Behind the Craft
Peter Yang
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Top 10 Behind the Craft Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Behind the Craft episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Behind the Craft for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Behind the Craft episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
11/17/24 • 38 min
My guest today is Niels Hoven, founder and CEO of Mentava. Niels founded Mentava, an education startup teaching 2-year-olds to read at the 2nd-grade level. We had a great chat about why K-12 education is broken for high-achieving kids, whether AI will unlock personalized learning, and how his software teaches 2-year-olds to read. Timestamps: (00:00) Our schools don't work for high-achieving kids (01:26) The problem with K-12 education in the US (03:08) Why California banned 8th grade algebra (10:11) Never be ashamed of advocating for your kids (14:21) How Niels homeschooled 3 kids during COVID (19:25) Teaching 2-year-olds to read like 2nd graders (25:24) Rethinking how we teach kids math (28:44) Will AI replace teachers? (30:34) Will elite college credentials still matter? (35:29) Tips for parents to raise high-achieving kids Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/why-education-is-broken-for-high-achieving-kids-niels-hoven Where to find Niels: X: https://x.com/NielsHoven Website: https://www.mentava.com/ 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
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11/24/24 • 49 min
My guest today is Jiaona Zhang, CPO of Linktree. JZ is the Chief Product Officer of Linktree and a guest lecturer at Stanford. We had a great chat about AI’s impact on PM managers and super ICs, the shift towards PM specialists, and whether becoming a creator can help advance your PM career. (00:00) Find what makes you happy in your PM career (01:44) AI's impact on PM managers and super ICs (04:03) How to balance strategy and execution (08:24) Streamlining PM tasks with AI (13:28) Creating strategy docs and PRDs that work (16:50) Your career is your most important product (22:55) The shift from PM generalists to specialists (23:58) Exploring JZ's Career Odyssey framework (25:49) Why you shouldn't just optimize for comp and title (31:12) Does the creator economy actually work? (44:19) Can being a creator help advance your product career? Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/how-the-product-manager-role-is-changing-jiaona-zhang Where to find Jiaona: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jz LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jiaona/ 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
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11/10/24 • 38 min
My guest today is Aravind Srinivas, CEO and co-founder of Perplexity.
Aravind is the CEO of Perplexity, the AI answer engine disrupting online search. Aravind gave me an inside look at how Perplexity builds products, how it scaled to 100M queries a week, and how it’ll deliver better ads than Google’s ten blue links.
Timestamps: (00:00) We don't do product reviews (01:22) The secret to Perplexity's incredible shipping velocity (05:16) Giving feedback as a user instead of as the CEO (07:01) How Perplexity decides what to build next (10:56) Perplexity's "7 friends in 10 days" metric (14:02) How Perplexity uses AI to build Perplexity (17:30) How to get a great job without traditional credentials (21:50) Key drivers behind Perplexity's growth to 100M queries (27:50) The future of search ads and why 10 blue links are dead (35:56) Closing advice to get what you want out of life Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/inside-how-perplexity-is-disrupting-search-aravind-srinivas Where to find Aravind: X: https://x.com/AravSrinivas Website: https://www.perplexity.ai/ 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
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07/05/24 • 50 min
My guest today is Nat Eliason, one of my favorite writers online. Nat is the author of Crypto Confidential, a real-life thriller about how he made and lost millions in crypto. We also talked about how Nat uses AI to edit his writing, why he pushes himself to do hard things like writing a sci-fi novel, and his advice for aspiring creators on avoiding the dark side of the creator economy. Nat is a personal inspiration to me. If you enjoy our conversation, please like and subscribe to support the podcast and check out Nat's new book: https://www.nateliason.com/crypto-confidential Timestamps: (00:00) Prove to yourself that you can do hard things
(00:56) Introducing Nat
(02:06) Using AI to edit his non-fiction writing
(08:03) Why Nat is writing a sci-fi book
(11:42) 3 ways Nat is using AI to write his sci-fi book
(17:33) Using AI to fill in details about a sci-fi setting
