Strengths and Weaknesses of Product Managers & Products | Insights and Examples

We often focus on our weaknesses and overlook our strengths. But here’s a secret: there's no such thing as a weakness—just areas to improve. Then why do Product Managers like to focus on weaknesses and not highlight the strengths?

Product Managers who build up their strengths can reach their highest potential if they feel stuck questioning product manager strengths and weaknesses; let’s discuss this in today’s blog!

We will discuss: 

1. Why do most people (PMs and others) focus on weaknesses and not strengths?
2. Why is focusing on weaknesses limiting your true potential?
3. Why should you focus on your strengths?
4. Why is focusing on your strengths important in product management?
5. How can I apply this in the real world as a product manager?
6. Balancing strengths and weaknesses for optimal growth

Why do most people (PMs and others) focus on weaknesses and not strengths

Whether it’s school grades or work performance reviews, if you fall short in any area, teachers, managers, and parents will almost always suggest focusing on "improving your weaknesses." This advice persists even if you excel in other subjects or areas.

In these moments, it becomes easy to forget all the A's you earned or the times you exceeded expectations at work.
Sadly, this is an everyday reality: schools, workplaces, and even life often emphasize finding and fixing weaknesses rather than building on strengths.

Society and the systems we created to improve ourselves have conditioned us to believe that focusing on weaknesses (and not strengths) is the most significant opportunity to get better.

This happens even today. The only difference is that we now mask it with fancy words like identifying skill gaps, working on areas of improvement, focusing on opportunity areas, etc.

Research also suggests that people perceive their weaknesses as more malleable than their strengths. This belief extends to product management. When evaluating a product manager strengths and weaknesses, people often place a heavier emphasis on improving weaknesses rather than recognizing and building on a product manager's strengths.

The same thing happens with products themselves—people tend to focus more on product weaknesses and how to fix them rather than celebrating a product's strengths. This bias towards improving a product's weaknesses often overshadows the actual benefits and strengths the product offers.

Moreover, motivation influences how individuals perceive their future. 

People tend to expect their present strengths to remain constant but anticipate their present weaknesses will improve. These different beliefs about the malleability of traits drive the higher desire for change for product weaknesses versus focusing on a product's existing strengths.

The same mindset is reflected in the expectations for product owner strengths and weaknesses, where the focus on improvement areas often takes precedence. This perspective may mean overlooking the key strengths of a product manager or the important strengths of product manager characteristics that could drive success.

Is the above approach wrong?

1. Yes

If the only takeaway from such situations is to focus solely on improving weaknesses. 

2. No

Suppose it’s understood that focusing on strengths is as important, if not more so, than improving weaknesses. For instance, using a product weakness example can be helpful for growth, but acknowledging a product manager's key strengths is vital for long-term success.

Why Is Focusing On Weaknesses Limiting Your True Potential

Working only on weaknesses makes us feel inadequate. And that feeling of inadequacy makes it impossible to stay motivated when trying to perform better.

When others criticize you, you become more defensive and unlikely to change. If you're unwilling to change, your chances of improving and getting better are limited.

In other words, focusing only on your product weaknesses will make you sad, disappointed, and demotivated, preventing you from reaching your true potential as a product manager.

Why Should You Focus On Your Strengths

When we work on things or areas we're good at, we're happier, more motivated, and more satisfied. That feeling of happiness and achievement enables us to work harder and, in turn, helps us make our strengths even more potent.

Studies show that:

Developing people's strengths helps them become more confident, productive, and self-aware.

Companies that focus on their employee's strengths see:

• 7% to 23% higher employee engagement
• 8% to 18% increase in performance
• 20% to 73% lower attrition than the author, motivational speaker, and Management Consultant Marcus Buckingham believes that employees should seek out activities that they receive great satisfaction doing—the things that fill them up and strengthen them intellectually, as these tend to be the things they are most effective at. 

When we are involved in an activity using our strengths, it feels natural, and we are more inclined to experience accomplishment. Employees should determine their natural tendencies, where their natural skills and advantages lie, and cultivate those.

Have You Ever Noticed How Easy It Is To Lose Track of Time When We Do Things Which We're Good At?

Marcus Buckingham goes on to explain why that is:

When we are involved in an activity using our strengths, it feels natural, and we are more inclined to experience accomplishment. Employees should determine their natural tendencies, where their natural skills and advantages lie, and cultivate those.

Product Managers should focus on their strengths and build on them. It is a myth that their most significant potential for growth is their areas of weakness. Focusing on them will demotivate you, while focusing on their strengths will help them feel more positive and give them energy.

In my personal and professional life, I've noticed that my body language and mood reflect my optimism and happiness when doing things I am good at. I find myself smiling more, being more passionate, being more engaged, having clear thoughts, and, most importantly, being happy.

Trying to learn when you're happy has a much more positive outcome than learning when you're sad or demotivated.

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Why is Focusing On Your Strengths Important in Product Management

I have spent most of the last two years introspecting what I'm good at and what I'm not good at (concerning the skills required to be great at product management):

• I am a strong communicator, 
• I am very high on ownership
• I am an execution expert. (You can be too)
• I am good at breaking down complex problems into smaller, more actionable chunks.
• I am not an extraordinarily creative or innovative person. 
• I am not good at out-of-the-box thinking. 

