3 Ways to Build Street Cred

A question from the listener is my favorite topic!

“How to Gain Real Street Cred as a Product Owner”

“How do I earn street cred so people finally listen to me?”

Let me help you with 3 no-BS ways that have worked for me across decades of enterprise coaching.

The Three Big Ideas

1. Build Alliances with the “Old Dogs” (and everyone else)

   • Find the boomer with 27 years of coffee stains — they know where the bodies are buried.

   • Gen Xers (like Scott) will share excerpts from the “handy-dandy notebook” if you show you’re serious and not wasting their time.

   • Millennials love the spotlight — put them on stage or give public credit and they’ll hand you the whole notebook. Key insight: Your street cred is the average of the five people you hang around most. Choose allies who already have cred and add value to them (buy the coffee, keep the front porch clean).

   → Homework: Over the holidays, write down your top 3 skill/knowledge gaps → attach a specific name next to each → schedule the coffee chat.

2. Practice Emergent Leadership by Closing Knowledge Gaps

   • Most policy/procedure contradictions come from simple misunderstanding of basic terms (story vs requirement, increment, product, etc.).

   • Stop getting on your high horse with perfect book definitions. Instead, recognize “they don’t know what they don’t know” and educate with stories, pictures, live tool demos, or “explain it like I’m three” examples.

   • When you patiently bridge the gap instead of shrugging “they just don’t get it,” you become the go-to person — instant street cred.

   → Homework: Brainstorm your top 3 recurring process/policy pain points → create a simple education plan (retro, demo, share-care, planning) to teach the missing concept to stakeholders.

3. Own Your Role Like Nobody Else is Qualified (Because They Aren’t)

   • The fastest way to lose cred is acting like you’re not allowed to do the job.

   • Start doing the actual PO job boldly: say no when needed, relentlessly optimize for measurable value, hold yourself (and the backlog) to a higher standard.

   • Quick wins: Score the last few delivered items on real business impact → score the next three backlog items the same way → use the comparison in conversations to prove you’re driving value.

   → Homework: Pick a measurable value metric for the next three things you’re building and start talking about it out loud with leadership and the team.

Closing Thoughts from Scott

• Never assume someone understands just because they can quote a definition.

• Street cred = Alliances + Patient Education + Ruthless Ownership of the role.

• “Be yourself — no one else is more qualified.”

  
  

Let's go!

• Live virtual CSPO certification class Dec 18-19, 2025 → use code PLANETPO for 20% off!

• Send feedback or say hi: scott@planetproductowner.org

• Community launching in 2026 (details coming)