Finding Your Authentic Voice with Nancy Hicks

In this episode, Bart welcomes Nancy Hicks, an accomplished vocal performer, founder of a global ministry, shopping channel host, leadership coach, and now a consultant for The Humphrey Group. 

They begin by exploring Nancy's early journey in developing her voice and discovering a passion for singing, which eventually led her to take on leadership roles in the church and, ultimately, to become a long-running host on QVC. Nancy shares how her time on television honed her skills, unlocked her full vocal potential, and reinforced her understanding that her true gift is to be a communicator. 

She then discusses founding a speaking ministry focused on empowering female leaders, which rapidly grew and gave her a platform to speak to global audiences. Throughout their conversation, 

Nancy draws on lessons from her incredible career to offer insights on building authentic confidence. She explains where authenticity begins, how to find your honest voice, how to bring that voice into all your relationships, and the difference between presence and being present. This is a powerful listen for anyone looking to find their voice and lead others.

Visit Nancy's website to learn more and connect with her on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook!

Show Notes

00:18 Show intro
00:52 Introducing Nancy Hicks
01:43 Bart asks her to recount the red carpet story
02:13 Aside: what is QVC
05:34 Presenting authentic confidence
06:04 Her story from when she was 16
07:47 Church experiences
09:05 Going from music to the shopping channel
10:18 Juggling career in music with motherhood
12:08 What is it like to host a shopping channel show
16:08 Practicing Humility 
17:51 Every year in leadership, it's less and less about "you"
18:34 Communication has gotten much more casual
19:03 Founding a ministry focused on women leaders
22:17 What she learned about communications
22:40 Eat the cultural food that is before you
23:01 Practice a phrase from their language
23:09 Speaking across cultures 
23:39 Foster relationships!
24:12 Know yourself to be able to connect 
24:30 From world tour to present
26:13 Learning from tragedy
27:47 Advice for building authentic confidence
28:15 Difference between 'presence' and 'being present'
28:46 How to be yourself?
29:28 Being present
31:25 Exploring your voice
33:52 Listen, listen, listen!
36:15 The deeper work is so important
37:13 How do people find out more?
37:55 Outro

Show Transcript 

Nancy Hicks: Connection is so important, and the way to connect best is to really know yourself. Otherwise, you're going to be projecting something that you likely do not want to project.

Bart Egnal: Welcome to the Inspire Podcast, where we examine what it takes to intentionally inspire. I'm your host, Bart Egnal, President and CEO of The Humphrey Group. And if you've ever asked yourself how can you develop an authentic leadership presence, or how can you tell stories that have people hanging off every word, well, then this podcast is for you. And it's not just for executives. This is a podcast for anyone who wants to influence and inspire others in their work, but also in their life.

My guest on today's episode of the Inspire Podcast is Nancy Hicks. Nancy, you're a woman of many talents, so let's see if I can do you justice here. You're a communication expert, a coach, an on-air personality—we're going to talk more about that one—and you've also founded a global organization. You've been a speaker around the world, and you are joining me from Philadelphia. Nancy, welcome to the Inspire Podcast.

Nancy Hicks: I am so happy to be here, Bart. Thanks for inviting me.

Bart Egnal: So, Nancy, I know we're going to talk today. I mean, you bring such expertise in communication. You started as a singer, you've got a well-developed classical voice, and you've become a globally recognized speaker. We're going to talk about authentic confidence. But I think let's start with a story. You have been on the red carpet, and it was a moment. So maybe I'll get you to tell our audience the story of you on the red carpet giving some advice to a celebrity because I think it sets the stage well for what we're going to discuss.

Nancy Hicks: I would be happy to share the story. It's very clear in my mind. It was a few years ago, back when I had just started with QVC, probably around 2006.

Bart Egnal: And, Nancy, just for our Canadian listeners who may not know QVC, I know you're Canadian, but you've kind of gone American. So tell us about QVC, because I don't think people realize what a big deal it is.

