A super Realistic DAY IN MY LIFE as a FREELANCER (Product Owner)

This is the most realistic day in my life as a Freelance Product Owner (PO). It's not shiny. It's messy. And honest. And that's why it might be helpful for you if you're thinking of becoming a PO. Or maybe you work with one. Or you're just curious. Either way, I hope you enjoy :)
Remember that this is just ONE day in my life and it doesn't represent my whole job, workflow, or how I work every day. A Product Owner role also varies from person to person. For example, I'm super flexible with my hours and currently don’t always work the whole day whereas others might work 50+ hours. We are also a non-profit, and don’t often have the time or budget for super fancy tools and so on. So keep that in mind :)
PS: Do you have any questions about being a Product Owner? Let me know in the comments below!
TIME STAMPS:
00:00 Intro
01:18 Product Owner FAQs (a quick run down)
05:25 Starting the Day - First Tasks
06:30 Developer Daily
07:36 Release Prepping
10:03 Lunch
10:27 Do we have a Release?
11:08 Going Outside / Break
12:50 Final Meetings
15:00 Final Thoughts & Outro
my blog: www.katharinaalf.com/
who am I?
I'm Katharina, 24 and I live in Berlin, Germany. I recently finished my studies in digital product management, and now work as a product owner at a non-profit. I love reflecting on things, learning, and sharing those with others and this is why I started this channel. Feel free to introduce yourself in the comments too :)

[@stevendow5421]

I enjoyed how authentic you were about what your day is like. I am coming from 12 years of finance background and trying to break into the Scrum PO/Scrum Master roles. I'm not entirely sure which role I want to go into and this has helped me see more what the product owner's day is like. Thank you!

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you :) Wishing you all the best for this new direction! 🙌

[@md.nazmulhassan9505]

I enjoyed your video. Working as a PO myself I can relate to a lot of your tasks. I am also working remotely.

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you for watching! Let me know your thoughts in the comments. Do you have any Q's about being a PO?

[@sukhjotesingh9613]

Yes how do I get in contact with yourself?

[@kevinakumenzoh3387]

Hi Katharina I really love how real your video is. I'm also self-studying to become a product owner.

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you! :) All the best on your journey

[@jonathanmiranda4830]

Loved it! Thank you so much for sharing your routine with us! I'm from Brazil, and I would like to know more about the job market for POs in Europe, and how is the acceptance of foreigners in this role. Thanks in advance! :)

[@katharinaalf]

Hey Jonathan! Thanks for your comment, glad you enjoyed the video! I can definitely look more deeply into the job market for POs in Europe (it is a good one as far as I can tell now). However I’m not so familiar how it is for foreigners to get a job in this role. Can ask some of my friends/colleagues though and do a part 2/Q&A on these topics :)

[@derespektan3980]

Awesome video, not messy at all. 👏👏 There is a stereo effect tough that makes me dizzy. Is that me or...

[@JimzZel]

Thank you for sharring!

[@letsplayeddedd]

Awesome Video! I will also start as a product owner in a german company this april :)

[@katharinaalf]

Amazing all the best! 🙌

[@adrielhamza]

I totally enjoyed watching this Video, I am a product owner and can relate to most tasks you carried out. While we manage the backlog in Jira we do documentation on confluence which I think is kinda cool. I’d like to ask if are you working in a Scrum setting?

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you so much! Yes, confluence is great! We use it in my current job as well :) We work in a Scrum setting yes!

[@chinyereogamba6689]

Hi, thanks for the inspiration. I just passed my Scrum master certification PSM1. How can I apply for internship ( remotely) in your organisation?

[@ConniStock]

Interested in understanding how you draft your requirements. Are they found only in Jira? Or are the requirements listed in a collaborative storage space? Are the requirements refined by you or a BA / Consultant? Do you feel you need to know the entire data model of the project before becoming a product owner?

[@eugabrielacipriano]

Oi Katharina, Como você conseguiu a sua primeira oportunidade como freelancer PO. Utilizou alguma plataforma? Obrigada.

