Leading Through Grief | Running Your Product Business When You Want to Fall Apart

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Welcome back product bosses! Is there a “right way” to handle grief? After losing both of my parents in one year, I learned something that surprised me: grief doesn’t happen when it’s convenient, and strength doesn’t always look like pushing harder. In this episode, I talk about grief, leadership, and what it really looks like to keep showing up in your product business when life is not cooperating. I also break down 4 simple but powerful moves that have helped me navigate grief, hard seasons, burnout, illness, caretaking, and major life transitions without pretending I’m fine or disappearing from my life and work. Here’s what I’ve learned about leading when life gets heavy.

WHAT GRIEF TAUGHT ME ABOUT LEADING THROUGH HARD SEASONS

We’ll talk about how many high-capacity women use busyness as a coping mechanism, and what happens when your nervous system eventually forces a reset. I share the four simple but powerful moves that helped me navigate grief and life’s hardest moments without abandoning myself or the business I’ve built.

Instead of adding more pressure, I’ll walk you through why hard seasons actually require fewer commitments, stronger boundaries, and deeper support. Because leadership is not about doing everything alone. In fact, businesses that survive difficult seasons do so through systems, community, and support structures that allow you to keep moving forward, even when your capacity changes.

This episode also explores what surrender really means when life feels out of control. It’s not giving up. It’s learning how to release what you cannot carry while still honoring your role as a leader. I share the powerful metaphor of the shamash, the servant candle, and how servant leadership can guide you through seasons of grief and uncertainty.

If you’ve ever wondered whether you need to be fully healed before you can keep living, leading, and building your business, this conversation will meet you exactly where you are. This episode is about redefining strength, allowing space for your humanity, and learning how to lead when life gets heavy.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

00:00 What surprised me most after losing my parents.

03:15 How high-capacity women use busyness as a coping mechanism.

09:15 What happens when your nervous system forces a business reset?

13:00 The 4 moves for navigating hard seasons without abandoning yourself.

15:00 Why hard seasons require fewer commitments.

21:30 Why support is not weakness and lone-wolf leadership leads to burnout.

23:00 How businesses survive hard seasons through systems and support.

26:00 What surrender actually means when life feels out of control.

29:15 The shamash metaphor and servant leadership through grief.

31:00 Do you need to be healed to keep living and leading?

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