Nancy Hicks: Well, QVC is the world's largest multi-platform retailer. Essentially, it's home shopping, and it's the largest in the world. I've been with them since 2006, with a little bit of a hiatus, but I’m back with them now. So I had joined QVC and was invited to go to the SAG Awards in LA. It was the year that the Mary Tyler Moore Show cast was there, Julie Andrews was receiving her Lifetime Achievement Award from SAG. It was a really big deal, and I was honored to be there. It was an odd thing that happened. Jennifer Hudson had just come on the scene. She had won American Idol and had just received her awards for Dreamgirls. Dreamgirls had just come out, to give you a little context—this was around 2006. So here I was on the red carpet, standing there with a friend of mine, and out of the car comes Jennifer Hudson. As she was walking up, she was tugging at her dress, yanking up her bra strap, just like a deer in headlights on the red carpet. And for some strange reason, this young woman, brand new to the industry, walked straight up to me. She probably would never remember this, but she walked straight over to me and said, "Am I okay?"

Bart Egnal: Huh. And what do you think she meant by that?

Nancy Hicks: Well, I know what she meant by that. She meant, "Am I hanging out anywhere?"

Bart Egnal: I guess as a guy, I don't have this problem.

Nancy Hicks: Well, my goodness, do I have lipstick on my teeth? But likely, with authentic confidence and communication, there's often a question under the question, you know? So I just looked at her, Bart. I looked straight at this young woman and said, "You are fine. Put your hands down." And she didn’t know me at all, but she took my slight coaching, put her hands down, stopped touching herself in public, and walked away. And that was such a fascinating moment for me, and it really does play into a lot of what I enjoy doing with people and have done for years, and that is really talking about presence.

Bart Egnal: I love that story. I never get to hang out on the red carpet, so I feel like you've taken me to a moment in my life that, sadly, I’ll never experience. Screen Actors Guild, if you want to call me, but no, it's not going to happen. But I think what it speaks to is here you have this moment of someone who is an incredible success and an incredible performer, yet she's wondering in that moment, "How do I project authentic confidence?"

Nancy Hicks: Exactly.

Bart Egnal: And that’s really what I wanted to have you on the show to talk about today. You just bring such expertise in helping people project authentic confidence and presence. So great to have you on. We’re going to get into that, but I think people would love to hear about your background. It’s such a fascinating progression to realizing this gift that you have for communication. Take us back to when you were 16. This was maybe the furthest thought from your mind.

Nancy Hicks: Actually, by the time I was 16, I was well-developed in terms of my communication expertise. I won a vocal competition. The Salvation Army in Canada is the denomination of Christianity that my husband, Cam, and I both grew up in.

Bart Egnal: Nancy, I think we just have to do full disclosure here, right?

Nancy Hicks: Okay.

Bart Egnal: You are, I think, the first husband-wife combo to ever come on the Inspire Podcast as separate guests.

Nancy Hicks: Oh, Cam's been on?

Bart Egnal: Yes, he came on the podcast a few years ago. For everyone listening, the secret's out—Nancy’s husband, Cam Hicks, is a phenomenal man and leader. He’s the head of HR and corporate social responsibility for Teleflex, the serial acquirer of medical devices. He’s an amazing guy. I’ve known him for years. Anyway, we have to say that. Go back and listen to the episode if you haven’t already.

Nancy Hicks: I do need to do that, Bart. And I’m sure I knew it at the time and just forgot, but yes, he's amazing. We've been married 34 years. I adore him. He's the best leader I know, and by the way, a phenomenal communicator. But I will say, we both grew up in the Salvation Army as musicians. Cam is a pianist, and I was a singer in different churches and locations, but I grew up in Toronto. By the time I was just a young girl, I had won a vocal competition singing, and my church—so phenomenal, I loved the church I grew up in—they said, "That child has a gift. Get her up on the platform." So I was immediately put on the soloist roster, and that meant that I was cycled in as all the other soloists were, as one of the church soloists. So that was happening long before I turned 16. By the time I was 16, I was already a leader in the church, sat on the council of the church representing the youth, and preached my first sermon at 16. Frankly, by that time, I was geeking out on public speaking. It was my passion. I wasn’t a big athlete, but I was studying speech communication and participating in public speaking competitions. So I've always, always, been involved in communication. And certainly as a singer, I grew up singing. By the time I was auditioning for the University of Toronto’s voice performance program, I had already sung on Roy Thompson Hall's stage as a soloist and across Canada, teaching and leading sessions and conducting. I was very, very involved as a singer.

