Thank you for everything, Mr. McBob!

I started [Watch Over Me] fresh off a kidnap [and murder] attempt and I was in a huge rut...

Working with Amir actually really helped me understand how my backstory is an asset... This in return helped us enhance business performance like crazy...

I only wish I'd discovered [AssertiveU™] sooner...

— Xinch, Advocate for Women in Tech & Former Founder of Watch Over Me (Acquired) an Early Pioneer in the Personal Safety Apps Space


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THE ORIGIN STORY OF


In Words & Images

How AssertiveU Came to Be

We are a founder-led education brand first incorporated in North America in Vancouver, Canada, and envisioned as the high end coaching division of an indie record label. Our values come from the crucible of our founder's origin story.

We believe in real life, any outcome worthy of you requires some work, time and commitment. But with the right playbooks ― and using new technology wisely rather than being used by it ― it happens more quickly and easily.

Informed by research, transpersonal psychology and the art and science of memetics, the study of "an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning," learn from the founder in his voice as he tells you how AssertiveU™ came to be.


Hey there, it's me, the founder of AssertiveU™ previously called Assertive and Co.™ in 2017 when this photo was taken.


An American at heart and poet in Canada, when I was just a seven year old playful little boy in Qatar, I was secretly tortured, tormented, raped and subjected to extreme sexual violence nearly to death by two Islamist terrorists who saw me as "the deviant Christian son of Sudanese Americans." Only a few had an inkling of it. It became a catalyst for much growth by necessity, and eventually led to a profoundly life-changing connection with the late honorable nominee for US President, Senator John McCain.

It took me many years to regain my joy and freedom in living by being able to write and speak about what happened to me, embracing timeless spiritual development practices and fighting back as an incisive strategic intelligence analyst and advisor.

Finding my truer "soul voice" started with writing poetry, private journaling and songwriting. Then I made another fateful decision in 2006 to more powerfully own my truer voice by publicly publishing my thoughts freely through a new medium called "weblogs" as pictured below: the banner of my three-time Weblog Award nominated The Sudanese Thinker authored under what used to be my pseudonym Drima a.k.a. Amir Ahmad Nasr. Published from 2006 to 2012 when I lived in Malaysia, it shows hexagrams, symbolizing both the Star of David and Seal of King Solomon, and the Hindu Yantra Shatkona and Japanese Kagome Crest. It quotes the Sudanese-American scholar of human rights, Islam and secularism, the renowned Abdullahi An-Na'im's intellectually honest statement grounded in moral clarity: "if I don't have the freedom to disbelieve, I cannot believe."


As I blogged, starting in 2007 I got asked repeatedly to teach on storytelling, advocacy and digital marketing strategy which began to form the start of what later became AssertiveU™ led today by me as your advisor and coach. Beginning as Assertive & Co.™

ON HARNESSING YOUR SHADOW & OWNING YOUR VOICE MUSICALITY

As spiritual psychoanalyst Carl Jung learned from the age-old wisdom traditions, "one does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious." And as the spiritual humanist billionaire Oprah Winfrey observed, "each of us has a personal calling that is as unique as a fingerprint." A vibe. A frequency. An ambiance. An innately creative voice musicality unique to who you are. I call this harnessing your shadow and owning your innate voice musicality. A.I. won't do. No one can do it for you. This distinction is crucial to everything we teach and how we started.

The logo of Assertive and Company™ before we rebranded into AssertiveU™

The logo of Marvel's Daredevil, which first inspired the Assertive & Co.™ logo

The logo of the singing show The Voice which inspired the Assertive & Co.™ logo too

Every light casts shade and shadow - this includes every leader and organization. For you to thrive, you must acknowledge and accept all aspects of yourself. Instead of looking the other way, recognize that gaps between perception and reality often contain your greatest opportunities. The Marvel series Daredevil powerfully illustrates what it means to harness your shadow. The Voice movingly shows the power of singing when one owns their light and inherent musicality. There are lessons in both in business.