[@elirush8508]

Hey Katharina. Thank you very much for making this video! I'm actually about to start my first PO role and wanted to ask for any advice you could possibly provide. I'd greatly appreciate it!

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you for your comment, I'm glad you liked the video! Main piece of advice: don't stress too much and think you have to know everything before you start. I thought that and in the end most of the learning comes from 'doing' and getting to know the company you work with. :) Wishing you all the best with your new role!

[@maudo2077]

Inspiring 🎉 just recently became a CSPO

[@katharinaalf]

Amazing, congrats 👏

[@akanshaagarwal2489]

Very helpful

[@dayvs]

How can you become a freelancer Product Manager/Owner? do you have a video about that? thanks!

[@mohamedmerghany8170]

Hi dear ... can I ask you something Is there any difference when you using Scrum or Kanban while interacting with your Developers

[@densfloar]

Hey, thanks for sharing the video. So it looks like you are also doing tasks of Product Manager. I think its because its a smaller company. 🙂

[@katharinaalf]

Yep definitely took on some product management tasks :)

[@jaimevaznogueira3832]

I'm thinking about setting up a small collaborative company, which will be me and some friends, we will work freelancer, where each person will have a role, what would you think is most important for a small company, a person with the role of Product Owner or a Scrum Master?

[@Sanjeevkumar-vq7rn]

Hi, I have done master's in marketing and wants to get into product owner role, can you please suggest any courses so that I can get some more knowledge about tools used in PO role. Thanks

[@mohamedalismacktalk382]

Hello Katharina, I'm a new product owner and I gotta say your videos help me a lot. Quick question, how often do you think the developing team should get feedback from the stakeholders? Because I know constant feedback is good but the stakeholders aren't available all the time

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you so much! Glad the videos help you :) It depends on your development cycle. Usually if you are working on a bigger feature I would get feedback before you start developing and then again right before you release. I would always make sure to communicate deadlines with them and schedule a meeting with them early so you get their feedback when you need it. Hope that helps a bit

[@manjunathams8865]

How much technical knowledge necessary for PO??

[@dedballoons]

bruh that slack sound had me looking around my house like WHO THE FUCK IS SLACKING ME

[@katharinaalf]

Haha 😅

[@prashanthb17]

Hey, Great video. Raw as promised. Can you please make a follow video on: 1. Resume 2. How to find jobs 3. What is the average pay .

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it :) Sure! Are you talking about how to find a job as a product owner specifically?

[@prashanthb17]

@@katharinaalf Yes freelance jobs for product owner.

[@putuyusaabdidharma552]

Your video is awesome! I'm a Product Owner based in Bali, Indonesia. I really want to work as a freelance Product Owner one day. Could you please share where and how you got the freelance PO opportunity? Thank you!

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you so much! Awesome all the best with becoming a freelance PO 🙌 I got this opportunity through a contact at my university. They connected me with the people who were hiring. Still went through an interview process though. But if you can I suggest using your network to reach out to people and find opportunities. Or looking at job openings on LinkedIn for example :)

[@iamveeyesk]

Hi Katherina, thanks your the video it's very engaging and delivers what it's meant for, since you mentioned about University and your course "Digital Product Management". Which univ is offering it? Did you do your masters ? Or bachelors ? Also how are job opportunities for the role of a Product Manager in Berlin, or Germany in general overall. Much appreciate your help, I'm considering a change in role from tech to prod roles and scouting for courses all over.

[@katharinaalf]

Hey Vishal, thank you for your comment and your questions! :) The university is called CODE university and it’s a bachelor of applied sciences specialising in product management. Overall I would say there are a lot of product roles in Berlin and also in Germany in general. And you don’t necessarily have to study it, just have a good understanding of the ‘product mindset’ and some technical/business knowledge. The course I did was a full on bachelor’s degree and it takes about 3/4 years to complete so if you don’t want to spend that much time I suggest other courses or programs. Digital Product School in Munich is also great. It’s a 3month intensive course where you learn the basics of building a digital product together with a team :)

[@iamveeyesk]

@@katharinaalf thank you, . This helps 👍. How about you making more videos on this topic ? I'm prod mgmt role is most sought after these days .. and may be your experiences working in that role would give some insights. Are you into freelancing yet or moved to a full time job now ? Thanks again. 👍

[@katharinaalf]

@@iamveeyesk sure! I’m making a video right now actually :) moved into a full time role a while ago that’s why it was hard to find the time, but I’m getting back to it :) let me know if you have any specific ideas

[@GODMALUV1]

I am about to get a job as a product owner. I need more advice. How did you get the job and how was your first day on the job like?

