Women Who Lead: Nada Nasserdeen’s Journey from Performer to Global Powerhouse

Nada Nasserdeen is the founder and CEO of Rise Up For You, a personal development and leadership company dedicated to empowering individuals and organizations to reach their full potential. With a background as an international singer and a Master’s in Executive Leadership, Nada has guided over 50,000 people worldwide in building confidence, emotional intelligence, and purposeful leadership.

In this episode of Pursue Vegas, we sit down with Nada to explore her inspiring journey from performer to renowned thought leader. Her strategic move from California to Las Vegas was pivotal, allowing her to expand Rise Up For You globally—even amidst the challenges of COVID-19. “Everything you need is already inside of you,” she shares, a mantra that encapsulates her empowering mission.

Nada’s story reveals the resilience and relationship-building essential to making an impact in the Vegas community. "You have to show up and be seen and contribute to the community without expecting immediate returns," she advises, underscoring the importance of patience and connection.

Get ready to uncover practical insights on emotional intelligence, authentic leadership, and the grit required to thrive in entrepreneurship. This episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to rise to their fullest potential.

Key Takeaways:

• Emotional Intelligence as a Leadership Essential: How mastering emotional intelligence and communication drives success in leadership and personal growth.
• Vegas as an Entrepreneurial Launchpad: Why Las Vegas offers unique opportunities for entrepreneurship compared to California.
• Expanding Globally Amidst Adversity: Insights on leveraging virtual platforms to fuel global growth, even during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The Power of Patience and Persistence: Why resilience is crucial for entrepreneurs looking to establish themselves and earn trust in Las Vegas.
• Community-Driven Success: Understanding the vibrant entrepreneurial spirit in Vegas and the critical role of genuine community engagement.

Resources:

• Rise Up For You – Nada Nasserdeen’s company website offering resources on leadership and personal development.
• Nada Nasserdeen Official Website – Learn more about Nada's work, book, and coaching services.

For those seeking motivation, leadership insights, and actionable strategies for personal growth, this episode with Nada Lena Nasserdeen is a must-listen. Dive into the full conversation to uncover more about navigating entrepreneurial challenges and achieving personal empowerment, and stay tuned for more inspiring episodes from Pursue Vegas.

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Transcript

0:00:03 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Hi, this is Nada Nasserdeen with Rise up for your and this is Pursue Vegas.

0:00:10 - (Dave Burlin): All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to the Pursue Vegas podcast. I'm your host, Dave Burlin.

0:00:15 - (Tawni Nguyen): And I'm your co host, Tawni Nguyen.

0:00:16 - (Dave Burlin): And I am absolutely excited about having today's guest on the Incredible Nada Nasserdeen. She's the founder of Rise up for your, a leading personal development and leadership company focused on empowering individuals and organizations to reach their highest potential. Potential. With a background in education, years of experience as a performance coach, Nada has become a sought after speaker, author, and a thought leader in the areas of emotional intelligence, leadership, and self empowerment.

0:00:44 - (Dave Burlin): Her work has transformed the lives of thousands, helping them build confidence, enhance communication, and lead with purpose. And you're doing that in a couple different ways. Nada, what are you excited about? Tell us about you.

0:00:54 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Gosh, I'm excited about everything. Um, where should I start? What do you want to know? Break it down for me.

0:01:00 - (Dave Burlin): Well, you've got the business, you've got the podcast. I. I've heard now that you were once a singer. So where would you like to dive in and start?

0:01:12 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So, yeah, I started as a singer many years ago. I was a performer. I used to tour internationally, around the world actually doing musical theater and like Broadway stuff. I did that for a really long time. Most of my time was spent overseas in Russia, Japan, Germany, Europe, UK area. And then when I came back, I realized that what I loved about performing was actually the empowerment part. It wasn't so much the singing and the dancing, but it was more about connecting with the audience and seeing how I can influence them through being on stage.

0:01:40 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So when I came back, I decided to step into education and leadership and I became a professor for a community college and then I became an executive for an education corporation when I was 27 years old. And I think that's really where I started to understand where some of the gaps were happening in the workplace and amongst our youth. Because I was working with young adults, freshman, sophomore, in college, in the evening, and then during the day, I was an executive for an education corporation working with professionals.

