Thank you Nikki Noya for joining me on my podcast! Nikki shared her passions and pursuits–she is a TV host, producer, philanthropist, Mom, Mrs. DC America, author, athlete and adventure-driven traveler!
Bobby Laurie, Nikki Noya and Lisa Niver on THE JET SET TV
Recently I was on her show, The Jet Set TV, for the second time. In 2017, she interviewed me about my 50 challenges before 50 project and in Sept 2023, she interviewed me about my book about my 50 before 50 project. I loved having her on my show to learn more about her as a TV host, philanthropist, athlete, Mrs. DC America and mom!
Listen or watch our interview on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube or your favorite podcast platform
READ THE TRANSCRIPT BELOW
Lisa Niver:
Good morning, this is Lisa Niver and I am the author of Brave-ish, One Breakup, Six Continents and Feeling Fearless After 50. And I am so beyond delighted, honored, and thrilled to bring you my most incredible guest, Nikki Noya.
Nikki Noya:
Lisa, thank you so much for having me on the show. I feel like when we first met six years ago and all of the adventures that we’ve had in six years around the world, millions of miles and such stories. So thank you so much for now having me on your show,
Lisa Niver:
Nikki, when I came and interviewed with you, I was so excited–it makes me want to cry thinking about it now. I was so excited to be on your show and you were such a generous, kind interviewer. And we talked about my 50 things before 50 project and now I’m so excited the book’s coming out and you’re in my book.
Nikki Noya:
I know, but that’s what’s just so wonderful is because when you came on the show, I was just starting on my TV journey and you were actually one of the first people that I interviewed. So I feel like we both kind of grew up together and we were both, both of us were embarking on these two huge journeys of our life at that moment. And now look at us here.
Lisa Niver:
Oh my gosh, I didn’t realize I was one of your early interviews. You were so excellent.
Nikki Noya:
Thank you. I had no idea what I was doing, but I’m a hard worker. I’m an athlete, so I work hard. I listen and I try my best and I’m not afraid to make mistakes. But yes, that was one of the first interviews that I did was with you.
Lisa Niver:
Now on the Jet Set TV, you’re a producer and this is season eight?
Nikki Noya:
We are in season eight of the Jet Set.
Nikki Noya:
It is just incredible. And we continue to grow and we continue to expand the show. I recently traveled to Egypt and Iceland. I have been all over the world and the opportunities that are coming with each episode and with each season, we just keep growing. We also now have the Jetset Espanol. We’re going to start Jetset Kids with my daughter Samantha soon. We just keep growing and evolving and now I can’t even believe after this kind of weird post covid time that everyone just wants to do things. They want to get out, they want to be stimulated with culture, art, music, food. So now that’s our job to bring it to our audiences. We’ve actually never been busier than we are right now.
Lisa Niver:
You have had so much success. Your show is excellent. I love that you have the JetSet Espanol. And for anybody who maybe didn’t catch that just before Covid, you had a baby. And now your baby’s going to be part of JetSet TV kids.
Nikki Noya:
Yes, she is. Samantha is going to turn six in November. What I like about being a female business owner is that Samantha comes with me to the studio. She sees mommy at work, she sees mommy working with the team. She sees mommy not only in front of the camera but behind the camera and making the phone calls and doing the things. And then she also sees me on set and she is watching me. Now she say, mom, I want to start coming with you. So I thought, what a perfect thing that we can be together and what there’s no better education than getting out into the world. Soon, we’re going to start traveling a lot more.
Lisa Niver:
I think that’s so fantastic. There’s been such an issue at different conferences I’ve been at about representation and if you can see it, you can be it. For people that don’t know you, you grew up here in California. Was your first love that you were a competitive swimmer or volleyball. You’ve done so many things. I would guess first was athlete. Is that correct?
Nikki Noya:
First athlete, I grew up in a very athletic family. From the very beginning, growing up on the beach in Newport Beach, always being in the water. So the water is my first love. I started really swimming when I was quite young. I went to Junior Olympics and was a junior lifeguard. I went to nationals for junior lifeguarding competition. I’m quite tall, I’m, I’m almost six one. I saw this group of volleyball girls walk by the pool and I thought they look like me and they are having so much fun. I started playing volleyball and that led me to really my third love, which is traveling. I started traveling all over the world, playing volleyball and that segued into seeing this big world.
Nikki Noya:
My athletic ability was the conduit for me traveling. And then the next thing, I am in Europe and I am in Central America. I’m in Canada, I’m all over the place playing volleyball. It gave me the appetite for curiosity and traveling when I was really young. But if you would have asked me then if I would be a travel TV host and TV producer, I would have said, how is that even possible? But one thing leads to another, leads to another, leads to another and you need to say yes and go for it and be brave. And now here we are.
