Thinking like a gardener not a builder, organizing teams like slime mold, the adjacent possible, and other unconventional product advice | Alex Komoroske (Stripe, Google)
Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career
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Balancing Predictable Value with Seed Planting
đź’¬ "This was the biggest unlock in my career [...] the freedom to now do the highest impact work, even if I can't make it legible to the organization."
- Spend 70% of your team's effort on tasks that are clearly valuable and contribute to the company's goals, even if they are not groundbreaking. This establishes the team's worth and prevents questions about its purpose.
- Use the remaining 30% of your time to explore potentially high-impact ideas, even if they seem unconventional or risky at first. This fosters innovation and allows for unexpected breakthroughs.
- Encourage junior team members to pursue their ideas and provide guidance and support, even if the ideas require some tweaking.
- By dedicating a portion of your time to "planting seeds," you create opportunities for growth and learning while maintaining a solid foundation of predictable value.
- Empowering team members to explore their ideas strengthens their skills and contributes to overall team development.
Key takeaway: Balance predictable value creation with experimentation and seed planting to maximize team impact and foster a culture of innovation.
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