0:02:09 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And the biggest challenge in both areas was people skills. So the freshmen in college had a hard time raising their hand, asking questions. They would rather take the F than ask a question because they didn't want to look dumb. They struggled with anxiety, with stress, with emotional and social intelligence. And then in the workplace, I'm working with people that have PhDs and master's degrees and they sucked at communication, had such a hard time leading Their team, they really struggled with finding, like, their own personal pursuit of potential and passion and purpose. And so it was. It was a very, like, toxic environment.

0:02:47 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And so that's where I really started to see that this was a need in the world. And then I went from there straight into, you know, building rise up for you.

0:02:53 - (Dave Burlin): I love that and love that. And so where, where are you from? Where were you at when you came to that sort of realization? And then what brought you to Vegas?

0:03:03 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So where am I from? Well, let me tell you that I'm Lebanese descent. I was born in America. I was born in Pennsylvania, actually, but I'm Lebanese. And my family moved to California when I was younger, when I was five. And I've spent most of my time there besides going on tour. Like, I've lived in California. I decided to move to Vegas because actually, it was very random, to tell you the truth. As a business owner in California, it wasn't conducive to being a business owner.

0:03:31 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I'm sure you hear that a lot. It just, first off, as a small business, I was being eaten alive when it comes to taxes and employment policy and that kind of stuff. It was very hard to grow as a small business in California when the policies and that's just the structure itself, it doesn't lend itself to entrepreneurs and to people that are building. So I always had this thought, okay, well, maybe I will reincorporate in Nevada because, you know, taxes and whatnot. But I never thought about moving here because I had the impression that it was just the Strip.

0:04:04 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So my family and I, we have a long history with Nevada, with Vegas, my parents, every single year, like two, three times a year, this was our go to vacation. So we've been coming since we were kids. Yeah, Circus, circus, all that kind of stuff. Back in the day when it was like the. The hotspot for kids. Yes.

0:04:22 - (Dave Burlin): The Riviera.

0:04:23 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yes. So that's all I knew. And so for me, I just thought, as a business owner, let me reincorporate the business there, but I really don't want to move there. And then I happened to come out right around Covid, right after Covid 2021, I happened to come out to do a talk show with a guy named David Meltzer, who I know, you know, I was a co host for an entrepreneurial talk show called the Office Hours.

0:04:45 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I drove out here, they asked me to come out here and be a co host. I came out here, I did that show. And so much had changed in that time. And so I thought, wow, like, what has happened to Vegas? So I decided to go off the Strip for the first time, and I just started to explore. I went to Summerlin, Lone Mountain, Henderson, like, you know, the whole area. And literally within a week, I got my letter for pre approval and I was on my way to buying a house.

0:05:15 - (Dave Burlin): I love it.

0:05:16 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So I did. So within four weeks, I found, pursued, and bought a house in Vegas. And I just picked up my stuff and I moved. And my brothers were like, what are you doing? I'm like, making the best decision ever. And I 100% till this day, believe it is the best decision in every aspect. It's like, as an entrepreneur and as a business owner, like, I'm not a solopreneur. So I have. I have employees, I have payroll, there's expenses.

0:05:44 - (Nada Nasserdeen): There's a lot that goes into building a business and to continuing to grow a business. So just on that level, it was very beneficial, like, if I'm talking about the ROI of a business owner and entrepreneur to move here, but also on a personal level, it just. The environment for me is amazing. It's a big city with a small town feeling. I mean, even small things like sitting in traffic for two hours in California, that sucks the life and energy out of you.

0:06:14 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Right. You don't have to deal with that here. Even the fact that you can walk into a chamber event or an organization here and you're seeing people and decision makers are at the top of their game in the industry, in the country, not in, like, one small city. So, I mean, there's a lot of benefits to moving here. That personal lifestyle. There's. You could go hiking, you could go gambling. Right. You could eat at a mom and pop restaurant, you could eat at a Michelin restaurant. So I just think the diversity and the dynamic here really lends to, I don't know, pursuing Vegas. Just like the podcast.