BUT FIRST A BRIEF FAMILY BACKSTORY...

Of an aunt, her father, and the boy who is her nephew and his grandson

When I was a little kid, coping and persevering after being tortured as a child, my maternal aunt and grandfather had raised me with formative universal spiritual life lessons with me 'til today. Needless to say, she lived, led and died on her terms by her values. Before she passed away in her late 20's during surgery in the United States where she was buried in Cleveland, Ohio, my aunt, Amani lovingly in Khartoum, Sudan firmly reminded me:

"Please promise me, you won't betray yourself. Don't you ever betray your inner Voice of Wisdom. Don't ever betray your dreams, no matter what anyone else tells you. Always listen to your Heart, and be brave. It will never betray you."

Before my grandfather, my mother's and aunt's father, a few years later passed away in his late 70's, he shared with me much wisdom over games of chess in the shade of the lime tree in his Khartoum home garden in the Sudan of yesteryear. A soulful life-long learner and entrepreneur for much of his life, he once explained:

"My son, life is like a chess game... always see the pattern. Never miss the pattern or how it forms... Later, when you become a grown-up, you’ll need to know where you’re going in life. To know, you need to see where you’re standing, because if you don’t know where you’re standing, the circumstances you’re in, and how you got there, if you don’t understand all the factors involved, well, you won’t know how to progress. The pattern is in the relationships. It’s in how the dots connect. Do you understand me?

... A lime seed only grows into a lime tree. It cannot grow into an apple tree or a mango tree, no matter what. It also needs to be put in the right soil with the right amount of water and receive the right amount of sunshine. What soul seed do you carry within you and which soil will you best grow in to make your most fruitful contribution, grandkid?"

As esoteric as what I am about to tell you sounds, there is a practical proven approach to it. Three decades later, experience taught me that, understood properly, what I call your "soul print pattern" reveals your "soul seed" which becomes a portal to your "soul voice," foundational to everything we teach here at AssertiveU™ and do with you.

Through the lens of his own life, Nasr sheds light on a generation of revolutionary life-hackers poised to change the global conversation about religion and politics.

— G. Willow Wilson, Author & Co-Creator of the NY Times Best-Selling Marvel Comic & Character Kamala Khan a.k.a. Ms. Marvel, Now a Series on Disney+ - Played by Canadian Actress Iman Vellani

If you’re looking for someone to translate and package your knowledge into an online program or help you launch such a program successfully, this is your one stop digital marketing coach and consultant.

— The Late Rev. Michael Dowd, Author of Thank God for Evolution


Me in 2015 with Ken Wilber, the American philosopher of religion, consciousness and transpersonal psychology featured in the classic Matrix trilogy who described my debut book as: "... important and significant... especially at this time in our history... This is the right message, at the right time, from the right person." His work informs my advisory and coaching frameworks and has been a real inspiration in my journey. Grateful for our conversations.

We integral scholars strive to comprehensively research, organize, harmonize and merge the best most proven of humanity's wisdom traditions, experiences and sciences into a grand "theory of everything" on the nature of our reality and existence.



A student and supporter of Ken Wilber, Tony Robbins the world renowned human potential leader has acknowledged Ken's big impact as well, stating "no one has developed a more comprehensive theory of life, psychology and spirituality. Ken is a genius! The world is a better place and I am a better person because of [Ken's] commitment and [Ken's] caring."

Take Mark Manson too, whose work I appreciate. He is the author of the #1 NY Times best-seller The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck and co-author of Will Smith's best-selling memoir Will. He described Ken Wilber as "the smartest man you’ve never heard of... could never reconcile any sort of spiritual practice or belief with scientific knowledge and rigor. Wilber did that for me. He’s been one of the most influential thinkers, if not the most influential thinker in my life."

Hello and welcome to the virtual campus. Amir Ahmad Nasr here, as the Earthly business persona of Drima Starlight. Initially, I wrote this origin story of how AssertiveU™ came to be in third person. Until I decided to speak to you directly.