[@GODMALUV1]

I can give u my email

[@BarBarJinks]

Hey Kat, superb video! Do you practice SCRUM with your team or there's a SCRUM Master working closely with you?

[@katharinaalf]

Hey Eddy, we do practice Scrum as best as we can. However we have modified it slightly so it works for our situation (eg increasing sprint length, not doing ALL official Scrum meetings), etc.

[@BarBarJinks]

@@katharinaalf Thanks for the response! Right thats great. So with the company that you're working with, how do you generate you PBI's?

[@katharinaalf]

@@BarBarJinks it’s a mix between user needs we identify, our goals for the upcoming months, and input from partnership teams, and biz dev.

[@hunglikeyoura8]

I have a question: I was invted for an interview for a major company to interview for the Product Owner position. I did not apply for this position but more on the business analyst position which i am now. I need help to what was there reason why they upgraded me to this position. What are your thoughts? What is your advise? i have an interview coming up in 3 days. any help is great help. Love the content!

[@katharinaalf]

Hey, sorry just saw this comment. I hope the interview went well!

[@travelcoder1762]

Hi Katharina.. Nice informative video.. just 1 question- could please elaborate on your team.. means ..how many developers your team have...do you have scrum master in your team ? how many QA's in your team?

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you! In this team we had 2 developers (1 BE and 1 FE) plus a tech lead who also developed a bit, and I was the scrum master/product owner. We also had a project lead. And no QAs, I was doing all the QA myself together with the project lead :)

[@aniokay]

Hey Katharina. I have a question: how much of your role is problem solving vs. coordinating stuff? Thank you :-)

[@katharinaalf]

it depends on the time, and current priorities. If we are more in the ‘discovery’ phase meaning we are figuring out which features to build next, I’m doing more problem solving. And when we are more focussed on implementation I’m coordinating a lot. It’s pretty much 50/50 I would say :)

[@katharinaalf]

This also heavily depends on the company and role. Currently I’m working as a product manager which involves more problem solving whereas my role as a PO involved more coordinating:)

[@kaleido7510]

Change management? Would that be a relevant topic? Most ppl going through a change nowadays...maybe you could relate it with real life examples and then on JIRA or maybe other tools 👍🏽

[@katharinaalf]

Sounds interesting! Can definitely think more about that and do a vid on it 😊 thanks for the suggestion 👍

[@manasasegu7578]

Hai Katharina, I liked your vedio,actually I don't have any working experience in IT filed,now I want to start my career, I don't have any coding knowledge so I want to do this course and get a job,can you guide me to do this course of product owner,and how to prepare our resume to this course. Your inputs would be really appreciated !

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you:) All the best on your journey! I’m sharing a video with my favourite PM resources for beginners soon, maybe this will help you. In the mean time I suggest getting as much experience as you can, so maybe even building a small version of your own product. Hands on experience is the most important if you want to get started with a career in tech :)

[@kevingabel9421]

Do you have dailys from monday to friday? Because you also told, that u r just working 2-3 days a week. I´m thinking about to be a product owner. And i want to work just 3 days a week also.

[@katharinaalf]

Good point! It changed throughout the project. In the beginning I only joined dailies on 3 days. Later in the project I joined them 5 days a week but only worked 2-3 full days. So Friday would only be 2-3 hours for example :)

[@Kahaniya1812]

Hey Katharina, Would you be so kind to tell what websites you use to get freelance opportunities as a product owner ? I am a product owner for 5 years and now want to start working as a product owner.

[@katharinaalf]

Hey! Thanks for your question. Unfortunately I didn’t use a website to get that freelance position. It was through a personal connection. Otherwise I don’t know which websites would be good. Sorry I can’t help here more

[@Kahaniya1812]

Are you on LinkedIn as well !?