0:06:48 - (Dave Burlin): I love that. And how long ago was it that you moved here?

0:06:51 - (Nada Nasserdeen): It's been over two years now. About two and a half.

0:06:53 - (Dave Burlin): I love that. And we do have the mutual friend. In fact, that's where I was, like, you caught my attention. We. You were speaking on a panel, I think at the Chamber, or were we both? Was that the one that we were both on?

0:07:06 - (Nada Nasserdeen): I can't remember speaking about. What was the topic? Like, how to be seen and heard as an entrepreneur, I think.

0:07:12 - (Dave Burlin): Yeah. Yeah. And then in your intro, in your bio, I was like, I know David Meltzer, and that's a name that comes up very often on the show.

0:07:19 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:07:20 - (Dave Burlin): So Small world.

0:07:21 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:07:22 - (Dave Burlin): Yeah.

0:07:22 - (Nada Nasserdeen): He's a great guy.

0:07:23 - (Dave Burlin): Well, and to that point, you know, the joke I heard was, you know, we're like 2 million people. I think 2 million people here in Vegas and we know all 50. Yeah, right. It really does have that, that small town feel.

0:07:34 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:07:34 - (Tawni Nguyen): Like eventually, you know, our circle is going to close up anyways. And I think, I mean, I got a lot of that also Cali expat right around Covid.

0:07:42 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:07:42 - (Tawni Nguyen): I came here totally may and I was like, I need a change of life. Outside of running to Seattle for grad school, which I didn't decide to do because it was Covid and I was teaching leadership during that time. And I resonate a lot with the, you know, teaching freshman's public speaking skills and just basic level 100.

0:07:57 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:07:58 - (Tawni Nguyen): And you know, like. And that changed a lot in the dynamic of what you said about owning a business in California. So that's the same reason why. Because I was in corporate events and obviously what Covet did in the hospitality industry.

0:08:09 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah, yeah.

0:08:10 - (Tawni Nguyen): And now running into people like you. And I was like, oh my God, like we have the same values in terms of why we had to get out of a specific place to actually grow and do well in our personal life.

0:08:20 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:08:21 - (Tawni Nguyen): And then we overlooked the details of Vegas because we. Honestly, I misjudged it too because I used to come here and party and stay up all night and be at the strip clubs and all that stuff. So I thought that was all there is until I came here and I was like, man, I love this place.

0:08:36 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah, I love it.

0:08:37 - (Tawni Nguyen): I'm so much healthier here. People are so much more open minded. They're willing to connect one another and actually do business together. Actually add value and want to stay plugged into to the network, you know?

0:08:48 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah, definitely. And I think like even with California, not to bash on California, but maybe a little bit is the, even just the, the way where it's going and the policies and they're just, they're not in alignment with me personally anymore. And I know a lot of people that are leaving California also have that same vision. Whenever for me, a state becomes illogical, it's time for me to leave. And there's just a lot of things that are happening that don't make sense.

0:09:16 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And so, you know, I think Vegas and Nevada is a great place and I hope it stays that way. You know, obviously we're very. We're what, 60 minutes from the border? 45 minutes. And so I hope that our leaders in Vegas and in Nevada. And that's just part of our responsibility as well. Continue to maintain the uniqueness and the special feeling that we have here and that we don't. We don't let it, I guess, kind of mold into what, California.

0:09:43 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah, California.

0:09:45 - (Dave Burlin): It's funny, I saw a sticker yesterday when I got to the gym, and it was don't. And there was a picture of California. My. And then a picture of Nevada. Don't. California. My. Nevada. I was like, okay, yeah, right. Well, so let's talk a little bit about your business, because your business is a global business. You're. You're helping and serving people. Tell us a little bit about that.

0:10:07 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah, I mean, thanks to Covid, honestly. So when before COVID hit, we weren't a global business. We basically functioned. So we have two. Two divisions of our company. We have B2B, where we work with organizations and corporations to enhance their culture by teaching people skills. Right. So we'll go into companies, everything from Fortune 5 to local businesses, and we'll teach the emotional and social intelligence, communication, how to lead and manage your team, all of the things that are so important to scale, to grow, to build your company and to actually be successful, even though we don't always think about it. Okay.