It is my honor and privilege to be of service in your growth. I am a humanist and science-based classical liberal, so I don't really care much for Wokeness or MAGA. I am a fan of both Elon Musk and Oprah Winfrey. I love both Margaret Atwood and Joe Rogan. Far more important to me as an educator is spiritually informed, science-based, self-awareness and character-driven organizational and leadership development.

By incorporating proven spiritual development practices drawn from all of the world's wisdom traditions, we can better cater to all beliefs and philosophies. Whether you are a founder, domain expert, team member or a diverse Fortune 500 workforce, I invite you to rethink how you think about transformation in ways that uplevel wellbeing and performance hand in hand, sooner, better and smoother. My wish is for this shift in thinking to ripple out into our culture for greater unity, spiritual coexistence and growth across domains.

Me in 2017 back when I was leading Assertive and Company™ before our evolution into AssertiveU™ and who we are today.

I've been blessed to be described in positive terms by many, including by WIRED as a "formidable speaker" and by a world touring celebrity fellow musician as being, "like a 300-year old sage who is wise beyond his years," but I'll let you decide for yourself. As AssertiveU™ founder, my name as Amir Ahmad Nasr, like what journalist Clark Joseph Kent is to Superman, is my Earthly professional persona for me as the musical otherworldly soul blues rockin' singin' guitar slingin' artist, Drima Starlight, coming soon to the sold out concert near you.

I am a former Member of the Board and International Council of the New York based Human Rights Foundation, organizer of the Oslo Freedom Forum, and committee member of the International Vaclav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent.

My personal values are transcendence (as service that impacts humanity), musicality (as freedom in harmony) and conviction (as prosperity inside-out). I help conscious reality creators and experts, like you, to face your foremost fears with courage and refine your true voice and be in your element.

It was in a small obscure neighborhood mosque in Al-Mamoura in early 1990's Doha, Qatar, where my defiance started. As a nearly seven year old playful little boy I was methodically tortured, tormented, and subjected to extreme sexual violence nearly to death by two vicious Islamist Egyptian terrorists disconnected from their humanity.

The heinous acts I experienced as a kid happened not long after one of the two Islamist so-called imams had taken over as the leader of the neighborhood mosque with a theocratic antisemitic agenda. After receiving a malicious tip intended to harm me, they targeted me in their class as "a deviant child overly interested in American movies and Jesus" and as a son of Muslim parents who had left Khartoum, Sudan on scholarship to the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the early 1970's and became too American. They took it upon themselves to "set me straight" in vile ways.

After the banning of my debut memoir My Isl@m: How Fundamentalism Stole My Mind and Doubt Freed My Soul, at the age of 26, recommended in Ken Wilber's The Religion of Tomorrow and by Foreign Policy magazine among 25 books to read in 2013, I became recognized as a foremost world authority on technology's impact on the evolution of religions.

I am now actively updating the book with new material including on A.I., the prelude and aftermath of October 7th and Justin Trudeau's time in office up to Trump's stunning re-election - for updated release on the 12 year anniversary of its publishing in Fall 2025 with a new subtitle and design for timeless relevance.

Me in London in 2018 at the British Museum by a sculpture from over 3,300 years ago of Amenhotep III who reigned over a "period of unprecedented prosperity and splendour, when Egypt reached the peak of its artistic and international power." Learning more about my ancestry which hails from the Nile, historically pharaonic as in the story of Joseph and the benevolent King he served, then Jewish, Christian, Islamic and Arab culture. The picture was taken by advocacy and communications advisor and partner Evelyn Skye Blaise when AssertiveU™ operated in stealth mode formerly as Assertive & Co.™ I wouldn't be where I am today if it weren't for her and her mom's and brother's support.

