<p>In this episode, Shobhit Chugh, former Google PM and founder of <strong>Intentional Product Manager</strong>, shares practical strategies for moving beyond execution and becoming a standout product leader—even when you don’t have formal authority or a supportive manager.</p><p>🔑 Key Takeaways</p><p>1. <strong>Don’t Mistake Productivity for Progress</strong></p><ul><li><p>Just being busy doesn’t mean you’re growing.</p></li><li><p>Like Amazon’s press release approach, define what you want to be known for before the next review cycle.</p></li></ul><li><ul><li>Align your work to that vision and offload or eliminate tasks that don’t serve it.</li></ul><p>2. <strong>Influence &gt; Delegation</strong></p><ul><li><p>Product managers can’t “delegate” in the traditional sense.</p></li><li><p>Find teammates who <em>want</em> to own tasks you shouldn’t be doing—for their own growth.</p></li><li><p>Example: Shobhit handed off API spec writing to an engineer aiming to become a PM.</p></li></ul><p>3. <strong>Make the Strategic Urgent</strong></p><ul><li><p>Block time doesn’t protect strategic work—deadlines do.</p></li></ul><li><ul><li>Make public commitments (e.g., “I’ll present this strategy next Thursday”) to create urgency and accountability.</li></ul><p>4. <strong>Think in Terms of Leverage</strong></p><li><ul><li>Focus on high-leverage activities like:</li><li><li>Continuous customer research (not just during discovery phases).</li></li><li><li>Repeated communication of long-term vision.</li><li>Building visibility with stakeholders and leadership.</li></li></ul><li><p>5. <strong>Avoid Common Mindset Traps</strong></p><ul><li><p>Don’t assume company red tape is immovable—often it’s just unchallenged hearsay.</p></li></ul><li><ul><li>Overwhelm is emotional, not factual. Audit your time and challenge false constraints.</li></ul><p>6. <strong>Develop an “Angle of Mastery”</strong></p><ul><li><p>Instead of a generic “10-year B2B PM,” position yourself based on specific problems you consistently solve.</p></li></ul><li><ul><li>Example: One client branded themselves as the “friction eliminator” in complex B2B platforms.</li></ul><p>7. <strong>Build Your Brand</strong></p><ul><li><p>In a competitive market, being the “obvious hire” is essential.</p></li></ul><li><ul><li>Build visibility on platforms like LinkedIn. Share your thinking, frameworks, and customer insights.</li></ul><p><br></p><p>Join Shobhit on your journey to product leadership at <a href="https://www.intentionalproductmanager.com/about" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferer">Intentional Product Manager</a></p><p><br></p></li><p><br></p></li></li></li></li></li></li>