Laura M. Nozicka I Strategist I Facilitator I Speaker

10/13/2026

Today is National No Bra Day.

And while women everywhere are being encouraged to let it all hang out, I'd rather talk about what they're holding back. Especially when it comes to mammograms.

National No Bra Day dates back to 2011, when it emerged as a social media movement encouraging women to ditch their bras and raise awareness about breast cancer. Originally observed in July, it eventually moved to October 13 to coincide with Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

What started as a cheeky invitation to let the girls breathe has become an opportunity to talk about breast health, screening and the experiences of women affected by breast cancer.

And there's one conversation I'd particularly like to have. Why don't some women come back for their mammograms?

During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we hear plenty about the importance of screening. And rightly so. But what about the experience itself?

A while back, I posted two rather unconventional videos about my painful experience with a diagnostic mammogram featuring pancakes and plums. What followed was a fascinating collection of candid comments from women sharing their experiences. Some hilarious. Some heartbreaking. Some downright infuriating. And all worth listening to.

As a qualitative researcher, I'm fascinated by what happens when we stop asking women to simply rate their experiences and start giving them room to tell us what really happened.

What made them uncomfortable? What surprised them? What frustrated them? What would they change? And perhaps most importantly, what might make them reluctant to return?

There's a big difference between knowing a patient didn't return and understanding why and this is a theme at the heart of my talk, "Unheard and Unhealed: The Patient Voice Healthcare Cant Afford to Lose."

Healthcare organizations invest considerable resources in attracting patients, encouraging preventive screenings and measuring satisfaction. But how much effort goes into understanding the experiences that may be driving patients away?

Sometimes the most valuable insights are buried in the stories patients tell when someone takes the time to listen. So, in honor of National No Bra Day, I have a question for breast imaging centers, hospitals and healthcare leaders: "Are you listening to what women are holding back?" Or are you simply reminding them to come back?

🎥 Here's a clip of my talk.

10/07/2026

I used to date a mortician.

Now there’s a sentence I never expected to use to introduce an article about customer experience.

But something he used to say has stuck with me vividly when helping a family plan a funeral. He would say that you can do over a lot of things in life, but you don't get a do-over when it comes to saying goodbye to a loved one.

Well, and then there was the story about the blue suede shoes.

My latest Voice of the Room article is probably one of the more unusual business stories I’ve written.

Check it out.

I used to date a mortician. It's an unusual way to begin an article about business, I know.

08/28/2026

Do I take innovation seriously? The answer is YES!! I am constantly evolving and innovating through my own business, but I don't think we have to be so serious about it when we're going through figuring-it-out process.

That's why I use facilitation techniques I am certified in like LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® to help people think with their hands. And my keynote presentations and trainings talk about leadership and innovation through the lens of dance, and you might even learn a little cha-cha a long the way and maybe see some dancing with my dance partner.

What does all that mean? It means I'M FUN!! I bring fun and play to an organization when you're thinking through the hard stuff. I mean come on, our day-to-day is hard enough, nose to the grindstone, so let's bring some levity to how we figure out solutions and innovative ideas that get teams excited by turning thinking upside down for some new perspective.

Here’s a quick clip from my keynote presentation. Let's dance!

07/21/2026

07/21/2026

Women describing mammograms as "brutal" and "bruising" isn’t just anecdotal — it’s a warning sign that we’re missing the emotional side of healthcare.

Drop a ❤️ if you’ve ever felt the pain goes beyond physical.
I had my own sobering moment after a painful mammogram — I looked at pancakes and thought, that’s how flat I felt.

That simple analogy sparked hundreds of social media comments, revealing how much fear, humor and emotion are wrapped up in something supposed to save lives.

Mammograms aren’t just about images or statistics — they’re about feelings. If your patient satisfaction dashboard only tracks wait times, what are you ignoring?

It’s time to measure mammogram fear, anxiety and the "never again" moments — because emotional health matters as much as medical data.

Worth thinking about.

What’s one small change that could make women feel safer and more understood during their mammogram?

07/13/2026

One woman referred to mammography as her "nemesis": the BoobSquisher 3000.

Another had the power go out during her first mammogram and had to be "manually" removed from the machine.

Another said "it's the tech manhandling my b***s like bread dough that gets me. Not the machine itself."

Pain, fear and humor. All in the same breath.

These are real comments from nearly 900 women who responded to a video I posted after my own painful diagnostic mammogram. And what they tell us is that mammography is an emotional experience. Not a clinical one. Not a logistical one but an emotional and an experiential one.

Sometimes it's the experience that shapes how people feel about a product or service, regardless of the category. A hotel room can be beautiful, but if the check-in made you feel invisible, you're not coming back. A restaurant can have incredible food, but if the host made you feel like an inconvenience, you're telling your friends. A wellness brand can have the best product on the shelf, but if the first interaction felt dismissive, you've lost her.

I started my career in hospitality where I learned the value of experience and the difficulty of marketing intangibles. Breast cancer screening is one example of how experience makes the difference in whether women return or not. But it's the same pattern in every service business where the product is intangible and the experience IS the product.

So what is it that your dashboards are measuring? And what are you actually paying attention to?

If you're in healthcare, hospitality, wellness or any service business where the experience is the product and you want to learn more about what your customers are actually saying, I'd love to talk.

DM me or reach out at [email protected]. I also put the mammography findings into a white paper. Happy to send it upon request.

07/06/2026

I have worked in a lot of organizations with teams that have great ideas. But the company either doesn't make the time or space for creating and innovating, or they are afraid to take a risk with a new concept, product or experience.

Or have you ever been in a meeting where senior leadership says, "We need some new ideas!" Who wants to be the one to stick his/her neck out with what might be looked at as the most ridiculous idea ever? Then the judgement sets in. What often trips teams up is the fear of looking silly with a seemingly dumb idea, taking that first awkward step by putting the half-backed idea out there in the room.

In my keynote, "The Innovation Dance: Why Great Organizations Take Awkward First Steps," I use an unexpected lesson from ballroom dancing to show why innovation rarely looks graceful at the beginning of co-creation. Every evolution means the discomfort of beginnerhood. With innovation, everyone is a student again.

The teams willing to step on a few toes are the ones building unique customer-centered products, services, and experiences. The teams that wait until they've found their rhythm stay exactly where they are.

Here's a short clip from the talk. 👇

If you're planning a conference, leadership offsite, innovation summit, healthcare event, or team retreat and you want a keynote that blends storytelling, humor, audience participation, and takeaways people can use Monday morning, let's talk. We might even do a little dancing. 💃