Beyond habit and process: Product thinking through Nietzschean thought

How Nietzsche’s philosophy can elevate agile product team culture for sustainable innovation and long-term value

As I continue my journey through the product development landscape, I have become more aware of the power of mindset and one’s internal approach to overcoming obstacles that really impacts product thinking and how organisations approach product development.

I take some pride in my knack for linking seemingly unrelated elements. As I delve deeper into product development – embracing ideas like design thinking, empowerment, and cross functional teams – I find myself increasingly aligned with these concepts. Interestingly, I also see connections between these modern practices and the 19th-century philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche, a thinker I greatly admire. His prose and my own cherry picked selection of his ideas resonate with me, and thus I never miss the opportunity to muse on his writing.

I know, Nietzsche never directly tackled topics like user experience design or market positioning, but his philosophical ideas – such as eternal recurrence, amor fati, the Übermensch, and the metamorphosis of the spirit – offer invaluable insights for shaping the mindset and internal approach of product teams and organisations.

For those unfamiliar with Nietzsche, he challenged traditional moral frameworks and introduced ideas that questioned the very fabric of society and human existence. His notion of “amor fati,” or love of fate, encourages a wholehearted embrace of life’s complexities and challenges. Similarly, his idea of the Übermensch represents an individual who creates their own values, transcending societal norms.

Concerning product development, I want to make it clear that I start with the assumption that the ultimate goal of a product development team is to build products that resonate with customers while driving business value. As Marty Cagan puts it, “We need a product that our customers love, yet also works for our business.” This article aims to show how Nietzschean philosophy can inform and enrich our approach to achieving this delicate balance.

Eternal recurrence

Friedrich Nietzsche’s concept of “eternal recurrence” asks us to imagine that everything in existence will recur eternally, including every pain, joy, thought, and moment of one’s life.

“What if, someday or night, a demon were to steal into your loneliest loneliness and say to you: ‘This life as you now live it and have lived it, you will have to live once more and innumerable times more; and there will be nothing new in it.’”

Though this idea is not new – the Stoics had a similar concept – Nietzsche believed that this thought experiment was an excellent way to gauge one’s progress towards becoming the Übermensch. The Übermensch embraces the concept of eternal recurrence as a form of self-overcoming. They use it to affirm their existence and influence, embodying Nietzsche’s ideal of the will-to-power or intrinsic motivation. The Übermensch is not merely subjected to eternal recurrence but actively shapes it through their intrinsic motivation, and aims to leave a lasting impact on history and humanity.

“Would you not throw yourself down and gnash your teeth and curse the demon who spoke thus? … Or … would you have answered him: ‘You are a god, and never have I heard anything more divine.’ … The question in each and every thing, ‘Do you desire this once more and innumerable times more?’ would lie upon your actions as the greatest weight. Or how well disposed would you have to become to yourself and to life?” – Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra

In layman’s terms, Nietzsche is asking if you’ve lived a life you’d be happy to relive over and over, like a movie you’d enjoy watching on repeat. So, how can the idea of eternal recurrence help teams build and maintain software? Well, let’s ask ourselves: Do we work in a way that we’re happy to repeat endlessly? In the Agile Manifesto, the eighth principle states, “Agile processes promote sustainable development. The sponsors, developers, and users should be able to maintain a constant pace indefinitely.” Instead of merely “spinning plates” to keep things afloat, we should aim for longevity in our work methods, projects, and products.

But sustainability is more than just workload; it's also about motivation. As Marty Cagan says, “We want missionaries, not mercenaries.” Missionaries are content with hardship and venturing into the unknown because they believe in their cause and see the long-term benefits. To be willing to repeat life endlessly, one must believe that, in the end, something great will have been achieved – something that justifies the suffering.

“If you have your why for life, you can get by with almost any how.”

– Friedrich Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols

“Eternal recurrence” can serve as a litmus test for a team’s approach to work. If the prospect of endlessly repeating current processes and tasks is unbearable, it indicates that the team’s understanding of their purpose has not been made clear, the vision has not been communicated, they do not understand the ‘why’.

Amor Fati

In order to accept the implications of eternal recurrence, Nietzsche talks about “amor fati.” This is a radical acceptance and love for life in all its dimensions. He states, “I want more and more to perceive the necessary characters in things as the beautiful: – I shall thus be one of those who beautify things. Amor fati: let that henceforth be my love!” In essence, “amor fati” is not merely about tolerating life’s complexities but wholeheartedly embracing them.

Instead of grumbling about a flat tyre, you embrace the challenge and see it as a learning opportunity. It’s not just about putting up with life’s difficulties, but actively welcoming them as part of your personal growth journey. In this way, “amor fati” encourages us not just to survive life’s complexities, but to thrive in them.

