Feeling Stuck in Life? How to Move Forward When You Don’t Know What to Do with Bethny Ricks | E65
Bethny Ricks is a powerhouse in sneakers and a vintage tee. She’s spent over 20 years as a leader with billion-dollar companies and managing global teams, but her real passion is helping women break through barriers and reclaim their hope. Twice named one of the Top 100 African Americans in Business and one of Ohio’s Most Influential Women, she brings boardroom credibility with real life grit.
Outside of work, Bethny is a wife, a mom to teens, and a ministry leader. She regularly writes and speaks on the tension of life, faith, and resilience, not from theory but from the deep end of experience. The reason she shows up? To help people get over themselves and stop handing over their future peace.
Connect with Bethny:
Follow Elle on Instagram:@bethnyricks
What do you do when you're stuck in life and nothing seems clear?
In this vulnerable and wisdom-filled episode, Bethny Ricks—author of Face Forward—shares her story of walking away from a successful corporate career after a health scare, navigating burnout, and learning to trust God with the unknown.
We talk about letting go of titles, releasing our need for control, and what it really looks like to move forward in faith when life falls apart. If you’re in a hard season or feel stuck between where you’ve been and where you’re going, this episode is for you.
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What you can learn in today’s episode:
How to move forward when you don’t know what to do
Why being honest with yourself comes before any strategy
What Bethny’s mini-stroke taught her about surrender
How to let go of people-pleasing and the illusion of control
Why hope isn’t just a feeling—it’s a person
Encouragement for writers, leaders, and women in waiting seasons
Real talk about burnout, disappointment, and starting again with God
Episode Blog:
Called Out of the Life You Planned: Trusting God’s Timing
Have you ever built a life that looked great on paper… only to feel God calling you somewhere else?
This week on The Trailblazer Talks, I sat down with Bethny, a business executive turned coach and author, to talk about what it really looks like to follow God when it means leaving behind success, comfort, or the identity you’ve built.
Bethny shared how her 20-year HR career led her to become one of the youngest Black executives in the country. She had the job, the title, the retirement plan. But behind it all, she was quietly battling stress, pressure, and a growing restlessness that wouldn’t go away.
It wasn’t until a health crisis stopped her in her tracks that she finally surrendered the plan she had… and started following the one God had for her.
The Tension Between Calling and Timing
One of the biggest takeaways from Bethny’s story is this: God’s calling doesn’t always come with immediate release.
She felt the pull to encourage and equip women long before she actually left the corporate world. But she stayed, not because she lacked faith, but because God hadn’t released her yet.
“I believe it was God’s plan all along,” she shared. “But I wasn’t ready to hear it at 25, 31, or even 35.”
Timing matters. So does obedience. And sometimes obedience looks like waiting until you’re sent, not just stirred.
Facing Forward with Faith (Not Opinions)
Bethny also talked about the weight of other people’s opinions, especially when you’re called to something that doesn’t fit the mold.
When she set out to become an author, people told her she needed a big platform, an agent, a list of accolades. But she chose to trust the voice of God over the voices around her. And the doors still opened.
“Too many opinions will weigh you down,” she said. “Don’t let someone talk you out of something you’ve already prayed about.”
That wisdom applies whether you’re launching a book or just trying to make a bold decision in your everyday life.
Start with Honesty… Not a Strategy
One of my favorite lines from our conversation was this: “Start with honesty, not a strategy.”
Bethny reminded us that the first step forward isn’t a 10-step plan. It’s getting honest about what you need, where you are, and what you’re really carrying.
You can’t build a sustainable life on illusion. It has to be rooted in truth, especially your own.
Hope Isn’t Fleeting… It’s a Person
Toward the end of our conversation, Bethny shared what keeps her grounded even in uncertain seasons: hope. But not the vague kind.
“Hope is not a feeling or an idea,” she said. “Hope is a person. Hope is Jesus.”
And that changes everything. Because if hope is a person, it means we’re never walking alone.
Subscribe to the show wherever you listen! Connect with me on Instagram at @courthopejones.
