Product Rising Building Community & Becoming a Super Connector
Building Community & Becoming a Super Connector
In this episode Ha Nguyen, Founder and Managing Partner of NextStep Advisory & Consulting, shares the work and life experiences that have led her to being an exceptional community builder and super connector. She joins host, Surbhi Gupta, to share the value of being a go-giver, and how visibility and being able to speak up has powered her career and can do the same for yours.
🎧 Episode Highlights:
01:47 Ha’s Product Origin Story: eBay in 2000 to Product Leadership
03:00 From Introvert to Speaking Up: HBS & Finding Your Voice
05:20 Becoming a Super Connector: Community Building & VC Brand
08:49 Visibility Isn’t Automatic: Ask for What You Want (Promotion Stories)
14:05 When Leadership Isn’t Moving Fast Enough: Timing, Titles & Leaving
17:12 Create Your Own Luck: Habits, Confidence, and Taking Risks
20:58 Build a Personal Board of Directors (and Nurture Relationships)
25:19 Finding Sponsors in Big Companies: Skip-Level Relationships & Persistence
27:19 Make Better Asks: Follow-Ups, Value, and Time-Bound Requests
28:29 Make the Ask Easy: Be Specific and Respect Their Time
28:51 Add Value First: The Go-Giver Mindset (and Why Karma Works)
30:13 Building Relationships with Your Skip: Do Great Work + Lead with Empathy
33:40 Create Visibility Beyond Your Role: Coaches, Boards, and Career “Hacks”
36:04 Personal Brand That Pays Off: Writing, Speaking, and Staying Top-of-Mind
39:53 The Hidden Cost of Visibility: Too Many Asks & Setting Boundaries
42:56 Who You Are Outside Work: Mission Alignment, Family, Hobbies, and Health
45:55 Balancing It All: A 2x2 Framework for Goals vs. Joy + Daily Habits
49:47 Visibility Skills That Scale: Speak Business/Finance + Customer Obsession
52:19 Resources, Recommendations, and How to Connect (Final Wrap)
Resources
📚Resources:
Books
Go-Giver book - https://thegogiver.com
Seven Habits of Highly Effective People - https://www.franklincovey.com/courses/the-7-habits/
Podcasts
This Week in Startups - https://thisweekinstartups.com
🌟 Where to find Surbhi
On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/surbhi7/
💫 Where to find Ha
On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/hanguyen-spero/
NextStep Advisory & Consulting Website https://nextstepfwd.com
🙋♀️ Where to find Women in Product:
On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-product/posts/
Website https://womenpm.org/
Join the Community https://womenpm.org/wip-community/