Me in 2016 during my German translated book tour at a checkpoint where the Berlin Wall used to be when the iron curtain was a reality and tens of millions lived under dictatorship. Thankfully, the desire of East Europeans to be free exceeded the power of the tyrannies of those days until the Berlin Wall fell as the world watched in historic TV footage. As Bob Marley noted, none but ourselves can free our minds. So without exaggeration, the power of the people, harnessed well, truthfully and morally, is stronger than tyrants in power.

One of my lifelong dreams has always been to someday perform for US service members deployed overseas on a US aircraft carrier. I have never forgotten the widespread relief in Doha, Qatar and the look of it on my mom's and dad's faces when it was finally announced that Saddam Hussein's march from Kuwait to Saudi Arabia and Qatar failed, thanks to the US-led coalition which included US air craft carriers. American power mindfully and strategically deployed for good.

Facing an impending onslaught, I stood my ground but could not physically stop them. It was a pitiful cowardly act, inflicted upon my body, mind and soul in childhood by two of the least and lowest of so-called men, out of fearful bloodlust and misguided vengeance, for being the dreamy kid and best Quran reciter who was always the smartest number one top student of his class in primary school across all subjects and whose parents lovingly as best as they could raised Sudanese-American. But the two terrorists tricked me into believing "Satan" is within me, that "God" would tell them if I dared utter a word and that they would kill me and my parents for it. Both individuals belonged to the rogue global organization the Muslim Brotherhood whose members were tortured in prisons of secular Arab Egyptian nationalist, President Jamal Abdel Nasser under his orders after an attempt on his life by a Muslim Brotherhood member.

Despite not yet becoming a naturalized US citizen (while my oldest brother is by birth and my parents after by US residence) I am defiantly American by fiery heartfelt conviction and formative early life experiences. And Canadian by circumstance, choice and permanent residence until citizenship, grateful for the best of both vast worlds as a North American. At some point in the near future, I also look forward to my older brother and younger and only sister joining me in Canada and us reunited as a North American family.

I am a forever advocate of NATO leader and ally, the United States as our greatest hope for the persistent freedom of humanity, and a lover of western Canada, as a land of majestic outdoors and natural beauty, and maple syrup, and fearsome hockey players and Royal Canadian Mounted Police, on guard for thee. #WeThePeople #WeTheNorth

Gratefully, feeling in this world but not of it, despite how hard it was in those earlier years, it wasn't in vain as I did not have the freedom or luxury to wallow in victimhood or cynicism... One day while watching news on TV, my father commented about the strength of a US military and political leader he admired. "This man was tortured in Vietnam but he fought to remain alive and today he is serving as a Congressman." And so even after the horrors of 9/11, despite the shock and depression, I refused to give up on America as a state of mind and my own dreams as a playful little Pax Americana loving boy. I coped the best I could.

"That's an order, son."

As fate would have it two decades later, it was after a most profoundly indelible in-person experience I had on September 30th, 2015 in Washington DC at the Harman Center for the Arts and then later that day in the US Senate chamber with the man himself, fellow torture survivor, the Republican US Presidential nominee, Senator John McCain, that my life was never the same. Immediately, with his blessings and encouragement, I began working on AssertiveU™ and learning about PTSD soon afterwards to start treatment.

I am alive today on mission to live a full life of service because of his generous intervention that fateful September day after I showed up to see him in DC. Three years after he left a lasting impact on me, John passed away from brain cancer in his home in Arizona at 81 on August 25th, my 32nd birthday. To this day, I remain a firm believer in the historic major net positives of Pax Americana and the wisdom of the late Senator McCain that "America's greatest strength has always been its hopeful vision of human progress... Our shared values define us more than our differences [and] can see us through our challenges today if we have the wisdom to trust in them again."

It took me many years to pierce the veils of illusion, let alone regain my joy and freedom in living by being able to express the fullness of my story. Among the best decisions I made are embracing timeless and spiritual character-driven leadership development practices as well as somatic body work that freed me to thrive while fighting back as an incisive strategic intelligence advisor.