0:10:41 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And then we also work with the individual. It was one to one through coaching. We have our community, membership, that kind of stuff. And really the end goal is how do you push your potential and grow to become better? And what are the skills that you need to do that? And my opinion is that it's the soft skills, because you can have all the degrees, you can have all the technical skills, you can, you can have as many credentials as you want, but if you don't have the soft skills to take action, build relationships, influence people, sell, have confidence, all that goes to waste.

0:11:12 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So. So that's really what we're teaching. And when I first started the company, I just started with the podcast. To tell you the truth, I was just about education, having conversations with brilliant minds, like minded minds. But most of our work was done on site. A company would call us and say, hey, can you come on site to train? We would go on site to train. The one thing that we did do virtually was coaching.

0:11:37 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I really don't know how I did that. But I knew of Zoom a long time ago. I always joked that I should have freaking invested in stock with Zoom because I've been using that like five years before COVID And so we did have a coaching clients that were global. And that's because I would Speak. And people would be there from different states and different countries. And so that's kind of how that built.

0:11:59 - (Nada Nasserdeen): But once, once Covid hit, I mean, I had a decision to make. So I told my team. It was a very small team at the time. It was like two or three people. I'm like, no one talked to me for three days. Let me figure out how we're going to pivot, otherwise we're going to fail. Like, we're, we were still in like baby phase, startup phase, right. So we didn't have the finances or the luxury to be like, let's just, let's just like play it out and see what happens. I was like, no, we got to take action.

0:12:24 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So I didn't talk to my team for three days and I built like a virtual platform and I built programming that was online, that was virtual. And it just freaking went crazy. And we've quadrupled every single year since then. So we're now in over 50 countries. We have, I mean, we've had clients in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, Europe, uk, Canada, Nigeria. I've spoken virtually like all over the world.

0:12:48 - (Nada Nasserdeen): I've also toured the world as a speaker. And now our clients, Both on the B2B and B2C side are everywhere. And also the workplace has changed. So even if we do have clients that are in our backyard in Vegas or in Irvine or wherever, they're like, well, our team is not here, they're everywhere. So you know what I mean? So it just, it lends for more expansion. So that's kind of how it happened. And it's been amazing. Now I have a larger team where I want to say about 15, 16 people right now. We're just continuing to grow.

0:13:19 - (Nada Nasserdeen): They're all throughout North America. So we have team members throughout the US And Canada.

0:13:25 - (Dave Burlin): I love that. So how that works, being here in Vegas. Right. You don't necessarily have a lot of clients here. Your clients are everywhere. Yeah, but what are the biggest challenges for you as a business owner being here in Vegas and having that type of a business model?

0:13:41 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Okay, I will say this. Okay. Being transparent for anybody that maybe is looking to come and build something here, the thing that saved, I would say that saved us as a company when I moved here is that we are global. So my bread and butter and the finances and the scalability of the company was not contingent upon Vegas.

0:14:00 - (Dave Burlin): Right.

0:14:00 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Okay. So we've gotten clients here. They've been amazing. But do we have enough clients here where we're building a seven figure business? No. Right. A Seven, eight figure business. No. And my point in saying that is that if you are going to come here, you have to be patient. You cannot be entitled. You're not going to walk into the city and dominate. That's just not how it works. You have to understand how to build relationships.

0:14:24 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I would say there is a circle here that you have to slowly and patiently just continue to build relationships so that they build trust, so that they can open up the circle for you and you will experience that. There are some people that have moved to this state around the time that I have and they left like I just can't do it. It doesn't feel open, it doesn't feel like welcoming, it doesn't feel nurturing.

0:14:47 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I'm like, well, you came in with the mindset that you were just going to crush it and all of a sudden everybody was going to give you work and it just doesn't work that way. You know what I mean? And it doesn't really, really doesn't matter as a small business what you've done. I mean, I have a lot of accolades, but here it's kind of like, welcome to level one, like whatever, start over. Yeah. And I, and I, and I think that's because I also think that Vegas is still embracing and understanding the idea of like entrepreneurship and small businesses that are very successful because they're used to big corp, right. They're used to the gaming industry. They're used to organizations that dominate not just in Vegas, but globally.

