Product Managers are tasked with managing a product. Yet they do not have control over the many departments who do the work of building, marketing, selling, and delivering the product. This means that Product Managers must learn to manage by influence.

For Product Managers, having to manage by influence can lead to a mindset where they view every project on their list of product goals as a war where they must outsmart, outflank, and outlast other managers and departments in order to prevail.

It’s important for a Product Manager to prevail, not for the pleasure of it - although like any job it can be a source of great pride to see your personal stamp on the product - but because the Product Manager is approaching the product from a broader perspective than any single department. Ensuring that this broader perspective gets reflected in the software is critical to the product’s success.

But it can be a problem when you develop a war mentality.

Sometimes the only way you will prevail and benefit over the long term - winning the war - is if you give in on some points in the short term - losing the battle. Read below for some questions to keep in mind to judge whether the battle you’re fighting is worth the victory.