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I’m often asked, “If I have a non-technical background, can I be a Product Manager?” Those in product management are probably tired of this seemingly age-old debate. My spark notes version of an answer is YES. That said, you will have heavy competition, and less of an advantage compared to those who do have technical backgrounds. Still, I believe there are strengths to both circumstances.

First let’s define “non-technical”. For the sake of this article, I’m referring to non-technical as: those without an undergraduate CS degree and/or work experience as a programmer.

Here are 10 tips to help you succeed early on as a “non-technical” Product Manager. Technical or non-technical, these tips will support you in your role.

Solutions > Technology — I don’t like saying, “We’re going to build technology to solve a problem.” I like saying, “We’re going to build solutions.” You can have a deep understanding of technology, but you have to be able to execute by creating the actual deliverable. Often times as a PM, you’re either building solutions, or buying solutions. What matters is that the end result is the best solution to solve the problem, using in-house or third-party technology to get there.

Understanding of Technical Fundamentals — You may not need to be technical, but you should have a strong interest in technology. A willingness to learn about new technologies, and understanding their basic functionalities will get you a long way. This also assists in the communication with your developers, along with ensuring the right decisions are being made.

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Understanding of Business Fundamentals — If you can understand the investment necessary to get a product off the ground, along with the financial impact the product may have on the company, you’re heading in the right direction. I think of products as child companies within a parent company. Each product has its respective resource requirements, direct costs, and revenues. Relating your products to the overarching company mission, vision, goals, and understanding the financial implications will assist you in building successful solutions.

Research, Research, Research — In the world of tech and product change happens fast. New solutions arrive on the daily, and it’s critical that you look at what’s happening around you. I spend my morning cup of coffee utilizing services such as Outsell and catching up on news at Tech Crunch to stay tuned in to what’s going on in my industry. Have your radar up at all times, and never stop learning.

Build a Network —It’s a lonely, slow-paced battle on your own. I’ve identified a number of effective solutions to problems my company is solving by simply talking to other Product Managers. Getting thoughts and feedback from others will mitigate risk and expedite the discovery process, helping you to identify the best solution for a business case. The stronger your network, the stronger your results. As a first step, I recommend visiting the Product Collective.

Relationship Management —It takes people to make a product successful, and it takes early adopters to work with you to make the product even better. Managing these relationships is critical. Developers tend to clash when working together. Early adopters tend to get frustrated if you’re not there to support and listen to the feedback. Having strong people skills makes all the difference. At times … I truly think of myself as a therapist.

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Strong Communication Skills — A core function of the Product Manager role is relaying information and translating it into a digestible medium for the managing team and the technical team. For example: Your developers may deliver a set of problems or obstacles that are highly technical, and require input from a managing team. As the Product Manager, you need to translate this into a medium that the management team will understand. It works the other way around as well, breaking key product goals from the managing team into technical requirements for the development team. Taking the time to be clear and concise makes all the difference.

Be Curious —Always go a step further to gain an understanding of the issues and tasks your team is dealing with to support effective decision making. This was my weakness early on. I trusted the statements made from my developers when it came to critical decisions, without having a clear understanding of the implications. Embrace your curiosity about what makes the clock tick. Taking the time to go deeper into the subject matter will make you more agile, mitigate risk, and leave you better equipped to tackle problems others might not see. Again, never stop learning.

Sprint the Steps — Coming from a start-up background, I was familiar with methodologies such as “Fail Fast” or “Sprint the Marathon.” Moving into a more formal role as a Product Manager, there are well thought out guidelines and procedures to mitigate risk. As a result, there are numerous steps put into place before a final product can be released. My mindset to continue moving fast is to sprint the steps. Move fast, be ahead of schedule, and make it clear to the respective stakeholders that THEY are holding up the progress, and apply the pressure (a healthy amount of pressure of course) to their agenda. The Product Manager is often the driving force to get a product to market. Embody that driving force.

Reflect and Write —Life moves fast. Moving too fast often creates re-work. There’s a common saying I’ve adopted from Outsell’s CEO, Anthea Stratigos: “Slow down to speed up.” This mindset has saved me numerous times. Take a moment at the end of each day and think: Are we heading the right direction? Is there something that would solve the problem in a more efficient manner? Is there something we should be doing differently? I then write down any thoughts I might have during this time. One benefit this has given me is alleviating a large amount of stress in regards to the question, “Am I making the right decisions?” Often times, I just need to give myself the chance to step back and think about it.

I hope these 10 tips help you as much as they’ve helped me. Best of luck, and I look forward to see you all building amazing products.