0:15:29 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Right. Like the MGMs, the seizures of the world that don't just exist here, but they're, they're all over the hospitality industry, entertainment, gaming, like I said. And so I think that they're also starting to understand that there is a fresh community that's coming into Vegas that are very successful, that might be a little bit smaller, but they have a far reach because maybe of their influence or because of their circle that they know outside of Vegas, it's an entrepreneurship. And I think they're also trying to understand like who's a keeper and who's here to take advantage of us in this city.

0:16:04 - (Dave Burlin): You're 100% right. I couldn't agree more. I believed when I came here because I came here pre Covid and I drove out here in a rental car one way with in a sense, hopes and dreams. You know, I was really intentional on being part of the, the whole Zappos family and the movements that were being created from that. It's interesting, like Vegas doesn't care what you've Done.

0:16:25 - (Nada Nasserdeen): They don't give a crap.

0:16:26 - (Dave Burlin): Yeah, they do care if you show up and say what you're going to do.

0:16:29 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:16:30 - (Dave Burlin): If you do what you say you're going to do and if you follow through and even that, that's just the cost of entry. Yeah, right. It doesn't mean that, like you said, that you immediately get the throne of the city. But in my opinion, or at least not just in my experience, but in the experience of a lot of people that I know that have been here for less than 10 years, they're able to do it here faster than they might be able to do in other places.

0:16:54 - (Dave Burlin): But there is that, that time, that, that kind of period where you have to, you have to do the work and you do have to develop that trust. It happens faster, but it still takes time 100%.

0:17:06 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I, you know, and I've told people this different connections here in Vegas that maybe I'm trying to pursue. I'm like, listen, I have no expectation and I'm not entitled to anything. If I need to sit here and build relationships with you for another three to five years, fine. If that's what it's going to take, then that's what it's going to take. We also have to remember that Vegas, although it's big in the magnitude of what it does, right. With the gaming and again, entertainment and that kind of thing, and we're expanding so much now, we also feel a lot, even if it's something small.

0:17:37 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So when you have individuals that come here or situations that come here and they do damage, right. Whether it's not integrity, not integrous with what they're doing, they say they're going to do something and they don't anything at all. The feeling is felt throughout the city. It's like the whole community knows about it, right. And they're impacted by it. And so I don't think it's necessarily wrong that it's tight knit, but I do think that there's a little bit of adjustments so that we can create a welcoming feeling and support one another and at the same time still understand that, like, hey, we have some rules of engagement that we like to see when people come in to make sure that you actually care about what we're doing here and you're not going to come here, benefit and then ditch us.

0:18:19 - (Dave Burlin): Yeah, I run into that stuff in the nonprofit space all the time, all the work that I do with veterans. There's all kinds of charlatans that have come in, made promises, they see metrics they see all these things. Exactly, exactly.

0:18:32 - (Tawni Nguyen): Now I love what you brought up too. Like a couple words that really stands by us is one, to be able to have profit is first the people. Right. And for us, like the number one word for entrepreneurship is pivot. So if you can't pivot in this town, it's the amount of handshakes and how you show up for other people that really holds you down to how you show up for your business.

0:18:51 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:18:52 - (Tawni Nguyen): And I just, I'm just curious on like how you develop yourself during this journey and what was the breakthrough like for you, you know, as a coach and now you're leading others and you seem to be very well developed and conscious about who you are, your self awareness and how you use that to empower other people. Like, what was the breakthrough like for you? Is it before you come here, is it when you were 27, starting into the world, or has it been like a full transformation process?

0:19:17 - (Nada Nasserdeen): That's interesting. It's interesting because when I look back on my journey, like everything, it was like everything was perfect. Like everything was supposed to happen that way. And I didn't know it at the time, but I look back today and I think, okay, everything that I've been through has made me who I am today. Now, did I have a pivotal moment? Like absolutely, for sure I did. So when I was, when I was 27 and I was an executive, I did that for about maybe four and a half going on five years.