Lisa Niver:
For people that are listening and following along, first you went to college to play volleyball and then you played in a professional league?
Nikki Noya:
Yes, I did. I lived in Germany and I played in Germany.
Lisa Niver:
You are a truly high level competitive athlete. One of the things I’ve known from athletes as you were in the Junior Olympics, you competed with the lifeguards. I’ve been talking to people about my book and there’s something about writing where you have to sit in your chair and write whether you feel like it or not. And when you’re a competitive athlete, you have to train even when you think I might prefer to sleep in today. So what kind of things do you tell yourself? What motivates you? Is it because you’re on the team, for the competition you want to do better than the day before? What gets you out of bed with all of these ongoing pieces?
Nikki Noya:
If you were to ask anyone that knows me, they know that winning is my favorite thing. I really love winning. I love having a goal and working towards that goal and then coming out in first place. I was born that way. I am very competitive in everything. I also love being on a team. I always loved my teammates. I loved just being with a group of people and we would all be having the most fun and going through hard things and going through excellent things and having fun and working together and then winning together is just the best feeling. It is the best feeling.
Lisa Niver:
So we know that you’re phenomenal in the water and on the court. Talk to us about being Mrs. Miami, Mrs. DC America, you competed in a whole new arena!
Nikki Noya:
I did. And this came out of nowhere. I was sitting on the plane next to the director of the Mrs. Florida America Pageant because I was traveling back and forth from Florida to DC and I was chatting with the woman. She said, have you ever thought of doing a beauty pageant? I said, I’m a little older. And explained, there is a whole division for you. You can try to be Mrs. Florida America. And I said, do I get to win a trophy? When she said, YES! I asked, What do I have to do? I entered, I said, yes, even though I had no experience in this. I had no idea what’s going on. But I said yes, because I thought it would be fun.
Nikki Noya:
I thought it would challenge me because it’s such a different thing, but it’s still a competition, which like. I said before, it’s a goal that I needed to work towards and I like doing that. So the next thing I know, I have a interview coach and I have a walking coach and I’m meeting all these interesting, amazing women that I wouldn’t have been exposed to if I hadn’t taken a chance and said yes. So I was Mrs. Miami and then I ended up being first runner up at Mrs. Florida. And when we moved to DC I said, you know what? I learned a lot and I had a lot of fun and it pushed me out of my comfort zone so hard. If we go to DC, I think I can do one more. I ended up winning the Mrs. DC America. I went to Mrs. America, some of my best friends are pageant women. I wrote the book Mom with my very good friend, Julie who is a legend in the pageant world. And I have this great group of women and it’s made me a better business woman and talk show host. I can get up, rock the mic, do all these things. It’s been a wonderful experience. Wonderful.
Lisa Niver:
I saw some beautiful pictures of you from the pageant and I love hearing about how it helped you so much. And I think what’s interesting is whether you’re talking about sports and the Olympics or winning or the pageant that it comes through, that you are really open to new challenges that you’re willing to say yes and you want to be part of the team and that you’re always learning,
Nikki Noya:
Always. I mean, nothing really happens in your comfort zone and nothing really changes in your comfort zone. And I just feel like, especially since my daughter was born, I have to say yes to everything and go for it so that she sees me doing all of the things and being fearless and taking chances, but being smart about it and working hard and having fun. And so she’s really given me just a totally new attitude. She really has. I’m really tired, but she’s given me all attitude.
Lisa Niver:
Yes. You wear a lot of hats so it makes sense that you’re using up all of the energy that’s available to you.
Nikki Noya:
Yes, absolutely.
Lisa Niver:
So you did mention when you were talking about Mrs. DC America and congratulations,
Nikki Noya:
Thank you so much
Lisa Niver:
That you wrote a book. So tell us a little bit more about being an author.
Nikki Noya:
So while I was at Mrs. America, Connecticut and DC are next to each other in rehearsals, and Mrs. Connecticut was Julie Kengi. And throughout that week we just became such good friends. We have so many things in common and we started talking about our paths to motherhood. And I have a wild story. She has a crazy intense story and we just thought, wait a second, we have these stories and then we’re talking to Mrs. Virginia and she has a crazy story about how she became a mom. And then we were talking to Delaware and we, we just thought that every woman has such a unique journey to become a mom. Let’s get our friends and family to write their testimonials, to write about their journeys, to write about their process because everyone has such a different story. And we compiled everyone’s stories and made the book Mom period.
Nikki Noya:
And we’re about to start Mom Period Part Two because so many of our friends and family said, actually I have a story too. If someone can read what I went through and say, oh, I’m not alone in this. Or if someone can read about adoption or miscarriages or triplets or all the things that women go through and say, oh wait, I’m not alone. I have the support network. I have other women that have gone through this. And that’s why we’re going to do another one because every journey is unique.
