3 PM Traits I Want Every Designer on My Team to Adopt
What designers can learn from great PMs to become more effective and influential
Great PMs know how to get things done. They know how to align stakeholders, navigate trade-offs, and push things forward—all while making smart product decisions.
Over the years, I’ve worked with some exceptional PMs, and I’ve noticed three key traits that make them influential. They ship great stuff, they drive impact, and they know how to operate inside a company to make sure their ideas actually happen.
When designers adopt these same skills, they don’t just make better work—they make sure their work sees the light of day.
1. Thinking in Multiple Timeframes
The best PMs see the whole game board. They can hold multiple timeframes in their head at once:
The long-term vision of where we’re headed
The medium-term strategy of what we’re tackling next
The tactical roadmap of how we’ll get there
The immediate actions needed today
It’s like they can visualize the finished house while knowing exactly which cornerstone needs to be laid first. This kind of multi-dimensional thinking is incredibly powerful for designers to adopt.
Designers are trained to design the ideal end state, and that’s our superpower. But to actually get there, we need to think about how to slice the work up in a way that makes sense.
Design for the journey, not just the destination. Don’t lament about the MVP—own it. Define the minimum viable experience you want to see shipped. This way, the first version doesn’t feel like a chopped-up, watered-down mess—it feels like episode 1 of an epic saga.
Designers who think this way gain trust from engineers, earn influence with stakeholders, and make sure their work doesn’t get lost in the backlog.
2. Being Ultra Responsive
Great PMs are always in the loop. They don’t disappear into a black hole when a problem arises—they acknowledge it, investigate it, and close the loop with the right people.
This doesn’t mean saying yes to everything. In fact, some of the best PMs are great at saying no—but they do it with clarity, reasoning, and alternatives.
I push my design team to build this same responsiveness muscle:
Acknowledge feedback quickly, even if you need time to process it
Do your homework before responding—don’t react blindly
Circle back with stakeholders, even when the answer isn’t what they hoped for
Frame responses in terms of user and business impact
A responsive designer builds trust across teams. And trust buys you creative freedom. If people know you’re thoughtful, communicative, and plugged in, they’re far more likely to support you when you push for something ambitious (or for something that only you care about).
3. Letting Go, But Not Losing Control
PMs don’t build or ship things themselves. They have to trust their team—engineering, design, marketing—to bring the product to life. They push things forward, but they also know that not everything is in their control.
Designers need to develop that same balance. We’re wired to want things to be exactly as we envisioned them, but in a fast-moving product environment, letting go is part of the job.
That doesn’t mean stepping back completely—it means knowing when to trust, when to ask questions, and when to apply pressure. I coach my team to:
Push for clarity and ensure things don’t stall
Trust that others will do their job—but follow up with curiosity, not control
Understand that others have priorities too, and they might not always be the same as yours
Let go of the illusion of total control—product development is a team sport
Great designers don’t just obsess over their part of the work—they make sure the whole thing lands well and actually ships. And sometimes, that means loosening your grip, trusting the process, and making sure the team, not just the design, succeeds.
In my experience, these skills don’t replace good design craft—they supercharge it.
A designer who thinks in multiple timeframes makes smarter decisions, is easier to work with, and helps ensure the shipped product is consistently solid, not just great in theory. A designer who’s responsive earns the trust to push for bolder ideas. A designer who lets go without losing control ships great work without the chaos.
So, next time you’re grabbing coffee with your PM, ask them how they think about these three things. You might just pick up a skill that takes your design impact to the next level.
Sending this to my team!
Best piece I read today!