0:19:49 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I decided to leave the company and to pursue, to pursue an opportunity that I call marriage. And I always laugh about that when I say that when I decided to pursue that opportunity, it didn't work out. Within four weeks, we were on our way to divorce. I moved out of the country. So I lost everything. So I went from a six figure executive with a high position, house on the lake, brand new luxury car, all these things that we think are a success to a hundred bucks and a few luggage. That was it.

0:20:22 - (Nada Nasserdeen): I didn't have any other money. I didn't have a house, I didn't have a car. I didn't have a job because I replaced myself. And I remember getting back on the plane and I was bawling and I was crying. And my father came to me in my dream. My father passed away when I was 27, so my father only ever saw me as a performer. He's never seen me as an executive. He, he didn't see me as this entrepreneur. He's only saw me on stage.

0:20:46 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And my father came to me in My dream when I was on the airplane, and he said, everything you need is already inside of you. You just have to rise up for you. And that's where the name of the company came from. So I got back to California, and that was my defining moment, was, okay, I really don't have anything. I got 100 bucks and a couple luggage. Thank God for. You know, my mom was still alive, obviously, so I came and I stayed with her, but that was it.

0:21:15 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So in that moment, I made the decision. I was like, okay, well, I can go back out there and I can get a job. You know, go and pursue, you know, apply, or I can try this, like, own your own business thing, which I really don't know anything about. I just keep hearing this term entrepreneurship. And I. First thing I did was ask myself a couple key questions. What do I want in life? And what's important to me? What are my values?

0:21:41 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Faith is number one. The pursuit of myself in every area is number two. And family is number three. And so I said to myself, well, okay, one day I want to have kids, and I don't want anyone to tell me when and when I cannot work. Number two, every job that I've ever had, I've always been at the top of my industry. Whether I was an executive, whether I was the performer, whether I was in education, I've always been one of the ones of the top.

0:22:08 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Like, it's in my nature to lead and to speak up. Whether you have. Whether I have a leadership title or not does not matter to me because I'm going to follow the integrity of my feelings and I'm going to express myself. So I didn't need a title to make change. Okay, so maybe I can do my own thing. And number three, I believed in myself. I had confidence. I didn't think that I could not. Not do anything. In my brain, I'm like, I could do whatever the hell I want to do. I just have to work hard and do it. I've got to figure it out.

0:22:35 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So with those couple things, I was like, all right, I'm going to go into entrepreneurship, and I'm going to build a business. I didn't really know what it was going to be. I just knew that I was going to build something and that was it. And I just. I just started building. The first thing I did was build the podcast, which wasn't monetized. It was just education. Just kind of wanted to get my feet wet, like, talking to experts, talking to people.

0:22:56 - (Nada Nasserdeen): I probably needed the podcast more than other people. Because I was just going through a divorce and I was like in shock of like getting a divorce after four weeks. Like, who thinks that in their mind? Like, you know, what the hell just happened? I don't. Somebody once told me that milks last longer than that. Yeah, maybe. And so I just, I just started building rise up for you. Three and a half months later, my mother, my second parent, was diagnosed with stage four cancer out of nowhere. We've never had cancer in our life. Nine months later, she died.

0:23:26 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So I'm 31 years old, going through a divorce, heartbreak, and both of my parents have passed and I have no money. That was the defining moment for me. And that's why I really believe that the company today has reached success. Because everything that we teach, I've used myself. It's not like bullshit techniques and strategies that were like, well, whatever, it might work. It's like, no, no, no. It will work if you want it to work. Like if you're committed versus being interested. John Asaraf always says that it will work.

0:23:57 - (Nada Nasserdeen): My built my company out of a hospital. I took showers at the 24 Hour Fitness. I would go back to the hospital, open up my laptop, lay by my mom. How do you build the business? What's entrepreneurship? What do people need in the world? And I just, I started creating. I don't have a business degree. I still don't have a business degree and I didn't know anything about entrepreneurship. And today we're in over 50 countries with our programming and you know, we're seven figure business. We're still growing, we have an awesome team. And the main thing is, is that we're making an impact on both levels. We're making an impact financially, which is important. I don't care what anybody says because if you don't have the finances, it's hard for you to make an impact when it comes to like global change or elevating the human condition. Like, money is a tool to help you make more impact on that people level.

