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Anneka Gupta is the Chief Product Officer at Rubrik, a leading B2B cybersecurity company. She previously spent 11 years at LiveRamp, where she was the President and Head of Product and Platforms leading product development and go-to-market operations and strategy. Anneka also sits on the board of directors for Tinuiti and teaches product management at Stanford University. In our conversation, we discuss:

\u2022 Navigating \u201cfounder mode\u201d dynamics in organizations

\u2022 Navigating difficult personalities and aligning teams

\u2022 The PM skill of summarization

\u2022 Giving and receiving hard feedback effectively

\u2022 The value of a positive mindset

\u2022 Tips for breaking into product management

\u2022 Much more

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Brought to you by:

\u2022 The Enterprise Ready Conference \u2014 For B2B leaders building enterprise SaaS

\u2022 Command AI \u2014 AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users

\u2022 Eppo \u2014 Run reliable, impactful experiments

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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/becoming-more-strategic-anneka-gupta

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Where to find Anneka Gupta:

\u2022 X: https://x.com/annekagupta

\u2022 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annekagupta

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Where to find Lenny:

\u2022 Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

\u2022 X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

\u2022 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Introduction to Anneka Gupta

(01:43) Key mindsets for success

(05:30) Managing energy for optimal performance

(09:05) Founder mode

(18:26) Becoming more strategic

(27:54) The importance of decision-making

(37:18) Navigating difficult personalities

(41:38) Techniques for giving and receiving feedback

(51:01) Transitioning into product management

(54:56) Advice for aspiring product managers

(59:39) Leveraging AI tools in product management

(01:01:27) The power of a positive mindset

(01:04:30) Lightning round

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Referenced:

\u2022 Founder Mode: https://paulgraham.com/foundermode.html

\u2022 Building a long and meaningful career | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-a-long-and-meaningful-career

\u2022 The Skip community: https://www.linkedin.com/company/skip-community/

\u2022 Rubrik: https://www.rubrik.com/

\u2022 5 essential questions to craft a winning strategy | Roger Martin (author, advisor, speaker): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-ultimate-guide-to-strategy-roger-martin

\u2022 Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works: https://www.amazon.com/Playing-Win-Strategy-Really-Works/dp/142218739X

\u2022 Thinking like a gardener not a builder, organizing teams like slime mold, the adjacent possible, and other unconventional product advice | Alex Komoroske: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/unconventional-product-advice-alex-komoroske

\u2022 Acquired podcast interviews Zuckerberg in San Francisco: https://transistor.fm/acquired-live/

\u2022 Hema Mohan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hemamohan/

\u2022 Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity: https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Candor-Kick-Ass-Without-Humanity/dp/1250103509

\u2022 Radical Candor: From theory to practice with author Kim Scott: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/radical-candor-from-theory-to-practice

\u2022 LiveRamp: https://liveramp.com/

\u2022 Product Management class at Stanford: https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/experience/learning/experiential-learning/action-learning-program/product-management

\u2022 Figma: https://www.figma.com/

\u2022 Dovetail: https://try.dovetail.com/

\u2022 The Remarkable Advantage of Abundant Thinking: https://review.firstround.com/the-remarkable-advantage-of-abundant-thinking/

\u2022 The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers: https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205

\u2022 Brandon Sanderson\u2019s books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Brandon-Sanderson/author/B001IGFHW6

\u2022 Fallout on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CN4HV16N

\u2022 Thunderbolt 4 ( 3-meter cable): https://www.apple.com/shop/product/MW5H3AM/A/thunderbolt-4-usb%E2%80%91c-pro-cable-3-m

\u2022 Isaac Asimov: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov

\u2022 The complete Foundation series: https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Asimovs-Foundation-Foundations-Prelude/dp/B01EFDEMS8

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

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Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.