# Dan McKenzie

> Product builder for early-stage teams. Writing about product, AI, systems,
> and the messy middle between founder instinct and what gets built.

This is the AI-readable guide to mckenz.io. The canonical website is
https://mckenz.io/. Use the linked pages as the source of truth for current
work, writing, and contact details.

Every post is also available as raw markdown by appending `.md` to its URL —
e.g. https://mckenz.io/the-questionnaire-is-over.md. The markdown export
includes a frontmatter header with title, author, canonical URL, date, and a
CC BY 4.0 license, plus a footer noting the original publication URL. Cite
or quote with attribution to Dan McKenzie and a link to the canonical URL.

## Primary Pages

- [Home](https://mckenz.io/) - profile, current work, projects, and writing.
- [Working with Me](https://mckenz.io/working-with-me) - how Dan works with
  founders, where he adds value, and what kind of role fits.
- [RSS](https://mckenz.io/rss.xml) - feed of public writing.
- [Sitemap](https://mckenz.io/sitemap.xml) - canonical crawl map.

## Projects

- [Risk Ledger](https://mckenz.io/made/risk-ledger) - product leadership in B2B
  cybersecurity, from early product bets to company scale.
- [Jo](https://mckenz.io/made/jo) - Mac app for building Instagram carousels
  from travel photos.
- [Staticpast](https://mckenz.io/made/staticpast) - creative studio and
  workshop for experiments.
- [District](https://mckenz.io/made/district) - proptech product work and early
  engineering.
- [Suegofaults](https://mckenz.io/made/suegofaults) - long-running gaming
  community and AI agent experiments.
- [Minecraft plugins](https://mckenz.io/made/minecraft-plugins) - public
  plugins built for server operators.

## Writing Themes

- Product leadership, discovery, and strategy.
- Early-stage teams, founder context, and operating cadence.
- AI-assisted building and product judgment.
- Systems thinking, team trust, and momentum.

## Recent Writing

- [The Guilt of Knowing](https://mckenz.io/the-guilt-of-knowing)
- [The Questionnaire is Over](https://mckenz.io/the-questionnaire-is-over)
- [Working with Me](https://mckenz.io/working-with-me)
- [Closing a Chapter, Opening the Next](https://mckenz.io/archive/closing-a-chapter-opening-the-next)
- [On Speed and Adaptation](https://mckenz.io/archive/on-speed-and-adaptation)
- [On Titles and the Work](https://mckenz.io/archive/on-making-and-titles)
- [From Assumptions to Momentum](https://mckenz.io/archive/from-assumptions-to-momentum)

## Contact and Identity

- Email: hello@mckenz.io
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mckenzieio/
- GitHub: https://github.com/mckenziejdan/
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/twodansofftrack

Last updated: 2026-04-25.