Bart Egnal: So music was really your jam?

Nancy Hicks: Yeah, that was my jam.

Bart Egnal: I know you and Cam moved to the States in 2000. Tell me about how you go from singing and a career in music to being on the shopping channel QVC. It’s such a wild leap. I just have to tell people I looked this up to give some idea of the scale. For those who don’t know about QVC, here’s just one statistic as an example. There was a company called Halo Two Cloud that, in 2013, sold 380,000 chargers—a phone charger—for $20 million in one day. I mean, that, to me, just exemplifies the power of this network.

Nancy Hicks: Oh, yeah. I can tell you there were times when a $34 top that I was selling—because I’ve been a style expert for them on air for almost 13 years—sold for $40,000 a minute. That’s $34 for 80,000 units a minute for a bra. It moves. And it’s in Italy, Germany, Japan, and China. QVC is an animal. It’s fantastic. So, yes, well, how that happened, Bart, is, again, I was singing in Toronto, singing in musical theater as well as classical voice. I had two sons, David and Aaron, and my husband was traveling all around the world for business. Next thing we know, we're moving to the US, and I’m trying to figure out how to juggle a career in music as a singer with being a mother. This is the quintessential struggle for women and now men as well. But what happened was I was actually singing at a big event, and I was the singer at the event. Two QVC hosts were also at the event—one was the emcee, and the other was the keynote speaker. At the end of the evening, they said, "You should be on QVC." At that point, to be honest, I remember thinking, "Why would I want to work for home shopping? I’m a singer." But a couple of years went by, and I didn’t do anything with their information other than send them a note and say, "Thank you so very much." But what happened was I actually met with Dr. Tim Gilmore, a wonderful industrial psychologist. He did a battery of tests with me over about four days. In the end, it became abundantly clear that though I was a singer and had been all my life—teaching, leading, and doing all these things—he said, "Nancy, the lifestyle isn’t the best suited for you. Broadcasting, however, is a 98% fit for you." So I immediately jumped on that, called QVC, and the rest is history.

Bart Egnal: And so, yeah, you've spent a lot of years there.

Nancy Hicks: Yes.

Bart Egnal: Tell me about the experience. Let’s take people listening inside because it’s such a unique situation to host and to be present with. What does an episode look like? How long does it go? What was your role? How does it work?

Nancy Hicks: Sure. So on QVC, I was actually one of nine people who were what are called proprietary guests, which means I was actually employed by QVC. They gave me a particular brand, an in-house brand, and it was a line of apparel called City Knits. That evolved into another line called Effortless Style. After about seven years, they moved me into the home category because they were elevating home, and I've been there ever since. What it looks like is that you are the product expert. So I would go to New York, meet with buyers and designers, and sometimes manufacturers to really get the ins and outs of this product. I would work with one brand, a line of apparel. Right now, I actually work for the brand called Surefit, which has been around for 110 years. I study it inside and out. I come up with verbiage and language that's approved by all parties, and then they give me products from the brand. A show could be an hour-long entire show, or I may be on anywhere between one to twelve times a week, depending on the season. When I’m on, it may just be for eight minutes, which means it’s harder. I can’t remember who said this, but someone said, "If you tell me I have an hour to do a keynote talk, it’ll take me 15 minutes to pull that together. If you tell me I have eight minutes, that’s going to take me about an hour and a half to craft."

Bart Egnal: It calls to mind that expression sometimes attributed to Mark Twain, though it’s apocryphal, "Excuse the length of this letter. I didn’t have time to be brief."

Nancy Hicks: Precisely. That’s it. And so with QVC, you may be on, and there may be 13 products or eight products in a show. You may be on for three minutes, and next thing you know, they’re extending it because the sales are really good.

Bart Egnal: So you don’t even know how long it’s going to be?

