This is why there are varying carrots in my stew.
Some go in early to get that carrot flavor in the stock, which I like, but that makes them mushy and gross.
So I usually try and get the first carrots out before the potatoes go in, and then it's kind of a guess on my end when to put more carrots in so they're nicely cooked but not overdone.
Turns out, productivity soars when you have a well rested, well compensated, well treated, healthy, and housed people who don't have constant stessors of literally every aspect of their lives nearly crumbling beneath them...