Topic 3 — Giving Clear Directions
Topic 3 · Head of Product

Giving Clear Directions

Warm-up

  • Tell me about the worst instruction you've ever received at work — what made it so confusing?
  • Do you prefer giving instructions in person, by chat, or by email? Why?
  • If you had to give your future team just one instruction on day one, what would it be?

Real Examples From Your Work

Ten short scenarios built around what you're actually working on. Each one gives an instruction, then a bit of context — good material to react to and discuss.

phraseverb
1
Could you please confirm the launch date for the new map before our next sync? The design team has already approved the marker style, and engineering says they can complete the price-label feature by Thursday. If we can confirm early, we can also prepare for the announcement post.
💬

If you were the engineer, what would you want to double check before agreeing to that timeline?

2
I'd like you to complete the redesign of the apartment list by the end of the sprint. We need to reduce the number of visual elements competing with the map, and it would help to consider moving the "Call" and "Message" buttons higher up. Once it's done, we can distribute the new version to a small test group first.
💬

What's one more detail you'd want that redesign to include?

3
Make sure you consider adding filters for schools and parks when you build the neighborhood search. A few sellers have already suggested a "quiet street" filter too, so it's worth discussing with the team. Try to avoid overcomplicating the first version — we can always extend it later.
💬

Do you think the "quiet street" filter is a good idea? Why or why not?

4
It's important that you reduce the number of paid options before we launch the new packages. Right now there are too many separate add-ons, and it's confusing people trying to decide what to purchase. If we organise everything into two or three clear packages, we'll probably increase how many sellers actually buy one.
💬

How would you decide which two or three packages to offer?

5
Please don't forget to remind the design team about the banner deadline. They're still waiting to receive the final copy from marketing, and the client funding this campaign wants to see a draft by Friday. It would also help to confirm which sizes we actually need.
💬

What would you do if the copy still isn't ready by Friday?

6
Can you take care of developing the virtual tour feature this quarter? We estimated it could take two sprints, but we might need to recruit some outside help for the 3D rendering. Once it's ready, we should test it before we promote it more widely.
💬

Would you rather build this in-house or recruit outside help? Why?

7
Could you please estimate how much the AI renovation tool will cost to build? We'll need to decide whether to develop it in-house or invest in an outside vendor instead. Whatever we choose, let's avoid a solution that's too expensive to maintain long-term.
💬

How would you decide between building it in-house or investing in a vendor?

8
I'd like you to promote the new ad packages to our top sellers by Friday. A short email explaining the benefits should be enough to convince most of them to try it. If anyone complains about the price, remind them the first week is free.
💬

What would you say to a seller who complains about the price?

9
Make sure you process all the seller photos before the AI tool goes live. Some of the older listings still have low-quality images, so we may need to reject a few and ask sellers to re-upload. It's also worth checking whether we need to increase our storage capacity.
💬

What would you do with the images you reject?

10
It's important that you raise an issue if the map and the list ever show different homes. Even a small mismatch can make people lose trust in the product, so we can't afford to ignore it. If it keeps happening, we should consider assigning someone to monitor it daily.
💬

How often do you think someone should check for this kind of mismatch?

Key Phrases

Tap each card to reveal the meaning. After each one, we'll talk about how you'd actually use it.

could you please...?
не могли бы вы, пожалуйста...?
tap to flip
💬

Which teammate would you ask to confirm something right now — the map launch, the ad packages, or the AI renovation tool?

I'd like you to... by [time]
я бы хотел, чтобы вы... к [времени]
tap to flip
💬

Pick a real feature you're working on — the virtual tour, the neighborhood search, anything. How would you assign it a deadline with this phrase?

make sure you...
обязательно..., проследите, чтобы вы...
tap to flip
💬

What's a step someone might skip while building something like the neighborhood search — what would you flag with this phrase?

it's important that you...
важно, чтобы вы...
tap to flip
💬

What's something genuinely critical on one of your current projects — not just nice-to-have?

please don't forget to...
пожалуйста, не забудьте...
tap to flip
💬

What's a small but easy-to-forget task on one of your projects right now — the ads, the map, the AI tool?

can you take care of...ing?
не могли бы вы взять на себя...?
tap to flip
💬

Which entire feature — the virtual tour, AI renovation, or something else — might you hand off fully to someone on your team?

Quick Recall

  • Which of today's phrases feels the most natural to you already?
  • Which one do you think you'll actually need most often?
Phrases: could you please...? · I'd like you to... by [time] · make sure you... · it's important that you... · please don't forget to... · can you take care of...ing?

Speaking Task 1

Roleplay

Delegating This Week's Tasks

Imagine you're checking in with one of your PMs about real work — the map, the ad packages, the AI renovation tool, the virtual tour, or neighborhood search. Give them 4–5 real instructions, mixing urgent deadlines, reminders, and bigger pieces of ownership. Use a different phrase from today for each one.

I'll play your PM — I might ask a clarifying question or push back once.

Speaking Task 2 — Verb Roulette

Speaking Drill

Instant Instructions

Here's a fast round using your full business verb list. Hit "Next Verb" — as soon as a verb appears, turn it into a real instruction using one of today's phrases. Don't overthink it — speed and speaking matter more than perfect grammar here.

Verb 0 of 77
Press Start
🎉 You've gone through every verb — reshuffle to go again!

Wrap-up

  • Which verbs from the roulette were hardest to build a sentence around, and why?
  • Which phrase-plus-verb combination do you think you'll actually use this week?

Three short tasks to lock in this week's phrases. Should take about 15–20 minutes total.

Task 1 — Fill in the Gap
Tap a phrase, then tap the blank it belongs in.
1. send me the updated numbers by tomorrow?
2. finish the draft by Thursday.
3. double-check the figures before sending them out.
4. loop in the design team before launch.
5. update the ticket once it's resolved.
6. onboarding the new hire this week?
Could you please
I'd like you to
Make sure you
It's important that you
Please don't forget to
Can you take care of
Task 2 — Build the Sentence
Tap the words in the right order to rebuild each sentence.

Sentence A:

confirm
Could
by
Friday?
you
the
budget
please

Sentence B:

important
It's
the
that
today.
reply
you
to
client
Task 3 — Write & Record
Pick any 8 verbs from your business verb list. Write one direction-giving sentence for each, using a different phrase from this lesson where you can.
🎙️ Then record yourself saying all 8 out loud as a voice message and send it over.