[@vishal.shetty]

Wow! I didn't know that product managers can work as a freelancer. BTW nice video and information. I am from India, do European countries allow freelance PMs from other countries?

[@katharinaalf]

Thank you! And I’m not so sure, I would say it really depends on the company!

[@user-yt9mp5pn4x]

Do you have to have technical knowelage, coding, to work as Product owner?

[@katharinaalf]

It depends on the role! Some PO roles might be more technical because the product is technical. However there are definitely options where you don’t have to know how to code. I also don’t code but have some technical background/understanding of how long things take/complexity of an implementation and that can definitely be helpful :)

[@user-yt9mp5pn4x]

@@katharinaalf thank you

[@om-qz7kp]

The lunch looks very german😂. Like the video though

[@katharinaalf]

Hahaha yes 😂 thank you!

[@anikagarg1075]

Hey. I read about an Indian couple who have done MBA-MIS from Univ of Arizona, and now work at Product Management role at Microsoft in next 3 years. So I am curious to know that in American system, an MBA is needed for product management roles, or one can break-in just by an MIS ? Your inputs would be really appreciated.

[@abhishekrawat1471]

MIS is fine.

[@katharinaalf]

Hey Anika, I’m not sure as I work in Germany. As far as I know for product management it’s more the experience that counts not necessarily degree, but of course that also depends on the company you want to work for.

[@anikagarg1075]

@@katharinaalf Thanks Katharine for your inputs. And what about the role of a Product Owner ?

[@zsheikh1234]

Hi Katharine, How many hours a day do you spend in meetings btw?

[@katharinaalf]

It really depends on the day! Some days it will be 2, others it is 6hours. In this job I would say an average of 2-3 hours per day :)

[@zsheikh1234]

@@katharinaalf so technically the job could be done in 2-3 hours? :)

[@katharinaalf]

Nope because meetings are just one part. The rest is writing tickets, QA testing, brainstorming solutions and reviewing designs, prioritising the backlog, etc :)

[@zsheikh1234]

@@katharinaalf if you were to try and minimise the time taken, how long could everything be done in? - I ask because I am being offered a product role but also want to work on other things so was hoping i can do both with it being remote. Possible?

[@katharinaalf]

@@zsheikh1234 depends and that is totally up to you and the company. If you can achieve everything in that amount of time. In this role I was a freelancer and as part of my contract we agreed on 2-3 days per week. If you can do something similar then yes of course it’s possible.

[@ruyperez9703]

Nice. I also share content about Product Owner roles for anyone interested.

[@gizelo.r]

I got triggered by this Slack sound haha

[@paulkettell3667]

What skills/courses do you think are required to be come successful as a PO if you have little experience in Tech? Product Owner Qualification Digital Product Management Agile/Scrum?

[@katharinaalf]

In general to become a PO I definitely think that all of the areas you mentioned would be super helpful to learn. Especially the basics of agile/scrum because a lot of companies work with that. Aside from that I would look into ‘design thinking’ and generally gain a good understanding of how digital product development works. I didn’t do many online courses, but rather studied product management at university plus gained experience working in internships and student roles where I had less responsibly but could learn a lot. So there are a lot of paths to getting there and it just depends on how you like to learn and what’s available to you. Hope this helps a little bit. Let me know if you have any follow up questions on this :)

[@theo-7027]

i dont know if you will see it, but i am starting a new role as a product owner and i would need some furhter info if you are available for a chat! do you use some sort of book guidance;?pdf materials etc

[@katharinaalf]

I would check out some highly rated courses on udemy: www.udemy.com/courses/search/?src=ukw&q=Product+owner I did one myself (don’t fully remember which one) and it was a good foundation before working as a PO :)

[@jessedavies5384]

Hi Kat, I love your video, very insightful. I will love to have your email address for a quick discussion.Hope that's OK 🙂

[@katharinaalf]

Hey Jesse, thank you! Glad you enjoyed the video :) I’m not super comfortable sharing my email address but you can look up my LinkedIn and we could chat there :)