When I started my OKR Coach training, I expected to learn a framework for writing better goals that I could teach others.

What I didn’t expect was how much it would change the way I think about product work, team dynamics, and my own leadership style.

OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) are often introduced as a goal-setting system. But when applied properly, they are far more than that. They are a thinking tool, a coaching tool, and a product alignment tool. They force clarity of intent, measurable impact, and honest conversation about value.

From Delivery Thinking to Outcome Thinking

In product and digital delivery, it’s easy to default to activity:

ship the feature
launch the page
migrate the platform
release the update

OKR coaching challenges that instinct directly.

One of the most repeated questions in the programme was:

“So what?”

If we complete this work - what changes?
What improves?
What evidence will we see?

That question alone has changed how I approach roadmap conversations and initiative planning. I now push harder (and more calmly) for outcome clarity over task completion. That is pure product thinking.

Coaching Over Telling

Another major shift was moving from expert mode to coach mode.

Instead of providing answers, OKR coaching emphasises:

structured questioning
psychological safety
working agreements
reflection loops
shared ownership

I learned to intervene less with solutions and more with questions. In practice, this looks like:

redirecting dominant voices
drawing out quieter contributors
reframing task-based goals into measurable impact
helping teams discover better Key Results themselves

This is directly transferable into product workshops, backlog shaping sessions, and stakeholder alignment meetings.

Good product leadership is rarely about having the best answer in the room. It’s about helping the room reach a better answer together.

Why Check-ins Matter More Than Planning

One of the most practical lessons from OKRs is that cadence beats intention.

Many teams are good at setting goals. Fewer are good at maintaining learning rhythm.

OKR check-ins, when they are done properly are not status reports. They are:

learning reviews
risk surfacing points
confidence calibration
momentum builders

As a product owner, you can treat product reviews and OKR check-ins similarly:

short, structured, outcome-focused, and psychologically safe.

Consistency creates progress. Not perfect plans.

Stretch, Safety, and Honest Signals

A surprising lesson was around ambition.

If a team hits 100% of every Key Result, it may not mean high performance, it may mean low stretch.

That idea challenged my own instinct for “green equals good”.

OKR coaching reframes success as:

progress
learning
evidence
adjusted direction

This aligns strongly with modern product thinking: test, learn, iterate - not predict and defend.

My Personal Learning Curve

I didn’t find the OKR Coach programme easy at the start. New terminology, new models, new expectations and I initially felt behind.

The turning point came through practice workshops and applied exercises. I’m a learn-by-doing person, and once I could facilitate, question, and reshape OKRs live, the confidence followed.

Since then I’ve tried to make changes in my daily, product work life:

Ask better questions
Slow down premature agreement
Focus teams on impact signals
Contract sessions more clearly
Design meetings with intent, not habit

And importantly, I’m more comfortable not being the one with the answer.

OKRs and Product Thinking Belong Together

Strong product practice and strong OKR practice reinforce each other:

Both are fundamentally about clarity, evidence, and learning.

Ongoing Practice

I’m still developing as an OKR Coach. Areas I’m continuing to practise include:

sharper facilitation interventions
better stretch calibration
cleaner Key Result wording
stronger retrospective questioning

Like good product work, this is continuous improvement, not certification and done.

If you work in product, delivery, or digital transformation, OKR coaching skills are worth building. Not just for goal setting but for better conversations and better decisions.

What OKR Coaching Taught Me About Better Product Thinking (and Better Teams)