As evidence by these words you are reading, let's just say, where there's a will that finds a way, justice prevails.

These days, I am passionate about issues related to free speech, and nowadays, also free will and agency in the age of A.I and its growing role in our daily lives. I strongly agree with fellow Oslo Freedom Forum speaker Jack Dorsey that we must be wise to not sacrifice the degree of free will we currently enjoy and live by.

Jack Dorsey at the 2024 Oslo Freedom Forum speaking on the importance of protecting free will as we move into an A.I. powered world and media landscape, a sentiment I share and strongly agree with that spread in a viral video clip watched by now tens of millions of times after Elon Musk reposted it on X.

I am grateful to have been instrumental in creating positive ripple effects globally, through Fortune 500 teams, NATO national security, billion dollar and six to nine-figure founders, online brands and thought leaders, NYT and WSJ best-selling authors, Forbes 30 Under 30 and Inc. 500 entrepreneurs, Grammy and Emmy Award recognized storytellers, and many coaches, speakers, trainers, consultants and experts in owning their true voice influentially and fast-tracking their growth resiliently.

Evidently, my origin story experiences, understood rightly, inform my worldview and life's work. A spiritual being first and foremost having a human experience, in Earthly cultural terms, I am a Nubian Khartoum-born, Japanese influenced, British high school O-Level educated, Malaysian-raised, English and Arabic speaking man of the world. Having lived in six countries, I come from Sudan as the son of Sudanese parents and trace my lineage as indigenous to the Nile's fourth cataract in Meroe and Korti where family clans still live to this day. It was once the stronghold of the Kushite Pharaohs Empire before the influx of Christianity and Islam.

"Kush, was an ancient kingdom in Nubia, centered along the Nile Valley in what is now northern Sudan and southern Egypt... an early cradle of civilization, producing several complex societies."

The Nubian lion-headed deity Appademak with Pharaoh Taharqa in the Jebel Barkal Temple, Meroe, north Sudan.

I am a firm believer in the benefits of verbal fasting. Whether through silent meditation or programs like HeartMath and the Silva Method, it is an imperative that you find what works for you if you wish to realize more of your potential. As international rock superstar, Lenny Kravitz sings in his song Stillness of Heart: "I got more than I can eat, a life that can't be beat; Yet still I feel this heat, I'm feeling incomplete; What am I buying? My soul is crying; All that I want is stillness of heart; So I can start to find my way out of the dark..."

... Stillness at the heart of any matter speaks. So what is the heart of your leadership or organization telling you? And do you need guidance that uplevels your listening? I believe that in a complex, noisy and risky yet exciting world of opportunity, unlocking your values-based ability to accurately and productively self-reflect and be self-fulfilled and self-expressed, is a superpower.

As a global brand, AssertiveU™ is inspired by an ethos from my international upbringing as a humanist with a perspective and sensitive attunement to the cultural nuances of storytelling in different contexts. By age 10, I had been on memorable holidays outside of Qatar with my family and relatives in three countries: Sudan, the United Arab Emirates and Czechoslovakia. It was starting at age 11, after leaving Doha, Qatar for good by 1997 that I attended British and American international schools in my new home city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where I grew up speaking English primarily.

Me enjoying my first memorable pleasant experience with a calm friendly dog at the age of five during a family holiday in Prague, Czechoslovakia, visiting Europe for the first time. Decades later, now in my late thirties and inspired by this formative memory, I am getting ready to adopt and raise my first dog as preparation and practice for fatherhood.

Now 38, I've lived with family in Sudan, Qatar, Malaysia, America, Canada, England and again in Canada where I am now based, and so far traveled to over two dozen countries with a rich third-culture kid experience in my formative years. As Wikipedia explains, "third culture individuals (TCI) are people who were raised in a culture other than their parents' or the culture of their country of nationality, and also live in a different environment during a significant part of their child development years. They typically are exposed to a greater volume and variety of cultural influences than those who grow up in one particular cultural setting."