Lisa Niver:
Yes, I agree with you. And a lot about writing my book was about feeling alone and wanting to know more It is so great that not only did you think about it, but you did it and you published it and that you’re going to have a part two is incredible. Congratulations.
Nikki Noya:
Thank you so much. It’s one of the things that Julie and I are so proud of and we hold this book. My story is written like a journal entry. I wrote through my entire I V F process. It is like reading my diary and it’s very personal. Some of it is funny, some of it is heartbreaking, some of it is so real because it’s real life. I want other women who are on an I V F journey who are hearing that they’re too old or they’re too this or a lot of things I heard in my I V F journey, but I didn’t stop. I knew that I was going to be a mom one way or another and it ended up being more perfect and amazing than I could ever imagine. When I read my entry to the book, I cry and I laugh. I hope that everyone feels the same way too.
Lisa Niver:
That’s amazing because when I was writing my book, I would sit at my desk and write my story until I was pretty sure I was going to throw up and then I would lie on the floor.
Nikki Noya:
It’s a big thing getting what’s in your head and in your heart onto paper or onto the computer. How you have to go through all of the thoughts and all of the feelings and all the stories and all of the emotions to then literally kind of give birth to your baby, your books. It is a lot. It’s a lot. So I I’ll be right there on the ground with you.
Lisa Niver:
We have been on this journey of hosting and writing. Another way you’re helping people be prepared is Dress for Success. I know you’re very involved with that and feeling like you have the right clothes to be successful definitely makes a difference.
Nikki Noya:
Oh yes. I have been the Vice President of Dress for Success Miami for 13 years this year. I nominated myself as a lifetime VP because Dress for Success is an organization that is so dear to my heart. Dress for Success is an international organization and what we do is we break cycles. We break the cycle of abuse, we break the cycle of homelessness, we break the cycle of stagnant living. And when a man, a woman veteran, anyone walks into the doors of Dress for success, it’s much more than getting an interview outfit. You get resume resources, you get interview skills, resources, you get a community of people that want to take you from whatever situation you’re in right now, walk through that door to change your life. And the Dress for Success Worldwide community is one of the most dynamic groups of amazing inspirational people.
Nikki Noya:
We have offices all over the world. Wherever you are, you can go into the office and we will help you get that job interview. We will dress you for that job interview. We will get you all the skills so that you nail and get that job. And then once you have gotten that job, we still provide resources so that you can continue to flourish, continue to grow and continue on that path. Because a lot of the times the moms are the ones who change the trajectory of their family. So if the mom has changed her life, then her kids will not be in the same situation that she was in and on and on and on. So that’s why I say break cycles and when the women come back years later and their kids are thriving in school or when their kids wouldn’t have been in college if the mom didn’t go to Dress for Success. When I see those, it means the world to me and I will be with Dress for Success for the rest of my life. It is an amazing organization.
Lisa Niver:
Oh, I’m so interested to learn more about it. That is incredible. Now, I know your family is quite philanthropic and you have a family foundation is Dress for Success part of that or those are separate?
Nikki Noya:
They’re separate. Dress for Success is something that I am involved with and my Family Foundation does support that organization. We support education and environmental causes. For me personally, having women be in the communication field and having women be able to public speak and having young girls who are in college be able to go to class and learn how to do all of those skills that can sometimes be overlooked. Public speaking is a real skill. You need to learn and you need to practice it. And it’s not easy. And a lot of people are too shy and so many of this generation is facing down at their phones.
Nikki Noya:
I support a scholarship at the University of Rhode Island where I went to school for a female student to be in communication studies. I’m on the Harrington School Advisory Board because I really am passionate about the University of Rhode Island. They gave me a scholarship to play volleyball there. I had this incredible professor, her name was Agnes Doty. And after class one day, she pulled me aside and she looked really hard at me and she said, I have so many plans for you, you have it. So I need you to go out into the world and do big things because I’m watching. I had just done a whole class presentation. One of our assignments was to make a company and then present it to the class. And her that two-minute nudge was so life changing and she was so supportive. Now I want to do that for another female student because it only takes one scholarship, one class, one teacher, one mentor, one advisory board person to change the trajectory of a girls’ education, a girls’ career. As a female and as a business woman, I am creating the future!
Lisa Niver:
Oh my goodness, you certainly are creating the future. I also had a very close relationship with a teacher who is a mentor to me. And I do think you’re right, focusing on education and girls and bringing people up and I love what you’re doing. I’m so impressed and I’m so proud of you. And before I let you go, I know we talked about your mom book, but I believe you and the Jet Set team have a few other books.
