Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

Succeeding as an introvert, building zero-to-one, and why you should PM your career like you PM your product | Deb Liu (CEO of Ancestry, ex-Facebook, PayPal, eBay)

Aug 22, 2024

01:11:25

Snipd AI

In this engaging discussion, Deb Liu, CEO of Ancestry and former VP at Facebook, shares her insights on navigating a successful career as an introvert. She emphasizes treating your career like a product, complete with intentional 30-60-90 day plans for new roles. Liu reveals how to turn setbacks into growth opportunities and the importance of resilience. She discusses the challenges introverts face in the workplace and offers practical strategies for self-promotion and inclusion, highlighting the value of adaptability and curiosity in career development.

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Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Embracing resilience and learning from failures is essential for transforming career obstacles into stepping stones for growth.

The importance of a supportive home environment is highlighted, as it significantly influences career satisfaction and enables greater focus on work.

Self-promotion is reframed as educating others about one's accomplishments, making it a vital strategy for career advancement, especially for introverts.

Deep dives

Tactical Career Advice from a Product Leader

One key insight shared is the importance of resilience in career development. Successful individuals often learn from failures and setbacks, transforming obstacles into opportunities for growth. Emphasizing the dynamic nature of careers, it is highlighted that continuous learning and adapting are crucial for keeping up with ever-evolving demands. For example, one may need to navigate different roles and responsibilities, using past experience to inform and enhance future performance.

Embrace Passion and Resilience

01:49

Embrace Lifelong Learning for Continuous Growth

01:12

Self-Promotion: A very important skill to set your team up for success

01:05

30, 60, 90 for a new role

04:13

Intro

2min

The Importance of Continuous Learning in Career Growth

2min

Navigating the Journey into Product Management

5min

Harnessing Passion for Product Management Success

2min

Embracing Failure for Growth

21min

Navigating Workplace Dynamics as an Introvert

5min

Embracing Adaptability in Communication

13min

Navigating New Roles: A 90-Day Framework

12min

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome and Embracing Adaptability

2min

10.

Listening, Recommendations, and Media Reflections

7min

Deb Liu is the CEO of Ancestry and former longtime VP of Product at Facebook. At Facebook, Deb led the creation of Facebook Marketplace, developed the first mobile ad product for apps, built the company’s games business, and launched Facebook Pay. She’s also held leadership roles at PayPal and eBay, serves on the board of Intuit, and is the author of Take Back Your Power. In our conversation, we discuss:

• Why you should PM your career like you PM your product

• Strategies for incubating new products within large companies

• Creating a successful 30-60-90-day plan when starting a new job

• The pitfalls of perfectionism

• The challenges introverts face in the workplace and how to overcome them

• The value of resilience and turning failures into stepping stones

• How to leverage coaching in your career development

—

Brought to you by:

• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application

• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs

• Webflow—The web experience platform

—

Find the transcript and show notes at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/succeeding-as-an-introvert-deb-liu

—

Where to find Deb Liu:

• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@debliu

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahliu

• Substack: https://debliu.substack.com/

—

Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

—

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Introduction to Deb Liu

(02:18) Deb’s career journey and key advice

(09:45) Navigating new roles and challenges

(11:27) Overcoming adversity and failure

(15:07) Building billion-dollar businesses at Facebook

(19:33) Strategies for zero-to-one innovation

(23:40) PM your career like a product

(33:53) Challenges and strategies for introverts in business

(39:19) Reframing self-promotion

(42:25) The power of accountability

(46:15) Growth: a game of inches

(50:52) The 30-60-90-day plan

(56:52) Contrarian corner: career and marriage

(58:57) Final nuggets of wisdom

(01:03:09) How to find a coach

(01:04:47) Lightning round

—

Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.

—

Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

Get full access to Lenny's Newsletter at www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

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Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

Succeeding as an introvert, building zero-to-one, and why you should PM your career like you PM your product | Deb Liu (CEO of Ancestry, ex-Facebook, PayPal, eBay)

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Tactical Career Advice from a Product Leader

Balancing Personal and Professional Success

Embracing Continuous Learning

The Necessity of Self-Promotion

Importance of Intentional Career Planning

Embrace Passion and Resilience

Embrace Lifelong Learning for Continuous Growth

Self-Promotion: A very important skill to set your team up for success

30, 60, 90 for a new role

Get the Snipd
podcast app

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

Save any
moment

Share
& Export

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Discover
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Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

Succeeding as an introvert, building zero-to-one, and why you should PM your career like you PM your product | Deb Liu (CEO of Ancestry, ex-Facebook, PayPal, eBay)

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Tactical Career Advice from a Product Leader

Balancing Personal and Professional Success

Embracing Continuous Learning

The Necessity of Self-Promotion

Importance of Intentional Career Planning

Embrace Passion and Resilience

Embrace Lifelong Learning for Continuous Growth

Self-Promotion: A very important skill to set your team up for success

30, 60, 90 for a new role

Get the Snipdpodcast app

AI-poweredpodcast player

Discoverhighlights

Save anymoment

Share& Export

AI-poweredpodcast player

Discoverhighlights

Get the Snipd
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