How am I not being clear?

It's not you, sillyhead. It's the system.

Even slightly better understanding of the context, the stressors, and the biology of your human system can give you newfound powers to create better outcomes.

Here’s a new one for you, paid subscribers. I’m grateful for your continued support! —Erika

Let me tell you about a conversation I had with Anthony, who’s a product leader at a fast-moving startup. He took me aside to express frustration about his CEO, Amelia.

“We had agreed,” Anthony said. “The PRD was finalized, priorities were locked in, and everyone committed to it. Then, out of nowhere, I stumble across this feature being designed in Figma—a feature no one mentioned. Turns out, Amelia had greenlit it without telling me.”

Ugh. Anthony felt undermined. “If decisions are being made outside our product workflow process, how am I supposed to manage the roadmap?”

I asked what he did next.

“I brought it up in our one-on-one,” he said. “I told Amelia, ‘This makes it impossible for me to do my job. I can’t prioritize or explain changes to the team. It creates chaos.’”

Anthony paused, then admitted, “It felt risky to call her out, but I had to say it.”

This chutzpah is one of my favorite things about Anthony, so I felt a little flush of pride for him. “And how did she respond?”