0:24:42 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And so I'm happy that we're doing it on both sides.

0:24:46 - (Tawni Nguyen): Wow, that was amazing. Because I, A lot of the entrepreneurs I talk to is through adversity. Entrepreneurship shows you who you are and what you're made of and sometimes it wrecks you. Right. And for you, like, thank you for sharing that because it's very empowering and it's just acknowledging like that your journey. Because most people, when they look at a powerful woman, they either get intimidated.

0:25:06 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Or I get that a lot. He's like, yep, yep, right there.

0:25:12 - (Dave Burlin): I happen to run with a lot of incredibly powerful, strong women like Netta, so I get it. But I've seen that intimidate a lot of people.

0:25:21 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah.

0:25:21 - (Tawni Nguyen): Yeah. So. Yeah. So that man, I forgot my thoughts because I was, like, looking at him.

0:25:27 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I think the thing, like, because I've gotten intimidation a lot, and it's gotten better over the years because I think that kindness is a really important quality to have even more when you're successful. And I know that sounds weird, but it's like when someone. I'm going to stereotype now, so forgive me for all of you that are listening. When somebody is not kind, but they're like, you don't look up to them and they're not out there, like, pushing themselves. And in some ways, they're not successful. And I don't mean not successful financially. I mean that they just. They don't have it together.

0:26:04 - (Nada Nasserdeen): It's like, whatever. Like, it's almost like you expect that because they. They don't know who they are and they're trying to figure themselves out. But when somebody is more successful and they have their shit together and they're not kind, that can come across, like, really intimidating and not relatable and very standoffish. I would say for my case, it's not that I'm not kind. I'm actually just very introverted when I'm not on.

0:26:32 - (Dave Burlin): Yeah.

0:26:33 - (Nada Nasserdeen): So, like, and I think this is part of me being a performer is I had to learn how to preserve my energy when I wasn't on stage. Right when I was performing, I would be dancing and singing sometimes 16 to 20 hours a day, and then getting on a bus to the next city. You always have to be smiling when you get off the bus because whoever's going to greet you. But then when I'm not doing that, I'm like, totally shut down. Like, I'm preserving my energy.

0:26:59 - (Nada Nasserdeen): But when you step into a leadership role or entrepreneurship, you can't do that. And so there were times where if I wasn't directly in front leading, and maybe I'm just, like, walking down the hall or I'm sitting in a meeting passively because I'm not leading. I'm like, I'm shut down. So then people are like, well, she's not warm and she's not relatable, and we can't talk to her. And they maybe must. They mistook that for me not being warm versus, like, oh, I'm just, like, in hibernation mode, because the second I go up and lead, it's like, boom, the energy pops up. I had to learn how to adjust that and realize, I mean, even when I came in this room, I was very aware of the fact that I was like a little bit more like pulled back.

0:27:40 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And I understood that and I was like, okay, I'm preserving my energy because once the mic is on, then I turn on. And so I had to, like, even now, I'm still building this self awareness that as a leader and as an entrepreneur, as a thought leader, whatever it is, you're a walking billboard 24 7. Besides, when you're sleeping, people are watching and being influenced by you. And so that intimidation factor, I had to learn, like, try to smile, shake hands.

0:28:10 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Even when I want to, like, go into hibernation mode. Like, I'm still on, I'm still on, right? And people are still receiving signals from me.

0:28:19 - (Dave Burlin): I love that. No, thanks for being real, because that is true and it's a great responsibility. A lot of people, I think that's why we live in such a cancel culture where as soon as somebody falls short of what the expectations of the world are, then everybody just wants to throw rocks at them because they feel better that somebody's not perfect, but nobody's perfect. I think we're all doing the best that we can.

