Most product teams waste months building the wrong thing. Not because they can’t execute — but because they’re solving the wrong problem.
A product manager’s real superpower isn’t shipping features fast. It’s defining the problem worth solving.
The Trap: Jumping to Solutions
A user complains about onboarding. Engineering wants to add a tutorial. Design suggests simplifying the UI.
Everyone dives straight into how to fix it — before agreeing on what the problem actually is.
That’s how good teams build the wrong solutions.
The first step isn’t brainstorming fixes. It’s asking:
- What outcome do we want?
- Who’s struggling, and why?
- What’s the evidence this is the real problem?
The Fix: Fall in Love with the Problem
Great PMs act like detectives, not firefighters. They collect clues before drawing conclusions.
Here’s how to slow down and solve smarter:
- Frame the problem clearly. Use a simple statement: “X users can’t do Y because of Z.”
- Validate it. Talk to at least 5 users. Look for patterns, not anecdotes.
- Quantify it. Data should show the impact — revenue lost, conversions missed, churn increased.
- Reframe if needed. The first problem statement is rarely the real one.
Example: Airbnb and the Photography Insight
In 2009, Airbnb struggled with low bookings. They assumed they needed more traffic or lower prices.
But when the founders visited hosts, they noticed something simple — the photos were terrible.
The problem wasn’t marketing. It was trust.
Guests couldn’t visualize where they’d stay.
So Airbnb hired professional photographers to reshoot listings. Within weeks, bookings doubled.
That single insight turned Airbnb from a struggling startup into a billion-dollar brand.
The fix worked because they defined the right problem — not “we need more users,” but “people don’t trust what they see.”
The Takeaway
You’re not paid to have answers. You’re paid to find the right question.
Slow down. Clarify. Validate.
Because the fastest way to build the wrong product is to skip defining the right problem.