(19:22) Novel Crafter as an advanced AI writing tool
(22:57) Why Nat got into crypto with a new baby coming
(26:50) Nat's lowest moment in crypto losing $35,000 in one night
(30:27) Why you must push yourself to do hard things
(34:36) How Nat keeps motivated through small wins
(38:26) The dark side of the creator economy
(41:43) How to avoid making content that you hate
(45:47) Advice for aspiring creators Where to find Nat: X: https://x.com/nateliason Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/do-hard-things-ai-nat-eliason 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
09/15/24 • 43 min
My guest today is Justin Welsh, a 7-figure solopreneur and creator. Justin burned out from startups in 2019 after suffering from a panic attack. Since then, he’s built an $8M one-person business and an audience of millions. His new course, Creator MBA, is one of the highest value-to-time courses I’ve ever taken. Timestamps: (00:00) The specific path to build an $8M solo business (01:47) Leaving the career ladder after a panic attack (05:53) How to build a side hustle while employed (08:41) An exercise to take back your time (12:59) Finding your niche and unique value proposition (16:12) Validating your business idea with real customers (19:02) Creating a movement and identifying your "enemy" (23:00) A simple creator funnel to scale solo businesses (27:01) Changes that led to big growth in Justin's business (27:29) How Justin uses AI to optimize his funnel (31:23) Specific vs generic paths to succeed as a creator (39:22) Closing advice for tech people to take back control of their careers Get the interview takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/how-i-built-an-8m-solo-business-justin-welsh Where to find Justin: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinwelsh/ Newsletter: https://www.justinwelsh.me/newsletters 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
This Framework Will Change How You Think about Your Career | Shishir Mehrotra (Coda)
Behind the Craft
09/08/24 • 47 min
My guest today is Shishir Mehrotra, co-founder and CEO of Coda. Shishir is the co-founder and CEO of Coda and was YouTube's Chief Product Officer. We had a great chat about what I think is the best framework to grow your career, how a PM applied it to build a 0 to $1B product in 18 months, and other rituals to level up your strategy and leadership.Brought to you by: - Amplitude: Get their North Star playbook for free: https://bit.ly/4fPxUmg Timestamps:
(00:00) From 0 to $1B in just 18 months
(01:27) Introducing Shishir
(01:41) The best career growth framework you've never heard of
(03:35) Scope is the wrong metric to evaluate PMs
(07:12) Why PSHE applies to all functions(10:13) Breaking into PM at Google using PSHE
(17:34) Solving obvious problems without stepping on toes
(24:23) The most underrated skill for PMs
(26:16) The WOW framework for strategy and planning
(31:26) The $100 exercise to get teams to think beyond their scope
(35:17) Have you seen small teams move faster?
(37:20) PSHE framework for small vs. large teams
(41:53) Selfless leadership and the trillion-dollar coach
Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/the-best-framework-for-career-growth-shishir
Where to find Shishir:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shishirmehrotra/
X: https://x.com/shishirmehrotra
📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
09/22/24 • 37 min
My guest today is Marily Nika, AI Product Lead at Google. Marily built AI products at Meta and Google for 12+ years after getting a PhD in machine learning. She's also a top AI instructor who has given talks at TED, Harvard, and through her top-rated AI course and newsletter.
Timestamps:
(00:00) Anyone can be an AI PM (01:22) A crash course on core AI concepts (01:51) AI algorithms and applications map (06:38) Traits that the best AI PMs have in common (09:53) How to get leadership buy-in for AI products (11:37) A day in the life as an AI PM (14:51) How to break into AI product management (20:25) How to avoid the retention problem for AI products (23:08) A live demo of ChatGPT Voice (33:39) How Marily uses AI in her personal life Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/how-to-break-into-ai-product-management
Where to find Marily:
Newsletter: https://marily.substack.com/
Course: https://maven.com/marily-nika/ai-pm-bootcamp 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
Cancer Changed Everything: Finding Empathy, Balance, and Grace | Sharmeen Chapp (Stripe)
Behind the Craft
08/25/24 • 44 min
My guest today is Sharmeen Chapp, Head of Product for Revenue and Finance Automation at Stripe. In 2021, Sharmeen was diagnosed with breast cancer after becoming a Senior Director at Meta and a new mom. She shared lessons on leading with empathy through cancer, growing from IC to VP in 6 years, and Stripe’s unique product culture.
