As AI takes more of the execution work off engineering's plate, the questions that shape what gets built matter more than ever. PMs are trained to ask "what problem are we solving for whom" before "what should we build." Engineers often aren't. Share a specific question you've started asking — in sprint planning, roadmap reviews, or stakeholder conversations — that changed the direction of a decision. What did it unlock?

Product sense isn't about having better ideas — it's about seeing the real problem before anyone else starts building. This week's LinkedIn and Substack content was all about that shift. Share a specific moment where you stopped before solving, named the tension, and changed the direction of a conversation or decision as a result. What did you notice that others had missed?

Product sense isn't something you either have or don't — it's a trained skill built through one specific shift: stopping before you solve. Most PMs jump to solutions because movement feels like progress. The ones who develop real product sense learn to sit with the problem first — naming why it exists, what makes it genuinely hard, and who feels it most acutely. Share the one shift in your thinking that changed how you approach problems, whether in interviews or in your day-to-day work.

This week's Substack goes deep on the Alignment Statement — the four components, where to use it in real conversations, and why it works so well when AI is already doing most of the execution work. If you're wrestling with getting shot down when you lead with a hypothesis, this piece is specifically for you. Read it here: https://joshatlas.substack.com/p/the-alignment-statement-how-to-sound

Most PMs are trained to seek clarity before acting — "Can you confirm the priority?" or "Should I proceed with X?" But strategic PMs lead with a hypothesis and check alignment: "I'm assuming X based on Y — does it make sense to proceed?" Share a specific moment where you asked for permission when you could have led with a hypothesis. What changed in how others perceived you, and what would you say differently today?