Bijan Shahrokhi 
Hey there! Want to land your dream product manager job? We’ve got you covered.
Check out our 2,500+ product manager interview questions database with answers from expert product managers.
Article Contents
In many circumstances, 10 days can feel like a lifetime. But when it comes to preparing for a product manager interview, it’s not a lot of time at all. However, if this is all the time you have, you must spend it wisely. Your approach could be the difference between acing your interview and coming up short.
The first thing you need to do is get in the right frame of mind. This isn’t an interview with an HR generalist. It’s not an introductory question and answer session with a recruiter. It’s an in-depth interview with advanced questions about product sense, execution, leadership and more. In other words, there’s a lot to prepare for.
Once your mind is in a good place, design a daily plan and use it to be as productive as possible over the next 10 days. Your goal is to complete as close to 100 hours of prep time as possible. It sounds like a lot — and it is — but a well-designed plan can help you get there.
Here’s an example of how you can structure your prep time to reach the 100-hour goal:
- Weekend #1 (two days)
- Monday – Friday (five days)
- Weekend #2 (two days)
With a total of nine days at your disposal, you’d need to spend roughly 11 hours per day to reach your goal. Again, that’s a lot of time, but you’re gaining massive amounts of knowledge in return. Most importantly, you’re positioning yourself to receive a job offer for a position that’ll pay you well into six figures annually.
By now, you’re probably wondering what an “average” day would look like. Here’s an example:
Review frameworks: 1.5 hours/day
As noted above, the questions asked in a PM interview take a lot of thought. And for that reason, it’s critical to become familiar with frameworks that can help you provide thoughtful, in-depth answers.
Our product manager interview course provides various frameworks for answering all the most common questions. You can approach this in two days:
- Pick and choose the lessons that pertain to frameworks.
- Sign up for our crash course to save time.
Either way, be sure that you’re reviewing frameworks for 1 to 1.5 hours per day. This is the foundation for every question you answer.
Review PM interview questions, answers, and feedback: 2.5 hours/day
The more questions you practice answering, the greater chance you have of knocking your interview out of the park. Reviewing PM interview questions, answers, and feedback will be one of the most time-consuming parts of your day.
We have a library of 2500+ product manager interview questions that can be filtered by company and/or question type. Maybe you’re preparing for a Google PM interview. You can review questions and answers from our community such as:
- How would you improve Google Maps?
- Can you calculate the number of queries answered by Google per second?
- How would you improve YouTube?
Not only can you review answers from others — including people who have interviewed at Google — but you can also provide your answer for community feedback.
Group practice: a minimum of once per day
Once per day, jump into a group practice session to connect with others who are in the same position as you. The primary benefit of group interviews is the opportunity to see how other people approach interview questions.
There’s more than one way to answer every PM interview question. Group practice sessions help you break free of what’s in your mind so that you can provide more thoughtful answers during your “real” interview.
Practice mock interviews: three per day
A PM mock interview is exactly what it sounds like. It’s your opportunity to go through the entire interview process with an experienced product management professional.
This is just like the real thing. They’ll ask you the hard questions while allowing you to ask some of your own. There’s no stopping and starting along the way. The interview will unfold just as it will during the real thing.
Of course, at the end of the interview, you can chat with your mock interviewer about your performance, where you excelled, and areas in need of improvement.
Note-taking and review: 30 minutes/day
Set aside 30 minutes per day — generally at the end of the day — to take notes in our system or a simple Google doc. Focus on details such as:
- What you learned that day.
- The areas you feel the most comfortable.
- The areas that require more attention in the upcoming days.
- Key points that you want to remember as you inch toward the finish line.
- A list of resources that you’ve found helpful.
It’s nice to be able to fall back on your notes if you have a question or concern. It’s also a good outlet for clearing your mind by sharing your thoughts.
Professional coaching: One hour every other day
Due to time and/or cost constraints, this may not be something you do every day. However, one-on-one private coaching is a nice addition to any interview prep program.
Your coach will personalize each session to match your specific wants and needs. They can focus on everything from how to answer interview questions to prep planning to what to do if you’re stumped.
You can also carry out full interviews with your coach, ensuring that you receive actionable feedback on specific areas for improvement.
And don’t forget that a PM coach is someone you can lean on before and after your interview. It’s nice to have someone on your side who knows what you’re going through and is rooting for you to come out on top.
Summary
Keep in mind that no two PM candidates will take the same approach to prepare for an interview. Your approach depends largely on the company you’re interviewing with, your experience, your knowledge, and the prep time available to you.
For instance, compare the Google PM interview to the Amazon PM interview. You’ll soon find that the interview process structure is unique for each, which means the way you prepare must also be unique.
At PM Exercises, we can help you carry out every last piece of your preparation plan. Lean on us for the next 10 days and you’ll be ready to ace your interview when the big day arrives!