While Nietzsche was not concerned with product roadmaps or user engagement metrics, the mindset encapsulated by “amor fati” can be helpful for product teams and organisations. I see it as an acceptance and embrace of the inherent uncertainties, complexities, and challenges that come with creating something of value for both the customer and the business.

Marty Cagan’s “two inconvenient truths” can help shed light on why Nietzsche’s “amor fati” is a useful philosophy for product teams. Cagan notes that “at least half of our ideas are just not going to work,” and even the valuable ones will require “several iterations to get the implementation… to the point where it actually delivers the expected business value.” As Cagan puts it, “strong product teams understand these truths and embrace them rather than deny them.” In order for us to do that, as in Nietzsche’s days, we should “want nothing to be different” and should “love” the inherent challenges and failures as much as the successes.

“Hope in reality is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man” - Nietzsche Human, All-Too-Human

This can be seen as a critique of traditional project management models like the waterfall approach, where there’s often an unrealistic expectation of achieving a perfect solution in one go. As Maria Chec points out, “creating a Gantt Chart is creating a fiction that we have very detailed-level, granular control over the future.” Such methods serve only as a comfort blanket for stakeholders, ignoring the inherent uncertainties of product development.

If you truly love life in all its aspects, including its challenges and complexities, then uncertainty, setbacks, and difficult conversations become not obstacles but opportunities. They offer a path that, while more challenging to face, is more beneficial to confront and ultimately more valuable to overcome for both the customer and the business.

Nietzsche’s emphasis on embracing suffering and challenges aligns well with this approach. As he puts it,

“The discipline of suffering, of great suffering – do you not know that only this discipline has created all enhancements of man so far?”

It’s not about avoiding the negative aspects of development, difficult conversations, or challenges but embracing them as part of the journey toward building something truly valuable.

“Amor fati” or “love of fate” presents a unique challenge when balancing philosophical ideals with the practicalities of deadlines, budgets, and stakeholder expectations. Embracing “amor fati” doesn’t mean abandoning responsibility or ignoring the constraints that govern the business world. Rather, it calls for a nuanced approach where one accepts these limitations, not as hindrances, but as integral components of the project’s life cycle. This perspective leads to creative problem-solving and a harmonious relationship with stakeholders. It fosters a culture of openness and adaptability.

Instead of viewing deadlines and budgets as oppressive forces, they are seen as challenges to be met with enthusiasm and ingenuity. Thus, “amor fati” can coexist with business practicalities, enriching rather than complicating the product development process.

Übermensch

Peter Drucker once said, “One cannot manage change. One can only be ahead of it.” To be ahead of change, one must be continuously learning and evolving. You cannot be content with where you are, nor can you believe you have all the answers. Instead, be willing to explore the unknowns and constantly adapt in order to handle external change effectively.

In Nietzsche’s book “Thus Spoke Zarathustra,” Zarathustra presents two contrasting ideals: the Übermensch and the Last Men. The Übermensch is the pinnacle of human potential, embodying creativity, innovation, and disruption of the status quo. The Last Men, on the other hand, seek comfort and believe themselves to be the pinnacle of humanity. They represent everything Nietzsche finds undesirable for human progress.

Both Drucker’s and Nietzsche’s focus on the need for constant adaptation align with the second principle of the Agile Manifesto, which states, “Welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the customer’s competitive advantage.” Innovation is fraught with challenges and isn’t for everyone. It requires a conscious drive to improve, change, and actively explore unknown spaces. Teams cannot afford to become the ‘Last Men,’ comfortable with the status quo.

“Who still wants to rule? Who still wants to obey? Both are too burdensome. No shepherd, and one herd! Everyone wants the same; everyone is the same: he who feels differently goes voluntarily into the madhouse.”

– Thus spoke Zarathustra

We need empowered, cross-functional product teams, not teams siloed into separate departments. Nietzsche’s caution that “By morality, the individual is taught to become a function of the herd, and to ascribe value to himself only as a function,” serves as a warning. Product teams must avoid becoming mere “functions of the herd.” Resistance to change, adherence to established methods just because ‘that’s how it’s done here,’ and a neglect of inconvenient truths are all signals of a ‘Last Man’ mindset.

Such an attitude stifles innovation and fosters a culture proud of its mediocrity, as Nietzsche warns.“They have something of which they are proud. What do they call it, that which makes them proud? Culture, they call it; it distinguishes them from the goatherds but fails to achieve anything greater.” Nietzsche’s sentiments are echoed by Jeff Bezos in his 2016 letter to shareholders. He describes “Day 2 companies” as those that have settled into stasis, followed by irrelevance, painful decline, and eventually, death. In contrast, a “Day 1 company” mindset is described as one that is customer-obsessed, enables high-quality and high-velocity decision-making, and empowers employees to stay curious and experimental.

