Product managers like to get things done. It's what makes them good at their jobs. That's why it's so incredibly hard to focus on building the right things, in sequence. In the moment, taking a step back feels like slowing down.

It seems counterintuitive, but building the habit of thinking about
focus on sequence is necessary to move quickly.

• Every day, ask yourself one question: "Am I working on the right thing, right now?" If you're stumped for an answer you need to reassess everything you do.
• Build deep relationships among members of your product teams. As Brian Balfour points out, closely-knit teams that are willing to speak frankly and quickly about problems get them out of the way and are able to tackle them faster.
• Use your budget to prioritize the features that you build. As Basecamp co-founder David Hansson says, "One version of the feature might take 2 weeks, another might take 6 months. It's all in where you draw the line, how comprehensive you want to be, and what you're going to do about all those inevitable edge cases."