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Product Management Rule #42: These Are Our Rules. What Are Yours?

Blog Author: Greg Cohen

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Product Management Rule #42 from the best-selling book, 42 Rules of Product Management, was written by Greg Cohen, Senior Principal Consultant, Productside

As we look to advance our products, we must be aware of the larger picture and environment in which we work.

Rules are designed to prevent failure and, in particular, the repetition of failure.

The majority of rules in the book emerged from the personal, observed, or near failures of each rule’s author in bringing a successful product to market. It is therefore worth reflecting on the fact that this seemingly concise book of 42 Rules contains over five centuries of collected wisdom from the contributors, and many of these lessons were learned from the school of hard knocks.

If you were searching for the grand unified theory of physics, forty-two might seem like a large number. But in the much more complex world of product management, forty-two is relatively small—enough to capture the essence of the topic, but not to cover every situation you will encounter in your career.

Therefore, each day we must ask what we can do to make our products more successful.

The rules contained in this book can help by provoking you to think differently about how you do your job and manage your products. But this book, or any other book for that matter, does not contain all the answers, nor does it contain the nonexistent single formula for success.

As we look to advance our products, we must be aware of the larger picture and environment in which we work.

  • Do we understand our customers?
  • Do we understand how they perceive value?
  • Does our team know this as well?
  • Is there a solution that our company is capable of delivering, and have we persuaded management to invest in this opportunity?

Through this endeavor, we each create our own rules of what works, what doesn’t, and what can be improved.

About The Author

Greg Cohen

Product leader with 20+ years in PM, launching and guiding teams to deliver innovative tech and SaaS products across diverse markets.
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Frequently Asked Questions

Product Management Rule #42 emphasizes that no single framework or book contains all the answers to building successful products. Instead, product managers must continuously reflect, learn from failure, and adapt to their environment. The rule encourages professionals to develop their own principles based on experience, customer understanding, and organizational realities.
Rules in product management exist to prevent repeated failure and capture hard-earned lessons. Many product management rules are born from real-world mistakes and near-misses, making them practical safeguards rather than theoretical ideas. By learning from past failures, product managers can make better decisions, reduce risk, and improve product outcomes over time.
No product management framework can guarantee success in every situation. Markets, customers, technologies, and organizations are constantly changing, making rigid formulas ineffective. Successful product managers combine proven principles with situational judgment, adapting their approach based on customer value, team capabilities, and business constraints rather than blindly following a single methodology.
Product managers develop their own rules through experience, reflection, and continuous learning. By observing what works, understanding why failures occur, and adjusting their approach, they build a personal playbook. This includes learning how customers perceive value, how teams operate, and how to influence leadership to invest in the right opportunities.
Rule #42 helps product managers improve decision-making by encouraging curiosity and critical thinking rather than blind adherence to best practices. It prompts leaders to question assumptions, consider context, and align solutions with customer needs and organizational capabilities. This mindset leads to more resilient strategies and better long-term product success.

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