Nancy Hicks: No, you don’t.

Bart Egnal: And when you're on, are you on solo? Are you talking with someone? How does it work?

Nancy Hicks: You’re on with someone. So there’s the host and there’s the guest, and I am the guest. The guest comes in, and I could work 24/7. I could work in the middle of the night, at 3:00 AM, or at 6:00 AM. I could do all of that in one day, including midnight. And so, in terms of the art of communication, I’m a stage person primarily, which means bigger motion, larger gestures, depending on the size of the venue. And now you're on camera, and you're learning to speak to the one, though there are millions of viewers every time you're on. But you're learning to speak to the one, and it's smaller. You can be demonstrative, but you, by the way, are not the star. There's another change—the product is the star.

Bart Egnal: That must have been a difficult adjustment to make. You’ve gone from this career where you're trying to reach a huge audience, you're projecting, you're the star, you're on stage, and now you're kind of the ambassador of the product. Was that tough for you?

Nancy Hicks: In some ways, yes. In other ways, no. I think this gets to, again, I’m touching on the language of authentic communication because I think when you are a stage person in public communication, it’s very easy to struggle with pride. If people say they don't struggle with pride, then they're not in tune with themselves. I literally practice humility so that you don't get a big head. I had been practicing humility behind the scenes for so long to make sure that I am who I am every time I step out. Though I am in a different character every time, by the time you walk off that stage, you are Nancy. You are not something else or someone else. So I think when they told me the star of the show is always the product, yes, in some ways it’s hard, and I still struggle with that. But I think it’s a beautiful practice to always keep in mind—I still want to steal the limelight, but it’s not my turn. It’s the product’s turn. So it’s a beautiful way to continue to stay grounded.

Bart Egnal: And I think that’s so relevant to the practice of leadership communication.

Two things that resonate with me: One is that it wasn't just like they handed you a script about the product. The fact that you went and researched it, you found authenticity around what you were going to say and worked on that. So when you were up there, it was your own. We work with executives and clients at all levels to say, look, you can't just parrot what someone else is saying.

Nancy Hicks: Oh my gosh, how boring.

Bart Egnal: And it's not authentic. You'll never speak with conviction if you're bored by it. And then the other thing too is, yes, this kind of destruction of the ego and the self. Particularly now in leadership, every year, it’s less and less about you. The glory days of Jack Welch on the stage, glorified above all—I think those are gone. It really is about how you can reach the audience.

Nancy Hicks: It’s interesting because even when you're not trying to be the sage on the stage, you stand up, for example, even now at church, I’ll stand up and I’ll sing. And if I sing a solo, this generation that’s below me, you know, a couple of generations, they don't actually often want to hear that. They want to participate. They want to participate. Plus, communication—these are all things we've got to pay attention to as communicators. Communication has gotten much more casual. How can you still be polished and yet still have that? With QVC, it’s a wonderful philosophy. It’s "over the garden fence."

Bart Egnal: Ooh, I like that.

Nancy Hicks: So it’s very neighborly. It’s not "I’m an expert, and let me teach you." It’s about my having a cup of coffee with you, Bart. And just like we’re doing right now, just conversing together.

Bart Egnal: I love it.

So, Nancy, I know this is a great segue to another big development in your life. You were continuing to be active in your church, and you founded, in 2016, a ministry focused on raising up female leaders. Talk to me about what led you to do that and what your vision for the ministry was.

Nancy Hicks: Well, our younger son, Aaron—again, two boys—was heading off to university. We say college in the US. But I loved my work on QVC. I loved it. I was leading two big ministries at our church, and I was being asked to do retreats and conferences, so I was already speaking and doing things. I was also coaching on-air talent at QVC, which I loved. I’m a teacher at heart. As Aaron was approaching the time that he would be leaving, we’d be empty nesters. I knew there were probably 400 people behind me who would love my work on QVC. But I suspected there weren't as many people who wanted to be leaders in the church, who would move out into areas of the world that I would be willing to go. So I got my master’s in theology and continued my work on QVC while doing this. And then when I graduated from seminary with a focus on homiletics, which is preaching, everything again—communication for me—here I am now studying in seminary, getting this. I thought I was going to be a speaker, a Christian speaker. What I was going to do was target female leaders around the globe because I knew the church was burgeoning like never before in history in parts of the world like Asia, South America, and Africa, while it was in radical decline in North America. They don’t need another speaker in North America. They need me in these parts of the world. The women are working as vigorously and tirelessly as the men, which I do not in any way begrudge. However, their female counterparts were not getting the same amount of training. So I would travel to places like India, the Philippines, Albania, and Haiti so that I could raise up these female leaders and give them the development they needed.

