When I think of “my people” I think of it in terms of tribes – in particular, people who have had similar experiences to me. Not my friends, necessarily, although many in my tribe are friends. But the “friend group” is different from “my people.”
For example, Swarthmore alumni. I can instantly connect with almost everyone I meet who went to Swarthmore, no matter how much older or younger they are. The connection is forged by the experience, without us even having to have met before.
It’s also true of product managers. We have all gone through similar experiences, both to get where we are, and in the process of doing our job.
We face – and have faced – many of the same same challenges. It’s nature of our job – facing those same challenges, again and again. We have that in common, we are pulled to that kind of experience, and it bonds us before we even meet.
So, that’s my people – people who have had a similar experience to me.