01:25:04] S0: So if you like any of these products, ladiesproductbest.com.
01:25:04 · Lenny Rachitsky, Adam Ward
[01:25:04] S0: So if you like any of these products, ladiesproductbest.com. [01:25:08] S1: That was not a place at all. Yeah, I did not know that. [01:25:10] S0: It's just we have all the best products for free for a freaking year, including Cursor. So there you go, ladiesproductbest.com. Okay, two more questions. Do you have a favorite motto that you often come back to in work or in life? [01:25:22] S1: Yeah, I think there's three things that I come back to and I try to instill in my kids too. One is, work hard. I think the value of hard work is hard to understate and something I grew up in. Second is, do great work. So let's not confuse the two. And third is, be helpful. And I think one thing I've really tried to do, and maybe part of the reason I was able to help build this team is I've really just tried to be helpful. And if you talk to founders out there, anyone, I will answer their emails. I will jump on a 10-minute call with them. And I want to think that people come to me for help and advice, and it's the right ones. I'm now getting to reap some of that of people who want to come to the work on the team. So those three things I really try to live by.
01:25:22 · Adam Ward, Lenny Rachitsky
[01:25:22] S1: Yeah, I think there's three things that I come back to and I try to instill in my kids too. One is, work hard. I think the value of hard work is hard to understate and something I grew up in. Second is, do great work. So let's not confuse the two. And third is, be helpful. And I think one thing I've really tried to do, and maybe part of the reason I was able to help build this team is I've really just tried to be helpful. And if you talk to founders out there, anyone, I will answer their emails. I will jump on a 10-minute call with them. And I want to think that people come to me for help and advice, and it's the right ones. I'm now getting to reap some of that of people who want to come to the work on the team. So those three things I really try to live by. [01:26:22] S0: That is an awesome set of principles to live by. Clearly it has contributed to your success. I'm going to steal them all. Those are really good. That's a good tripod of things to be focused on. You talked about being a dad. Final question; People said you're an expert on the importance of a well-placed dad joke. I'm not going to ask you to do a joke unless you want to, but more so, just what's something you've learned about raising kids? Because I'm a dad of a three-year-old. What's just a thing you've learned about raising great kids?
01:26:22 · Lenny Rachitsky, Adam Ward
[01:26:22] S0: That is an awesome set of principles to live by. Clearly it has contributed to your success. I'm going to steal them all. Those are really good. That's a good tripod of things to be focused on. You talked about being a dad. Final question; People said you're an expert on the importance of a well-placed dad joke. I'm not going to ask you to do a joke unless you want to, but more so, just what's something you've learned about raising kids? Because I'm a dad of a three-year-old. What's just a thing you've learned about raising great kids? [01:26:53] S1: It's humbling. They will challenge you in ways you don't expect. They are many mirrors of you sometimes. So it's a feedback mechanism. And it's such a joy, honestly. And I'm very lucky to have an amazing wife and partner who most times takes the unfair load of it. But yeah, it's definitely my greatest joy. [01:27:26] S0: That's such a good summary. That's exactly how it feels. Very challenging at times, but the greatest joy. [01:27:32] S1: But just think about your career though, when you look back on your career of your most enjoyable times, you were a little bit over your skis. You were thrown into something unexpected that you weren't ready for, and you figured it out. And in the moment, it was a series of ups and downs, stacking S-curves. But you'll look back and I'll be like, wow, that was one of my career highlights, but you are really over your skis.