Nietzsche believed that we should live in a way that would move humanity towards the Overman.

“I love him who lives in order to know, and seeks to know in order that the Overman may hereafter live. Thus he seeks his own down-going. I love him who labors and invents, that he may build the house for the Overman, and prepare for him earth, animal, and plant: for thus he seeks his own down-going.”

– Thus spoke Zarathustra

This is about building for the future not for the present.

“the individual looks his own short life span too squarely in the eye and feels no strong incentives to build on enduring institutions, designed for the ages. He wants to pick the fruit from the tree he has planted himself, and therefore no longer likes to plant those trees which require regular care over centuries”

Friedrich Nietzsche – Human, All Too Human Section One: Of First and Last Things – Aphorism # 22

This quote from Nietzsche’s serves as a poignant reminder for product teams. The focus shouldn’t be solely on quick wins or immediate outcomes. Instead, the vision should be long-term, aimed at creating enduring value that will provide “shade for long successions of generations.”

We need to think about the long-term value of our work. A continuous commitment to evolution and self-evaluation is essential. This ensures that the team doesn’t become “the most despicable man, who can no longer despise himself” – in other words, a team that can no longer see fault in their ways of working. As Nietzsche said, “one must still have chaos in oneself to give birth to a dancing star.” Therefore, for continuous innovation, a team must not fall victim to the chains of process or the status quo. Instead, be a team “who breaks their tablets of values.”

The three metamorphosis of the spirit

In the business world, an over-reliance on process can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it helps with scaling; but on the other, blind adherence to process is the death of creativity. Steve Blank warns, “As companies and agencies get larger, they start to value the importance of process over the product… The process people dominate management, and the product people end up reporting to them.” Jeff Bezos echoes this sentiment, stating,“A common example is process as proxy… This can happen very easily in large organisations… You stop looking at outcomes and just make sure you’re doing the process right.” Elon Musk criticises big companies where “process becomes a substitute for thinking,” and Steve Jobs succinctly puts it, “It’s not process; it’s content (satisfaction).” These industry leaders caution against letting process overshadow innovation and agility, a trap that many growing companies fall into.

Now, business process wasn’t something that Nietzsche talked about, but he does posit a fascinating idea regarding the stages the spirit traverses during personal growth, centred around religion, that could help us combat this tendency of falling into the process trap. Transitioning from a passive state to that of a Camel, in this stage, one adheres strictly to beliefs and values derived from external sources. In the realm of software development, this mirrors the phase when product teams recognise the need for a shift in their product practices and decide to adopt new processes like Scrum or Kanban, adhering to them meticulously.

However, a point may arise where such rigid adherence to these rules becomes counterproductive. Here, your spirit requires the heart of a Lion, the second stage, to challenge and fight against the external rules and “thou shalt’s” imposed by others. Yet, being able to reject these pre-established rules and values is only half the battle. If rejection is the sole action, the creation or discovery of one’s own values remains elusive. This sets the stage for the final metamorphosis into the Child, where the freedom to play, experiment, and create anew resides.

To not only reject but also to create something new, one needs a structured progression: an understanding and acknowledgment of what has been (the Camel), the ability to identify problems within the current state (the Lion), followed by the willingness to experiment, iterate, and craft something new (the Child). This progression embodies a holistic approach towards personal or organisational growth, nurturing a conducive environment for continuous innovation and self-evolution.

Not enough!

“It is not enough to prove something, one has also to seduce or elevate people to it. That is why the man of knowledge should learn how to speak his wisdom: and often in such a way that it sounds like folly!”

Friedrich Nietzsche – Daybreak Book IV – Aphorism # 330

While it’s easy enough to talk about philosophical ideas, translating them into real-world action is always the more challenging task. Belief and personal values shape our actions, and it’s up to us to travel through the journey of the spirit. Nietzsche’s magnum opus, “Thus Spoke Zarathustra,” has the subtitle “A book for all and none,” highlighting his belief that his ideas wouldn’t be for everyone. In a similar vein, fighting against a self-satisfied culture can be a lonely battle.

Though I’m aware I haven’t tackled the complexity of revenue and strategy, trying to shoehorn Nietzschean philosophy into business strategy would stretch beyond my confidence to do justice. One difficulty with Nietzsche’s philosophy is its focus on individuality and independence, contrasting sharply with the top-down or team approach of most organisations.

I don’t believe eliminating leadership or teams is beneficial, but it’s worth noting that leaders and team members are individuals. Therefore, it’s individuals who require the courage to pursue and enact change to drive value. I hope this article can inspire you to be bold, break up stale processes, and embrace – nay, love – the struggle.