Bart Egnal: How many speeches were you giving in a year, for example, to what size audiences?

Nancy Hicks: Well, oh my golly. I don’t know how many in a year, but I can tell you, two weeks in India, I spoke 28 times.

Bart Egnal: Wow.

Nancy Hicks: 28 times. I can’t even say how many in a year, but many, many times. I was doing podcasts, writing books, and—

Bart Egnal: You must have been traveling more than Cam, finally.

Nancy Hicks: Yeah, well, it was a lot. But Bart, I loved it so much. And I was going to places that a lot of people wouldn’t want to go or dare to go, frankly. And I can tell you, I’m still, through my Nancy Hicks Communication on social media and my website, I’m still able to continue to serve these parts of the world. I’m very grateful for that.

Bart Egnal: Now, you were a speaker on these huge stages in all of these cross-cultural audiences as well. What were some of the new revelations that you had about what successful communication was all about in this new chapter of your life?

Nancy Hicks: Yeah, I will say some of the best things I’ve learned are some of the simplest things, really, in their very nature. Very basic. It’s just that people don’t like—so, for example, eat the cultural food that’s before you. Don’t be picky. Learn a phrase. So when I would go often, I would use interpreters. Learn a particular phrase that you want to share in the language, in the heart language of the people. When I’m going into a nation like Albania or Haiti, make sure you learn, practice a line. Say something to them that connects. You’re there to connect. And when you're white, they immediately assume, especially if you're from North America, that you're wealthy, and then they put you on another level, and you need to now do whatever you can to connect. Still be poised, still be the person they have brought in. Don’t dumb down. Don’t try to look sloppy. They don’t like that. In many nations, they want you to be their speaker. They have brought you in to teach them something. But there are so many leaders right there that are already doing the work, and you want to foster relationships with them so that the work can continue. You don’t want to circumvent or overshadow the current leadership. You have to come alongside that leadership. You're there for but a moment.

Bart Egnal: I love it. You know? Connection.

Nancy Hicks: That takes humility.

Bart Egnal: Right.

Nancy Hicks: Thinking of your audience instead of yourself while you're there.

Bart Egnal: Yes. The food, the language, learning a bit of the language. And connection is so important. And the way to connect best is to really know yourself. Otherwise, you're going to be projecting something that you likely do not want to project.

Nancy Hicks: Exactly.

Bart Egnal: So you were doing this kind of world tour, and at some point, you decided the time has come to—take me to that moment, and let’s bring the story up to the present.

Nancy Hicks: Well, so, speaking of David—first of all, the pandemic hit, and all of that international travel stopped. Yes, of course, we can do things online, but I love to be in the presence of people. I am a people person, and there is so much work that I can do just by being with people. There is just so much love and so much dispensing of gifting just by being in the very presence of people. So that went away with the pandemic. In addition to that, I realized that running a nonprofit—I had a nonprofit for eight years. It was called Nancy Hicks Live. Running that nonprofit by myself, 70% of the work was business—raising money. And I am the talent, and I make no bones about it, Bart. I am a coach. I am an educator. I am the speaker. I am the media person. That’s my passion. It’s what I love, and it is truly what I do best. Doing 70% of business in my home office was really killing me. And here’s where the rubber met the road for me, Bart. That son I mentioned just a moment ago, who was at Harvard, was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer at age 26 and two years later died of colon cancer while he was finishing up his third year at Harvard. Bart, nothing will get you to know yourself and to be honest about what you see better than tragedy. I don’t want that for your listener. I don’t want it for you. But for me, it was an unwelcomed gift, and it forced me, Bart, to say, "What do I want to spend the rest of my life really doing?" And so I dissolved my ministry just at Christmas 2023 so that I could have more space to do what I truly do best, which is the communication piece of it. Someone else can do the business—send me in to do what I do best. And so the speaking and the media—back to QVC I went—the media, the speaking, the coaching, I am able to now increase that work. And I love it. And it's not draining me; it's providing vitality and life again. I love it.

