生活什么时候才有尽头呢?

之前有一张根据达克效应(能力不足的人会沉浸在自我营造的虚幻的优势之中,常常高估自己的能力水平,却无法客观评价他人的能力)画的图,说随着长大,人就会从“愚昧之峰”跌入“绝望之谷”,至于跌入“绝望之谷”的人能否走上“开悟之坡”就得看各人的造化了。

然后那段时间这张图就在朋友圈里面疯传,我的同事,老板,老板的老板,朋友,合作伙伴,没有见过的网友,甚至到最后七大姑八大姨都在朋友圈进行转发。

那个时候我一直在困惑于“怎么判断一个人到底是在哪一步?”,“当一个人离开原本大公司的光环后还有几分价值?”,“我和他们到底谁厉害?”之类的问题。

想了很久还是没有想明白,于是我就告诉自己,这个世界太大了,当下找不到答案的原因是因为我还不知道这个世界到底是什么样,所以我需要做的就是好好的去观察,当看的足够多足够全了之后,应该就大致知道我想要的答案了。

结果就是,虽然一直在观察世界。但我总觉得自己的人生时不时就陷入了停滞。

停滞原因有我自己的瓶颈,也有环境的变化,但最重要的是每当我环顾四周,就发现身边的朋友们走在了属于自己的人生正道,只有我又一次进入了徘徊不前的停滞中。

当意识到自己的人生停滞了以后,那种从心底深处涌上来的慌张是很可怕的。你会觉得自己要失败了,浪费了若干时间,兜兜转转在原地打转,自己已经成为了又一个 loser。而当人被这种惶恐包围的时候,你就会忍不住要一直坠落,因为那才是眼前所能看到最理所当然的选择。

但坠落肯定不是一件好事情。

周五的时候和米高聊一个产品设计过程中的思路,我的经验是当有些答案不够清楚的时候,不如把这个问题变成填空题留给用户,收集足够多的反馈后再去补上这道题的空缺,当下不去考虑怎么去解决。

米高说“这样做也是解决问题的方法,但其实是在偷懒而不去思考”。

我后来想了一下,这玩意有点像我在前公司被老板委以重任负责设计公司产品统一的风格,当我意识到合作的设计师对这件事完全是敷衍的态度,自己努力两三次就不想再去搞了一样(故事见设计师的创新与创造)。

设计师不靠谱或许可以是她不去做这件事的理由,但是我为什么要把“设计师不靠谱”变为我也不去做这件事的理由呢?

有一个说法是说在未来的科技界,只会有三种设计师,品牌设计师,设计系统搭建者,和产品经理。

如果产品经理能够足够了解设计理论,设计工具的使用,并且提升自己的审美到了设计师的层次后。产品经理其实是可以结合自己足够用户的能力,在某种程度上的确替代 UI 设计师的?

所以我去看了一下这个世界上那些最顶级的互联网公司中,如何要求产品经理需要具备的能力(这些顶级的公司分别是 Google,Facebook 和 Pornhub)。

Google

Minimum Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.
  • 7 years of technical product management experience such as creating strategic product roadmaps and working with cross-functional teams.
  • Experience driving product vision, go-to-market strategy, and design discussions.
  • Experience developing Internet products and technologies.

Preferred Qualifications

  • Master's degree in a technology or business related field.
  • Experience managing day-to-day technical and design direction.
  • Knowledge of multiple functional areas such as Product Management, Engineering, UX/UI, Sales, Customer Support, Finance or Marketing.
  • Ability to influence multiple stakeholders without direct authority.

Responsibilities

  • Understand markets, competition, and user requirements in depth.
  • Launch new products and features, test their performance, and iterate quickly.
  • Work collaboratively with engineering, marketing, legal, UX, and other teams on cutting edge technologies.
  • Develop innovative solutions to problems by collaborating as needed across regions, product areas, and functions.

