Ever feel like everyone else has it figured out while you're drowning in chaos? Sarah Personette's journey through Facebook, Twitter, and now Puck as CEO reveals the messy reality behind big-name success. She shares brutal truths about workplace bullies who wanted her gone, the isolating loneliness of leadership, and making gut decisions that horrified her father. From losing student elections repeatedly to navigating public failures at major tech companies, Sarah exposes how kindness became her secret weapon—not weakness, but a "structural force" that brought her back to three different companies. This raw conversation proves messiness and compassion can lead to extraordinary breakthroughs.
Show Notes:
Guest: Sarah Personette, CEO of Puck
Follow Sarah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-personette-4b71125/
Topics Covered:
- The childhood challenges that shaped her resilience and risk tolerance
- Why losing multiple student elections didn’t stop her but from chasing leadership roles
- The career move her father called “the worst decision ever,” and why she took it anyway
- How trusting her instincts guided her from job to job
- Navigating workplace hostility and choosing to lead for the many, not the few
- Taking a “gap year” to explore, connect, and clarify her goals.
- The importance of boundaries in balancing C-suite leadership with motherhood and marriage
- The importance of having a strong value framework
Mentioned:
Puck: https://puck.news/
Writers at Puck: John Heilemann, Dylan Byers, Julia Ioffe, Matthew Belloni, Baratunde Thurston, and more
Starcom MediaVest Group: https://www.starcomww.com/
Facebook (Meta): https://www.meta.com/
Twitter (X): https://x.com/
Hidden Potential by Adam Grant: https://adamgrant.net/book/hidden-potential/
Rotary International: https://www.rotary.org/en
Whispering Angel Rosé: https://www.esclans.com/
Email us: hello@themessypartspodcast.com
To stay up to date with The Messy Parts and get all the behind-the-scenes content, follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube.
If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a rating and review on Apple or Spotify or where ever you get your podcasts.
Thank you for listening.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal
Gregg Rosenthal and a rotating crew of elite NFL Media co-hosts, including Patrick Claybon, Colleen Wolfe, Steve Wyche, Nick Shook and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic get you caught up daily on all the NFL news and analysis you need to be smarter and funnier than your friends.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.