Bart Egnal: I’m so sorry for your loss. I so admire that you found the way to use it as a catalyst in your life. You are—I can just tell, talking with you, your great passion is helping others communicate or doing communication yourself. And that’s why we're very glad to have you join The Humphrey Group delivery team. I think our clients are going to be thrilled. Anyone listening who’s going to get to work with Nancy, you’re in for a treat.

Nancy Hicks: Thank you, Bart. I’m really looking forward to it.

Bart Egnal: And so maybe, Nancy, we'll just kind of turn to that as our final chapter in this incredible story. We've been talking about building authentic confidence. What would be the three things—given your incredible life journey which kind of fuses performance, singing, preaching to huge audiences, TV performance—what would be the three pieces of advice or guidance you would provide to someone who says, "Nancy, how do I build my confidence?" Going way back to that Jennifer Hudson moment on the red carpet—"Am I alright?" What would you say?

Nancy Hicks: There’s a difference between presence and being present.

Bart Egnal: What’s the difference?

Nancy Hicks: The difference really, and they, of course, are cohesive. They work together or there's cohesion between them. Having a presence is I show up in a room, and I’m going to say something that is unbelievably difficult. I show up in a room, and I am myself. Now, people say, "Be yourself, be yourself, be yourself." The problem with "be yourself" is very few people take the time and do the work to know themselves. So to show up in a room, or in a large venue, a small venue, one-on-one, with your college-age student, with your spouse, with your best friend, with a client, is that if you do not do the work of your own interior world, you are going to project all over the place onto the client, onto the other person. So being present means that I am coming in, and I’m listening to you, and I’m paying attention to you, to the other person, as opposed to myself. And the only reason I can do that—being present to you, to an audience, to whomever—is because I have done the interior work. That means that I can also show up with a great, valuable, authentic confidence called presence. And people don’t know what to do with it. It can actually really disarm people because when someone’s getting flustered in front of you or angry with you, you don’t have to join in on that. You can stay grounded and compassionate and interested and lean in without getting sucked into the mess and the muck and the mire. You can take the heat out by being present and being confident in what is happening by your very presence.

Bart Egnal: I think that’s great. If I sum up that first point, you really need to begin from within. You need to know what you stand for and what you want to lead with. And you’re an example of that. You’ve made some bold choices throughout your career to do that. Okay, so let’s say someone listening says, "Alright, fast forward—they’ve done the work, or they’ve had great coaching with you, like now, I know the message I want to deliver. I know the story I want." What is step two? How can they project that authentic confidence and connection?

Nancy Hicks: Well, step two, I would say, and this comes into really knowing yourself, is exploring your voice. Now, here’s what I want to say about that. I came up through the ranks of voice teaching and expertise and pedagogy, right? All that as a singer and speaker. The apparatus of voice—I had a voice studio for over 14 years. I know the human voice both in terms of singing and in terms of speaking. Therefore, when I work with someone, something I love to do, and I do this with myself, is to explore what’s in there with a voice. So I’ll give you an example. Someone comes in, and sometimes people speak up here—they’re really high or really quiet, or they have an edge to their voice, and they don’t know why they can’t connect with people. And one of the things I love to do with people is to explore, in a very low tessitura, sort of what is this chest voice? To breathe and to breathe out and to allow the voice to just be whatever it is, whatever comes out. It’s actually an exercise I give people. So it’s very practical, it’s very tangible, and it can be very uncomfortable at first for some people. But for others, they’re like, "Oh, I get it." Often men, but for a lot of women’s voices, if I help them with this sort of exercise, I then coach them to do it daily, daily, daily. I’ve worked with people who can’t speak up in a meeting. I’ve worked with executives who find that, when they’re in with their superior, for whatever reason, they cannot speak. They find it tremendously intimidating. Though in other contexts, they’re perfectly fine. So exploring very tangibly the voice—I love it.

