All Things Product with Teresa and Petra Moments That Changed Us
Oct 21, 2025
Discover how hitting personal limits can reshape your priorities as a leader. Teresa shares a pivotal moment that liberated her to take charge when everyone lacked answers. Petra's lessons on loyalty and burnout stress the importance of self-advocacy and boundaries. Hear about the transformative power of early user interviews at Starbucks, sparked by Marty Cagan, and the valuable reminder that product builders often miss their users' true needs. Laughter ensues with funny stories of user research blunders.
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Prioritization As Survival
- Teresa realized she cannot do everything and accepted that her to-do list will never be finished.
- She now focuses on the single most important action when overwhelmed instead of trying to do it all.
No One Has The Right Answer
- Teresa discovered that experienced advisers often don't have answers in novel crises.
- That realization empowered her to take full agency and run experiments to find a path forward.
Quit First, Raise Offered Later
- Petra quit after two years of increased responsibility without a promised raise and was offered a near-double salary only after resigning.
- That moment taught her the company as an organism won't reliably reciprocate loyalty or protect individual well-being.