Alessia Di Cecco

Transcript

It's quiet finally. The nursery is dark. Ocean sounds are playing in his crib. I'm in our green wooden rocking chair. D is all zipped up in his cotton sleepsack, the one with the blue monkeys on it, laying on his crisp white feeding pillow, head resting on my chest. Tonight, I'm doing my best to remember every smile, every suckle, and every burp because tonight is our last. No more breastfeeding. I'm going back to work, back to the grind. I hold them a little tighter and I whisper, "Sh, mommy's here."

As a single tear rolls down my cheek and lands on his little nose. In that moment, I feel the full weight of the divide between the two versions of myself. The ambitious woman thriving in her career and the new mom not wanting to miss a moment. It wasn't a question. It was the truth. I was like that warm chocolate cake fresh from the oven. everybody wanting a piece. One for family, one for work, one for every favor, every fire that needed to be put out.

No time to cool, no time to breathe, just slice after slice until all that was left were the crumbs. That was me. Warm on the inside, falling apart on the outside. How did I get there? I was a yes person. I don't even think no was a part of my vocabulary. I had the drive. I had the ambition. But I hadn't learned one simple truth. Without the space to rest, none of us can rise. Now, when I went back to work, it's like I didn't miss a beat.

Planes, projects, playdates. I had it all under control. until my edges started to burn. See, in baking, if you ignore the signs, the cake burns. In life, if you ignore the signs, you burn out. And burnout doesn't happen all at once. It's a slow smoke that fills the room. Sleepless nights, endless to-do list, silently crying in your pillow, wondering why you're not enough. So, it was no surprise that I found myself in my manager's office pretending to be fine. She said, "How are you?"

And for the first time, the truth broke through. I'm not okay. That moment cracked something open to me like an egg on the side of a bowl. See, life didn't hand me clarity all wrapped up in a bow. It gave me exhaustion and a choice. Keep performing or finally listen to my body. Many people stay in jobs because they're comfortable, yet it slowly drains them. I quit not just my job. I quit the version of me that placed her self-worth on output.

I quit saying yes to everything and everybody but myself. And that was the beginning of my rise. One day while salvaging a ruined batch of brownies, too much cocoa, not enough butter, it was clear I had been throwing everything into my life, hoping that it would hold together. Some of you might be there right now, warm on the outside, falling apart on the inside. Ask yourself, what is weighing down your recipe? Now, as a baker and as an entrepreneur, I help people build their lives one ingredient at a time.

When my son was born, I longed for a recipe to follow. But I've learned that we don't need instructions. What we need is the time to experiment, to mess up, and to keep going. Because success isn't about doing it all. It's about doing what matters most. and protecting the rise. That night in the nursery, I thought I wasn't enough. But the truth is, I was giving him exactly what he needed. Nothing more, nothing less. Just me, raw, present, and full of love.

So, let me leave you with this. What will you say no to so that you can say yes to what truly matters? What space will you protect so that you can rise stronger? Because saying no isn't shrinking, it's choosing. And it is the most powerful way that you can take your life back. This is not the end of your recipe. This is where you finally rise. Thank you.

Transcript generated from the recording and lightly cleaned. Some names and wording may differ from the spoken speech.