Brought to you by:
Amplitude: Get their North Star playbook for free https://bit.ly/4fPxUmg Timestamps: (00:00) Empathy starts with leaving your ego at the door (01:59) I basically product-managed my breast cancer (03:22) Silver lining of sharing my journey publicly (05:54) Balancing work, family, and cancer treatment (12:20) Why empathy and excellence are not mutually exclusive (17:34) Operating high and low on vision and execution (22:05) Transitioning to PM and overcoming doubts (25:03) Growing from IC to VP in 6 years (27:56) Why I deprioritized my own product (36:59) Stripe PM culture of user-first and humility (41:55) Remember to give yourself grace Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/leading-with-empathy-through-cancer-sharmeen-chapp
Where to find Sharmeen:
X: https://x.com/luckiesharms
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharmeenchapp/ 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
08/18/24 • 55 min
My guest today is Mihika Kapoor, product lead at Figma. Mihika and team built Figma Slides from just an idea to a featured product at Config this year. She shared with me how anyone can build 0 to 1 products inside large companies - from building internal excitement to getting leadership buy-in to shipping on time. She also shared why she no longer writes any PRDs. Timestamps: (00:00) What it really takes to build 0-1
(01:42) How Figma Slides came from Figma and Figjam
(04:23) Convincing other PMs that this was an idea worth pursuing
(06:38) Talking gets nowhere, here's what works instead
(11:04) How designers can get PM buy-in for their ideas
(16:18) Breaking all the rules for product development
(22:29) Getting leadership buy-in on your vision
(30:25) Aligning a 0-1 product with company goals
(32:29) Find your "first follower" to build your 0-1 team
(37:14) The hardest thing about building Figma Slides
(42:30) 4 rules for anyone building new products
(47:23) Be careful about setting goals for 0-1 products
(52:15) Why Mihika doesn't write PRDs Get the interview takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/anyone-can-build-0-1-products-mihika-kapoor
Where to find Mihika: X: https://x.com/mihikapoor
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mihikakapoor/ 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
Ex-Meta VP Reveals His Top Lessons after 25 Years Leading Product Design | Jon Lax (Meta)
Behind the Craft
09/01/24 • 47 min
My guest today is Jon Lax, former VP of Design at Meta. Jon is a 25-year design veteran who most recently led design for Meta’s Reality Labs (e.g., Ray Ban glasses, Quest, and more). Before Meta, Jon ran his own design firm for 12 years. He’s got many hot takes on product development and design that I’m excited to dig into.
Brought to you by:
Amplitude: Get their north star playbook for free: https://bit.ly/4fPxUmg Timestamps: (00:00) Why delight comes last
(01:31) Introducing Jon
(01:56) Why Jon stopped doing vision decks and north stars
(05:49) The right time scale for designers to operate in
(11:13) 3 miracle problems have killed many products
(15:14) Make it useful first, then beautiful
(23:38) MVP vs. minimum lovable product is the wrong framing
(25:37) The single trait that all the best teams at Meta share
(26:29) How to build a shared definition of done
(31:19) The one question I ask to bring clarity to promotions
(36:22) How to climb the ambiguity and autonomy curve
(40:01) Is AI the end of peak design jobs?
Get the takeaways: https://creatoreconomy.so/p/ex-meta-vp-reveals-his-top-design-lessons-jon-lax Where to find Jon: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-lax-900b5a293/Blog: https://jonlax.framer.ai/ 📌 Subscribe to this channel – more interviews coming soon!
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FAQ
How many episodes does Behind the Craft have?
Behind the Craft currently has 41 episodes available.
What topics does Behind the Craft cover?
The podcast is about Podcasts and Technology.
What is the most popular episode on Behind the Craft?
The episode title 'Inside How Perplexity is Disrupting Online Search | Aravind Srinivas (CEO)' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Behind the Craft?
The average episode length on Behind the Craft is 41 minutes.
How often are episodes of Behind the Craft released?
Episodes of Behind the Craft are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of Behind the Craft?
The first episode of Behind the Craft was released on Mar 14, 2024.
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