So this is how I try to double down on my strengths as a product manager:

• I consciously try to work on complex problems—problems that need someone to help simplify them. This allows the broader audience to comprehend them. In such situations, effective communication plays a significant role. And that makes it a win-win—I use my strengths, am happy, and enjoy doing it, and everyone else better understands an otherwise complex problem.
• Similarly, I take on projects that are high-impact and execution heavy. Such projects usually have too many moving parts, multiple stakeholders, different opinions, conflicting priorities, etc. My experience and skill set enable me to deliver such projects efficiently and deliver the intended impact.
• On the other hand, I avoid taking the lead on projects that need creative or out-of-the-box thinking. In the rare case where I lead such projects, I ensure I have people on the team with complementary skill sets who can fill the gap by innovating on behalf of the group.

Playing on my strengths has allowed me to create impact and quickly grow through the ranks. It has also helped me stay motivated and happy throughout my journey, and happiness is the biggest reason for my success.

Impact more quickly and efficiently while staying happy and motivated. Instead of only targeting product weaknesses or areas of improvement, prioritize tasks that highlight your strengths as a product manager. This balance will lead to more efficient and satisfying outcomes for you and the products you manage.

How Can I Apply This in The Real World As A Product Manager?

You can use a simple 3-step process:

Step 1: Gather positive feedback:

Ask your manager, friends, family, and colleagues for positive feedback. 

Be sure to ask for positive feedback explicitly. Most humans default to sharing "opportunity areas" instead of strengths when sharing feedback.

You can also consider using online options to identify strengths. Some popular ones are Myers Briggs or Gallup Strengths.

Step 2: Identify commonalities in the feedback.

Once you have collected feedback, identify common themes across all responses. This will help make sure that you have recognized the right professional strengths.

For ex, in my positive feedback, I often hear things like:

1. "..has the great ability to explain complex things in a simple manner that everyone can understand."
2. "Focuses on ensuring everyone understands and works on the right problem."
3. "If he commits, he will deliver. Or he will not commit."

All of the above are clear signals of my communication skills, ability to simplify things, and ability to get things done as promised.

Step 3: Find opportunities that focus on your strengths.

Choosing what you work on is only sometimes within your control. Hence, this last step is more challenging than it sounds. 

So, if you're not in a position to choose what you work on, you can do this instead:

1. First, work on building credibility as a product manager.
2. Second, candidly share your thoughts, self-assessment, and aspirations with your manager. Agree on a path with them that lets you work on tasks that utilize your strengths.
3. Find others around you who complement your skillset and try delegating or collaborating on tasks that don't align with your strengths.
4. Find sub-areas within your tasks that play to your strengths, and focus on them first to motivate you about the work.

Balancing Strengths and Weaknesses for Optimal Growth

While it is vital to double down on our strengths to perform at a higher level, we shouldn't ignore our weaknesses. Instead, we should strive to reach a balance between the two.

For example, if you're not good at communication but good at innovative and creative thinking, you'd find it very hard to succeed as a product manager. While you might have the best ideas, only some people will understand them if you can effectively communicate them. And in this case, you should work on your weaknesses first.

But if there are other situations in which you are already doing decently well in all the baseline product manager skills, then it makes sense to focus on your strengths.

In closing, I summarise the approach below:

1. Identify the critical skills to succeed as a product manager in your context. 
2. Then, classify them into strengths and weaknesses.
3. If you're weak in any of the critical skills, then focus on them first.
4. If you're strong on the essential skills, try doubling down on them and focusing on strengths and weaknesses in a good balance.

Overall

Focusing on product manager strengths rather than only fixing a product's weaknesses can make a huge difference in your growth. Building on what you're good at can help you stay happier and more motivated and create a more significant impact. Balance your strengths and weaknesses smartly to reach your true potential.

Want to explore more? Check the fundamentals of product management. 

FAQs: Product Manager Strengths and Weaknesses

1. What are the strengths of a product owner? 

A product owner's strengths include clear communication, good decision-making, and understanding customers' needs. They focus on ensuring the product brings users value and works well for the business.

2. What are the three primary skills a great product owner must possess? 

The three primary skills are communication, prioritization, and understanding customer needs. A great product owner talks clearly with the team, sets priorities well, and knows what customers want.

3. What are the hard skills of a product owner? 

Product owners' hard skills include market analysis, creating product roadmaps, and understanding agile processes. They also need to know how to work with data to make product decisions.

4. What are examples of product weaknesses? 

Product weaknesses include lacking unique features, bugs or technical issues, poor user experience, or limited customer support. These are areas that need improvement to make the product better.

5. What are a product's strengths and weaknesses? 

A product's strength makes it better than others, like a great user experience or a helpful feature. A product weakness needs improvement, like a confusing interface or lack of features.

6. What are the weaknesses of the product approach? 

The weaknesses of the product approach can include focusing too much on features instead of what customers want, slow response to market changes, and difficulty standing out if the product lacks unique qualities.

7. What are the strengths of a product specialist? 

A product specialist's strengths include deep knowledge of the product, good problem-solving skills, and the ability to help customers understand and use the product well. They ensure customer satisfaction and help improve the product based on user feedback.