0:28:43 - (Dave Burlin): Some people are just more self aware. So thank you for that. It goes to. As we kind of wrap here for two things about Vegas. One, if you had one piece of advice for anyone who really wants to step into their power, whether they're already here and really break out of that mold of where they might be stuck. We know that, yes, there's a lot of beautiful things here too. There's a lot of pain as well. But for the people that are stuck in that middle that want to step up and step into their power, or the people that may want to come here, what piece of advice would you give for them to really connect?

0:29:20 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah, I would say don't have any expectations right now and you have to show up. You got to show up. So if you're going to come here or if you're already here and you're trying to build, work hard, okay? Continue to work hard, continue to be out in the community, build relationships, but you have to show up and you have to be seen and you can't have any expectations around it, right? So go out there, add value, you know, contribute to the community and that's it.

0:29:46 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Don't expect that things are going to come from it. If they do, fantastic, great, let that happen. But don't expect that it's going to happen.

0:29:55 - (Dave Burlin): I love that. And then last but not least, if you can wave a magic wand, anything that you would really love to see here in Vegas in the next three to five years, what would that be?

0:30:06 - (Nada Nasserdeen): I would say embracing, like, the entrepreneurial influence energy that's here. I think Vegas does an amazing job when it comes to business and the community with the larger corporations and, you know, bringing in some of those Fortune 500 companies again, entertainment, gaming, those industries, technology. But I do think that there, I mean, you know this as well, there is a huge population of, like, amazing influencers that are just crushing it globally that people in Vegas don't even know live here.

0:30:38 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Right. That are making such an amazing impact and they just live here. But I think that if we can influence and create more of that culture here, then they'll start to come out of their houses and their mansions that they. They have here. You know what I mean? And they will start to contribute and give back to Vegas as well. But I think that there are, there are a number of entrepreneurs and influencers here that are doing amazingly well around the world that really just live here.

0:31:05 - (Dave Burlin): Yeah.

0:31:06 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Right. And they. Because they don't need Vegas to grow.

0:31:09 - (Dave Burlin): Yeah.

0:31:10 - (Nada Nasserdeen): But if we can embrace that as a city, then we could use them to help us grow. Right. And to, like, create more camaraderie as a, as an entire business community here. Because some of those people would be game changers in the larger business community as well. I think the whole culture will shift if we can just start to embrace some of the smaller entrepreneurs and influencers that are here that are actually making quite a big impact.

0:31:33 - (Dave Burlin): Couldn't agree more. Could not agree more. You are spot on. Thank you for sharing that. And where can people find you and connect and learn more about what you're doing?

0:31:41 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah. Thank you. So rise up for you across the board on every social media platform. You can also go to Rise up for you dot Com. We have the Rise up for you podcast. We have a ton of free resources on our website. So if you are interested in the leadership, emotional intelligence, intelligence, confidence space, if you want to push yourself, if you want to be better, if you've been trying really hard to push yourself to the next level and you have a ton of degrees and you haven't seen it yet, go to our website because we have, we have the key, which is building the soft skills and we have a ton of free stuff there for you.

0:32:08 - (Nada Nasserdeen): And then you can also follow me just by my name. Natalina Nastardine.

0:32:12 - (Dave Burlin): I love it. Perfect. Well, I think that's a wrap. Thanks so much for coming onto the show today. This has been absolutely incredible.

0:32:18 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Yeah, you're welcome.

0:32:19 - (Dave Burlin): And I look forward to crushing more stages with you in the future.

0:32:21 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Thank you.

0:32:22 - (Tawni Nguyen): Yeah, we just want to thank you for showing up as you're, like, really empowered divinity. And I can feel your energy. It's, like, very firm in your femininity because, you know, people in leadership roles, especially in women, does not have a role model to. To look after or, you know, respect is earned in this town. And I love that that came across all throughout of you as in a person of integrity and how that shows through your personal relationships as well as, like, your business. So we wish you the best.

0:32:48 - (Nada Nasserdeen): Thank you.

0:32:48 - (Tawni Nguyen): And thank you guys for tuning in today. So if you guys want to connect with us more and how we can help you connect with somebody else you've seen on the show, offer some resources, connect with us directly through Pursue Vegas. Thanks.

0:33:04 - (Dave Burlin): Boom.