The Year of the Looking Glass
A collection of essays by Julie Zhuo on design, building products, and observing life.
In Search of Perfect Moments
In Search of Perfect Moments
If I told you to aim to create 30 Perfect Days, could you? How long would it take? Thirty days? Six months? Ten years? Never?
The Curse of Perfect
The Curse of Perfect
In the house that I grew up in, there was a formula for the American Dream.
Coffee Chat Series #1: Getting Ahead as an Early-Career Designer
Coffee Chat Series #1: Getting Ahead as an Early-Career Designer
The summary of hundreds of coffee chats with early-stage designers — covering habits for success, superpowers, misconceptions and more.
The Meta-Conversation
The Meta-Conversation
A technique to get your most frustrating conversations unstuck.
Letter to My Younger Asian-American Self
Letter to My Younger Asian-American Self
Dear Julie: You won’t be aware of this for nearly another two decades, but May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage month.
How to Talk about Yourself in the Best Possible Way
How to Talk about Yourself in the Best Possible Way
No one wants to hear you talk about yourself all day long.
I can’t stand arrogant people.
Ugh, that humblebrag is so obvious.
How to Make Things High-Quality
How to Make Things High-Quality
If there is one debate that is the endlessly circling “Star Wars versus Star Trek” of product development, it is what I refer to as “The…
The Making of a Manager: a Handbook for New Leaders
The Making of a Manager: a Handbook for New Leaders
“I’ve seen so many people thrust into management in high-growth companies with so little guidance. From now on, I will hand them this book…
How to be Strategic
How to be Strategic
So you might have heard that the more you progress in your career, the more “strategic” you should aim to be. WTF does that mean?
Design for People, Use People Language
Design for People, Use People Language
The first rule of building a valuable product is that it should be valuable for someone. Meaning, an actual, real-life person (or many such…
Good Pressure, Bad Pressure
Good Pressure, Bad Pressure
Here is the narrative that sometimes runs through my head. Raise your hand if it’s familiar:
Many ways to learn
Many ways to learn
This was first published on my mailing list The Looking Glass. Every week, I answer a reader’s question.
The 4 Stages of 0->1 Products
The 4 Stages of 0->1 Products
This was first published on my mailing list The Looking Glass. Every week, I answer a reader’s question.
Launch is the beginning
Launch is the beginning
This was first published on my mailing list The Looking Glass. Every week, I answer a reader’s question.
Finding ideas
Finding ideas
This was first published on my mailing list The Looking Glass. Every week, I answer a reader’s question.
Pitching a product idea
Pitching a product idea
This was first published on my mailing list The Looking Glass. Every week, I answer a reader’s question.
Responding to a promotion rejection
Responding to a promotion rejection
This was first published on my mailing list The Looking Glass. Every week, I answer a reader’s question.
Managing more experienced people
Managing more experienced people
This was first published on my mailing list The Looking Glass. Every week, I answer a reader’s question.