Nikki Noya:
We do. I wrote a book called Fit to Fly, which was also one of my first projects with The Jet Set. That’s actually how I started on the show. I was doing fitness segments. That book is about how to keep your wellness journey going even when you’re traveling all over the place. We also wrote a book about traveling with families and being on a budget because a lot of people ask us on the show how to take my family traveling. People are worried about the cost of flights and which hotel to stay at. We wrote an easy breezy guide to travel on a budget with your family, here’s what you need to do, here are the steps, just break it down. Here are some options. And it doesn’t have to be so overwhelming if you follow our easy steps to do, because that’s also the premise of the show. We want people to go have adventures. We want people to travel with their family, go on girls trips, guys trips. We want people to get out and about. So that’s also what that book is about.
Lisa Niver:
Yes. So the show is in line with the books. The books are in line with the show. We want to get people out there. You mentioned you’ve been to incredible places recently, Egypt and Iceland. People always ask me this and I believe that you might’ve been to the top place on my bucket list, but where is a place that has your heart that you haven’t quite made it to yet?
Nikki Noya:
Oh, oh, Lisa, that is such a good question. I would love to go to Japan. I would love to immerse myself in Japanese culture. Japan is really on my immediate list, but my favorite place in the world might be Scotland. I think Scotland might be my favorite and I can’t wait to go back. The people, the majestic scenery, there’s something about Scotland that captured my heart. Have you ever been to a place where you thought I love it here. What’s one of your places that you think this is my place? Do you have a place like that?
Lisa Niver:
I do. I studied several times in Jerusalem and I always can’t wait to go back to Israel.
Nikki Noya:
Oh my God. That’s another place that I need to go to see Lisa. There’s so many places that I need to go.
Lisa Niver:
I know you have a big list, but for me, one of the subtitle lines on my book is Six Continents. So for me, I really, really, after my book tour, I want to go to Antarctica.
Nikki Noya:
Absolutely. Go for it. Would you do a cruise? Would you do an expedition trip? What kind of trip do you want to do?
Lisa Niver:
I would like to do an expedition cruise and I want to walk on the land and I want to kayak and I want to see the penguins. I want to do everything.
Nikki Noya:
Well, as soon as you do that trip, you’re going to have to come back on the Jet Set and tell us all about it.
Lisa Niver:
I would love to come back on your show. That was so much fun to be in studio with you. We have so many projects, and we met six years ago and I just can’t imagine six more years from now. Well let’s see. You have three or four books, so you’ll have a dozen books.
Nikki Noya:
I hope so.
Lisa Niver:
We’ll have a few new TV shows to talk about.
Nikki Noya:
I’m so excited to see this next chapter for both of us.
Lisa Niver:
We can’t wait to see what trophy you’re going to win in the future.
Nikki Noya:
I have the best team. They’re not just my team, they’re my family. Whenever we do get an award, it is always we work so hard, but we also have the most fun. So whenever we get an award, it is icing on the cake.
Lisa Niver:
People can look for your books online. Where’s the best way to find you and to watch the show?
Nikki Noya:
The best way is always either at thejetset.tv, all of our social media handles, or I’m at @NikkiNoya or thejetset.com. That’s always the easiest way. You can also watch us on Spotify. We have streaming platforms on Amazon and Roku, or Living Modern, which has all of our shows all the time. But thejetset.com is always the best way.
Lisa Niver:
Thank you so much for everything. I appreciate you interviewing me. I appreciate you making the time that I could interview you. I can’t wait till we can travel together with the whole family. I’m so honored and inspired and I love what you’re doing for the next generation.
Nikki Noya:
Thank you, Lisa. That really means a lot to me and like I said, what we’ve accomplished in six years already is just really awesome. So I can’t wait to see what’s next for both of us.
Lisa Niver:
Yes. Well thank you and good luck in the next awards.
Nikki Noya:
Thank you sweetheart.
More about NIKKI: Find her on Instagram, as VP of Dress For Success Miami, her Family Foundation and as Mrs. America.
Nikki interviewing Lisa in Sept 2023
After our first interview, I was an adventure correspondent for The Jet Set TV. See my segments about Park City, Monaco and the Solomon Islands:
In 2017, Nikki interviewed Lisa about her 50 challenges before 50 project on the Jet Set TV.
Then Nikki was interviewed on We Said Go Travel!
Thanks to Bobby Laurie for this tweet about the new episode in Sept 2023:
LISTEN on APPLE PODCAST: MAKE YOUR OWN MAP
Find Lisa’s book, Brave-ish, One Breakup, Six Continents and Feeling Fearless After Fifty, at your favorite bookstore!
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