How to say “no” when things don’t align with your product vision

Earlier this week I wrote about saying no to timelines and providing proper context when communicating with stakeholders. A few people pointed out that sometimes saying ‘no’ is ok when things don’t align with the product vision, so I thought I’d tackle that subject on this week’s blog post.

Both are situations you will often find yourself in. Knowing how to navigate conversations with empathy (and a little bit of patience!) is what creates better communication and relationships in teams.

Let’s dig into this further.

Saying no

I won’t deviate from my previous post too much on this — simply saying “no” can be a source of friction for your team.

There’s a crappy way of saying no and literally shutting down conversations, and there’s a more friendly and open way of saying no, while still keeping your boundaries and protecting your sanity.

The important thing to remember here is not everyone has the same context you do.

The mark of a good leader is the ability to repeat yourself often, in different ways, through different formats. It isn’t easy to switch context and tune into a new conversation — even more so when you’re presenting a powerpoint. You cannot expect your team to remember what your vision is because you talked about it once! Reference it as much as possible, that’s how you’ll be able to drive the message home.

Saying no with context and empathy

Ok, so let’s get down to it. Someone’s pitched you an idea or given you some feedback that has absolutely nothing to do with what your product is even about, nor does it fit your vision or strategy.

Yes, you could say no and move on, cause who’s even got time to deal with dumb ideas, right?

❌ There is no such thing as a dumb idea.

You’ve also managed to shut down an opportunity to learn further. Remember, people like to pitch solutions based on their own experiences and bias. It is your job as a product manager to uncover what the problem is, then come up with a viable solution that has a wider market impact. (eg, “I need a graph” vs…