The dangerous middle ground

What this episode covers:

• Why some traction can be more dangerous than no traction at all
• The difference between early fans and real product–market fit
• How “stable but not growing” products quietly drain discovery capacity
• Why killing profitable products can be the right strategic move
• The org and team implications of sunsetting products
• How to create space for what’s next—without framing it as failure

Key moments & themes:

• 00:00 – Why “kill your darlings” matters
  Teresa introduces the idea of letting go of products that feel successful but aren’t delivering the impact or growth you need.
• 04:30 – The dangerous middle ground
  Products that are profitable and liked, but not growing, often escape scrutiny—and quietly block better opportunities.
• 09:30 – The opportunity cost of “okay” products
  Every hour spent maintaining a flatlining product is an hour not spent discovering something better.
• 14:30 – Sunsetting in product organizations
  Petra explains why dedicated teams and org design make decommissioning products especially hard—and why leaders need explicit sunsetting conversations.
• 19:00 – Real examples of killing revenue streams
  Teresa shares concrete decisions from her business, including shutting down a popular Slack community and cutting deep-dive courses that made up 40% of revenue.
• 28:00 – Designing for the right customers
  Why Teresa intentionally limits access and pricing to work with customers who show agency and commitment.
• 33:30 – Burn the ships (on purpose)
  Letting go of short-term revenue to make space for experimentation and future growth.
• 38:00 – Making sunsetting easier
  Practical frameworks product leaders can use:
  • Regular portfolio reviews
  • A visible “sunsetting” column
  • The Horizon (H1 / H2 / H3) model
  • Making portfolio decisions one level above teams
• 46:00 – Normalizing product lifecycles
  Successful products don’t fail—they run their course. Markets change, and endings should be expected, not stigmatized.

Takeaways for product leaders:

• Product–market fit isn’t binary—and “some success” can be misleading
• Sunsetting is a portfolio decision, not a team failure
• Teams shouldn’t be punished for working on products that reach the end of their lifecycle
• If experimentation isn’t in your DNA, killing products will always feel traumatic
• Making space is an intentional act—not a passive one

Resources & Links:

• Follow Teresa Torres: https://ProductTalk.org
• Follow Petra Wille: https://Petra-Wille.com

Mentioned in this episode:

• Ways to Work with Petra Wille
• Product at Heart
• CDH Membership by Teresa Torres
• Product Talk by Teresa
• Product Talk Academy by Teresa
• Enduring Ideas: The three horizons of growth