Bart Egnal: When you say step one, really begin with that, know yourself, and what you want to speak, and then step two is free your voice. We could do a whole other episode on voice. I love your examples of the voice exercises.

Nancy Hicks: Yes.

Bart Egnal: And then what would be your third and final piece of advice to people listening?

Nancy Hicks: Listen, listen, listen. When you go into a space, listen. Before you go into a space with anyone, listen to what you are saying to yourself. Pay attention to what your body is telling you. Am I tight? Am I playing an old tape that is bringing me down or causing me to be manic, so that I come into a space and I am sucking up all the energy in the room, and I don’t even know why people don’t want to have me around? But I’m stressing everybody out because I don’t know how to get myself under control. Sometimes people will say, "I am being me." And to that, I say, okay, we go back to who is your audience because you need to know how to curb who you are. "Oh, no, I don’t." Oh, yes, you do because who you are in a corporate situation is very different than who you are in a creative situation. Who you are in a group of ten people is different than who you are on the stage with a thousand people or on camera speaking to millions of viewers. It is you in various contexts, and you need to be able to listen to what it is people are asking you for, which part of you is showing up. If you don’t know who you are and you don’t know how to tame the voice or release the voice, you are going to have a very difficult time listening, paying attention, and then giving what is needed as opposed to what you think people need. And that I have found, Bart, in every context around the world.

Bart Egnal: The world. You have traveled the world, literally.

Nancy Hicks: Yes, I have.

Bart Egnal: I love that. It’s fascinating. And thank you for sharing your three pieces of advice. Start from within. Unlock your voice and then listen. It’s fascinating that none of them involve "have a message," or "this is what you should say." These are the words you should use. It really speaks to the deeper work. I think that's so exciting that you do. Again, why I feel such alignment with you. We always say the practice of inspirational communication is inside out and audience-centric. Great points, Nancy. And, particularly given the many stages on which you've spoken around the world and the many products you've sold on TV.

Nancy Hicks: People can tell when it’s all about you, Bart. They can tell, and they can sniff it out. This next generation—they're really good BS detectors.

Bart Egnal: Oh, you better believe it.

Nancy Hicks: If you’re trying to sell them something, if you—

Bart Egnal: Or if you care about them, they’ll buy.

Nancy Hicks: If you care, they’ll buy.

Bart Egnal: I love it. And that’s a perfect close. Nancy, this has been so wonderful. It’s five years in the making, but worth the wait. And look, I think in waiting, you’ve had this other chapter of global speaking that you've done. That's just added that next layer of richness to the work you do. Thank you so much for coming on the show. If people listening want to connect with you, they want to learn more about your coaching practice or your ministry work, where can they find you?

Nancy Hicks: Well, they can certainly find me on my website, nancyhickscommunication.com. I’m on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook as Nancy Hicks Communication. But I really, really mean this, Bart—I am so looking forward to joining you at The Humphrey Group. So, frankly, tap The Humphrey Group and just request me there, and it’ll be my honor to serve you, truly.

Bart Egnal: It’s been my great pleasure to have you on. Thanks for being a guest on the Inspire Podcast.

Nancy Hicks: Pleasure. Thanks, Bart.

Bart Egnal: I hope you enjoyed that episode of the Inspire Podcast and the conversation that I had with our guest. Hopefully, you left with some really practical, tangible tools and tips that you can use to be more consistently inspirational. If you’re enjoying the pod, I’ll ask you a favor—please rate and review it. I love the comments, appreciate the reviews, and the visibility allows others to discover the pod. It’s really how word of mouth has spread the Inspire Podcast to so many listeners and helped us keep making this great content. Stay tuned—we’ll be back in two weeks with another inspiring conversation. Thanks so much for listening. Go forth and inspire.