Meet Van Nguyen | Personal Empowerment Coach and Brand Builder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Van Nguyen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Van, what do you think makes you most happy? Why?
What makes me happy is waking up and knowing I get to do what I love everyday and working with genuine, quality individuals. A part of what I do now as a community manager for the second in command at COO Alliance, I get to add value to ambitious Chief Operating Officers by helping them build deeper connections with other members, and improving the brand community experience. At Steele Heroes Media, a media development agency, I get to fill my creative bucket as the Director of Project Development working on media projects for specialized cause-driven organizations that make an impact on this world. At Revival You LLC, as an empowerment coach I get to be a catalyst in other people’s careers and life goals. I get to push boundaries and live my purpose everyday.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Where to start. Revival You LLC is my personal empowerment coaching company, blog, and brand I use for affiliate marketing, workshops, and public speaking. As a certified life and career coach, I specialize in leadership and empowerment coaching. A life coach focuses on a specific problem, an empowerment coach focuses on shifting mindsets and to look at a situation from a higher perspective. What makes me different from other coaches are my methods and principles. If you are a fan of the revolutionist Jordan Peterson, prolific podcaster Joe Rogan, Chris Kresser, Susan Cain, Susan David, Tony Robbins, Jocko Willink, the Rock, Tim Ferris, or Mel Robbins, if you are spiritual or believe in god, you are ready to live a happier and healthier life, want to simplify your life, are willing to hold yourself accountable, and you have an open mind to trying new things like biohacking, then I’m your person. I’m a minimalist biohacker who understands the mind-body connection, what motivates people, and how your blocks may be a result of your traumas, upbringing, lifestyle, bad communication, and poor decisions. The things I coach people on are obstacles I’ve overcome personally. I practice what I preach and I am not one to dance around a topic or sugar coat things for my clients.

Currently, my efforts are focused on building community brands and cause driven ones that improve lives and make a positive impact. One of the communities is COO Alliance, the world’s leading mastermind community for Chief Operating Officers and the second in command led by the “CEO Whisperer” Cameron Herold. I just joined the American Marketing Association and am currently discussing joining the board to grow the Orange County chapter.

I also get to do fun stuff like manage the operations of projects, conduct research, and create plans at Steele Heroes Media. The Founder and Director, McCall Jones, was on the multi-Emmy award-winning documentary film crew for “Finding Home.” At Steele Heroes Media I work with advertising and creative professionals with over four decades of experience dedicated to crafting messages, images, and media for the benefit of clients around the world. That means I get to produce photos (professional headshots, editorials, album covers, etc.) and video content (videos for businesses, testimonials, social media campaigns, etc.), events, and consult clients. Some of the clients at Steele Heroes Media include YouRaceLA.com, City of Los Angeles, various non profits, CSUN, DC Comics, and PBS SoCal.

No, it was not easy to get to where I am today. It took long nights, weekends, getting past failures, and losing loved ones. I overcame them by surrounding myself with people who want me to win in life. That made all the difference. It took me being in good company, positive people, people who added value to my life and taught me lessons, people who guided me through my obstacles, and people who energized me instead of draining me. It took me getting comfortable with being uncomfortable to push myself to learn things outside my knowledge base. It took humility and me being comfortable with not being perfect so I could speak in front of an audience and go out and interview on media platforms.

One big lesson I learned is you can be anyone you want, do anything you want to do, if you invest in yourself and make wise decisions. You don’t have to make all the mistakes yourself to grow. You can grow by learning from others. Find people who are capable and know what they are doing, ask them for guidance. Have genuine interest in people and always lead with value, that’s one way to live with purpose and at the same time build deeper connections. Learn and understand yourself by increasing your PQ, self awareness, so you can best lead yourself. Think about the decisions you make. Ask yourself if your actions help you get closer or farther from your goals? That’s what my leadership coach would ask me when I am faced with having to make a decision.

People know me as Van Revival because I have a knack for turning challenges into opportunities, my commitment to resilience and reinvention has made me who I am today. I have the ability to pull out the best in people and spotlight that for others to see. I’ve spent over a decade studying psychology, and my inquisitive nature seeks to understand people and what drives them. 

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My friend and someone I consider a little sister came to visit me from Seattle earlier this month. To plan spots, I like to know what the other person is interested in and what they’ve already experienced. I think it’s important to create a great experience, not just for customers, but also loved ones. Knowing that Halie is using resources to come visit me, I want to make it worth her while. She got to explore great neighborhoods in Orange County, Redondo Beach, Palos Verdes, Hollywood Hills East, Studio City, Burbank, Santa Monica, and Culver City. I have lived in many different cities throughout Southern California so I had taken her to Urth Cafe in San Fernando Valley, Requiem: Coffee, Tea, and Fantasy in Anaheim, Aroma Coffee & Tea Co near LAx Airport, and ate at restaurants with paleo and keto options like True Food Kitchen and Blaze Pizza, took a walk around the Santa Monica pier and beach, took her to an event where she had professional headshots taken and I introduced her to a lot of great people). Some highlights included eating at Sage with my business partner and new friends, taking a drive to the house I used to live in that was next door to Jared Leto, and I produced a photo shoot for Halie in Redondo Beach. She got some photos to remember her trip by.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people I want to give a shout out too. The entrepreneurship journey has had many ups and downs and I would not have survived it without the support from so many.

I’m thankful for my leadership coach, Jim Lee, at B~Spoke LLC for making me aware of my strengths and weaknesses so I can best lead myself, for showing me how to be humble, persevere, and work better with others. My former sales and negotiations coach, Scott Richey, taught me strategies that increased my conversion rates and how to get people to pay what I’m worth. I am fortunate to have so many mentors, Cameron Herold coaches me when I need it so I can tackle my Top 5 SMART goals each week. I’m grateful to McCall Jones for advising me on effective communication strategies, relationships, advertising, photography, filmmaking, and so many other things! I am thankful to have received mentorship from due diligence and international business consultant, Burke Files, and science in Hollywood film PR pro, Brian Boothe. A special thanks to my close friends Linda Thoi, Linda Ho, Dean Phan, Diana Truong, Jay Nguyen, Kevin Clinton, and Halie Johnson for believing in me, cheering me on, and being there for me during tough times. Not to mention my surrogate family, Ron and Shawn Sillings, and the Boothe family for showing me unconditional love and for helping me reconnect with God. Calvin Kim, Porsche North America’s spokesperson, for making me realize my talent as a brand builder and for being my sounding board. Last, but not least Jonathan Lising, CFP for showing up as himself, for accepting me as I am, and for being supportive of my goals and healthy lifestyle.

Website: beacons.ai/vanrevival

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vanrevival/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanrevival/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/vanrevival

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IamVanRevival/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/RevivalYou

Other: www.COOAlliance.com www.SteeleHeroesMedia.com

Image Credits
(main featured image & one of me with sunglasses) R. McCall Jones (watermarked image of me in the water) Foxulee Photography