You don’t have to choose between your career and your humanity.
Hi! I’m Hannah DeLisle-Stall
Quality & Operations leader. Mom of two. I write about ambition, identity, and building a career that fits real life.
What You’ll Find Here
Essay Archives
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Nobody Told Me I’d Think About Milk This Much
24 Hours Inside a Pumping Mom’s Brain People talk about the time it takes to breastfeed and pump. The feeding itself. The pumping sessions. The washing bottles. The washing pump parts. The storage bags. The milk transfers. The freezer inventory. And yes, those things take time, but I knew they would. What I wasn’t prepared…
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How Being a Parent Changed How I Work and Lead
Before I had kids, I thought I was efficient. My days were full. My calendar was tight. I moved quickly between meetings, responded fast, stayed on top of things. I took pride in being reliable, responsive, and available. And then I became a parent, and things shifted. Not all at once, and not in a…
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There’s Always More Work
There’s a moment at the end of most workdays where you come to a fork in the road. You could keep going, but should you? One more email. One more slide. One more pass at something that’s already good enough but could be just a little better. There’s always something left open. Something unfinished. Something…
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Alignment Is Not Agreement
“Are we aligned on this?” It’s one of those questions that comes up in almost every cross-functional conversation. It sounds simple. Necessary. Like a quick check before moving forward. But I’ve learned that what people mean by “alignment” isn’t always the same thing. Sometimes, it’s shorthand for agreement – but not always. Do we all…
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Stop Calling it Firefighting if You Keep Lighting Matches
There’s a certain pride that can creep into how we talk about firefighting at work. We say it with a little edge or urgency; Sometimes even a little satisfaction. Its a flex, a humble-brag, a way of signaling how needed we are. It means we can step in, solve the problem, keep things moving. I’ve…
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Slow is Smooth, and Smooth is Fast
The first time I heard the phrase “slow is smooth, and smooth is fast,” it wasn’t in a manufacturing plant or a conference room. It was from my husband, who is a volunteer firefighter. His fire company uses the phrase when training drivers of emergency vehicles, a reminder that moving deliberately and maintaining control matters…