How to use first principles to become a better product manager

Original & Updated Guide here ⇒ https://hellopm.co/how-to-use-first-principles-to-become-a-better-product-manager/

Updated at: 1:45 AM - 12 April 2021

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“As to methods, there may be a million and then some, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.”

— Harrington Emerson

First principle thinking is a way of problem-solving where you break the situation down into its fundamental parts and then reconstruct them to arrive at a solution.

<aside> 💡 In this post, we will first learn how a product manager can utilize “first principles thinking” to navigate common issues and to create successful products.

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To understand “first principles thinking” better, let’s take the most popular example from the real-life Tony Stark 🦾 !

Elon Musk wanted to create rockets so that he can send humans to MARS someday. He went to different rocket-building agencies to find out the cost of building rockets. To his surprise, rockets were a pretty huge deal, and he got quotes of up to 65 million dollars for a single rocket.

He used his first principles mindset to break down a rocket into its constituent parts. Aerospace-grade aluminum alloys, titanium, copper, and carbon fiber.