Facebook

Product Manager Responsibilities

  • Lead the ideation, technical development, and launch of innovative products
  • Establish shared vision across the company by building consensus on priorities leading to product execution
  • Drive product development with a team of world-class engineers and designers
  • Integrate usability studies, research and market analysis into product requirements to enhance user satisfaction
  • Define and analyze metrics that inform the success of products
  • Understand Facebook’s strategic and competitive position and deliver products that are recognized as best in industry
  • Maximize efficiency in a constantly evolving environment where the process is fluid and creative solutions are the norm

Minimum Qualifications

  • 3+ years of product management experience
  • Experience with data-centric product decision making
  • Experience in understanding code bases, including API design techniques
  • 3+ years of experience in technical architecture of web applications and/or media products.
  • 3+ years experience designing user experience

Preferred Qualifications

  • 5+ years experience in software and/or hardware product management
  • BA/BS in Computer Science or related field
  • Masters in Business Administration, Product Management, or related field
  • A background in machine learning techniques
  • Experience working with or in support of diverse communities

Pornhub

A day in the life of a Product Manager on Pornhub:

  • Develop product strategy, vision, and roadmaps, and conceive short, medium, and long-term features to achieve the vision
  • Craft an excellent user experience
  • Collaborate with design team on intuitive, modern user interfaces across multiple platforms
  • Collaborate with engineering teams to deliver product to market
  • Plan marketing initiatives to increase brand awareness
  • Actively identify and resolve issues that may impair the team’s ability to meet strategic, financial, and technical goals
  • Actively lead content strategy
  • Increase website conversion rates and grow sales

To be successful in this role:

  • 5+ years of Product Management experience in a digital environment
  • Bachelor’s degree in engineering, business, design or similar; or equivalent work experience
  • Experience with digital consumer e-commerce products
  • Analytical and quantitative skills; experience using hard data and metrics to back up assumptions and develop business cases
  • Experience coordinating complex product development cycles within an Agile/Scrum environment
  • Mastery of Google Analytics and other web analytics platforms
  • Strong business sense with a consistent record of using analytical methods to derive value
  • High attention to detail including precise and effective customer communications and ability to handle multiple, competing priorities.
  • Appreciation for web design, typography, user experience and sociocultural trends

产品经理需要具备设计能力已经是一个大趋势(这也可能是越来越多设计师转行产品经理的原因之一),对于设计行业来说需求已经逐渐转变为 UX 设计师(或者是Content Strategist,UX Writer,UX Engineer 之类的岗位)。

当然,对技术,业务的了解,能够代表客户发出声音,兑现承诺,协调优先级等等也都是产品经理的必备技能。

所以这样说来,停滞带来的的思考时间就很重要,因为停滞所导致的那些必须在独自思考之后得到的结果,就显得更加珍贵。

其实只要我愿意,我当然可以一直不长大,也可以一直不去思考。长大成熟并不是一定会来的事情,如果能一直逃避,那当然也可以一直不去长大不去成熟。

但那些我们看起来可爱的中年人、老年人并不是因为撒娇、宣泄情绪、依赖他人才显得可爱的,也同样不是因为随着年纪增长,看过的世界变多,就慢慢可爱了起来。

他们之所以可爱,可能是因为他们在能够独自面对人生生而为人的刻骨孤独后,还依然保持着了不起的能量和生命力。

人的可爱,从来都不来自任性、依赖和宣泄。

人的可爱,其实是来自能量、克制和能够独自面对人生的一切。

长大并不会自己到来,它是需要你去面对一些你不敢面对、无法面对、必须要面对的时刻的。那些你觉得你真的忍不住了的时刻,那些你觉得你无论如何都没有办法自己面对的时刻,那些你就算找了他人帮忙也只能解决表面而无法解决根本的时刻。

当你撑过了那些无法撑过的时刻,可能才会真正成长起来,你也才有机会成为一个更好、更值得信赖的大人。人生可能在某时某刻忽然停下来,但人生其实也一直在走。你以怎么样的态度去对待生活,生活的尽头就在那里。

还是得动起来。