A signed copy of the #1 NY Times best-selling book Wonder by RJ Palacio, now a major motion picture starring Owen Wilson, Julia Roberts and Jacob Tremblay, gifted to me by RJ, after being invited on set in Vancouver in the summer of 2016 to witness a beautiful acting scene during movie filming. One of the most magical moments of my life.

As a student of spiritual traditions, I have been fortunate to be warmly welcomed as a curious practitioner by accommodating hosts and spiritual leaders at profound Hindu temples in Bali and Shinshoji Buddhist temple in Japan as well as in synagogues, churches and mosques with diverse interpretations, globally. Along the way I also learned invaluable lessons and experienced real growth after immersing myself in the Human Potential Movement regardless of its over-emphasis on "positive thinking" amidst the tragic dimensions of the human condition. With some stark exceptions, it was from within timeless the spiritual wisdom lineages that I found the most potent principles and practices.

Me in Bali in 2009 on a team retreat with the person who had the earliest, biggest and most catalyzing inspirational impact on me, the one and only, the beloved late Sean Stephenson, a giant of the human potential movement who influenced many leaders' decisions to rise above adversity.

Of particular resonance to me is the pantheon of Nubian-Egyptian expressions of the One Divine Reality in the form of various relationally, visually and symbolically interconnected masculine and feminine "deities" affirming Unity. I also resonate with writings and teachings of astronomer Carl Sagan, Christian mystic Thomas Merton and the Sufi poet Ibn Arabi who said: "O Marvel! A garden amidst fires! My heart has become receptive of every form: it is a pasture for gazelles, a monastery for Christian monks, a temple for deities, the Ka'bah of the pilgrim, the tables of the Torah, and the book of the Qur'an. I follow the religion of Love. Wherever its camel mounts turn, that is my religion and my Faith." I found when one stays true to a desire toward universality, a more potent possibility shows up.

In 2012, while visiting Denmark for a business trip, I was told about the collections at the local Copenhagen Museum. Pictured above is the jackal-headed Anubis from the Temple of Luxor showcased in Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen. Anubis is the aspect and attribute of the One Divine Reality from among the pantheon of deity symbols from Pharaonic times that represents guidance of souls through the underworld, death and rebirth, and the afterlife.

Shinshoji Temple in Narita, Japan which I visited in 2006. It has attracted spiritual seekers and meditators for over 1,000 years. Built in 940 AD, it honors "Fudo-myoo" [Acala, the wrathful expression of the Buddha] which is said to lead people to enlightenment with its facial expression filled with fury and wrath. The fire rising from the spine represents healthy anger that burns cleanly as cleansing flames that rid you of toxicities with a bright light and warmth. The rope represents binding down unhealthy lower egoic emotions to keep them in check. The sword represents piercing of veils, slicing through illusions. Taken together, Acala, the Immoveable, is a powerful archetype and state of consciousness rooted in Truth that wards off illusions and deception. Fun fact: Acala is also the archetypal inspiration behind much of globally popular Japanese anime such as Grendizer, Dragon Ball, and Ken and Ryu in Street Fighter.

The breath taking interior of the Sultan Ahmed Blue Mosque in Istanbul which I visited in 2009. It is a mosque that is welcoming to both non-Muslims and Muslims inside.

A high level view of the Blue Mosque from the Deluxe Golden Horn Sultanahmet Hotel restaurant's patio for kebab grill.

Me in Bali in 2010 grateful after a meditation, conversation and history lesson led by the Hindu temple's priests.

Me at the Aspen Institute in 2015 attending a roundtable seminar on values, leadership and the good society, about to start discussing Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Letter from Birmingham City Jail with fellow participants. Without the civil rights movement which MLK Jr. helped lead on the basis of a humanist Christian ethos, my parents would have never been able to legally set foot in the United States of the early 1970's.

Me in Rochester Cathedral, Kent, UK, in 2018 close to Rochester Castle where the Magna Carta came into effect in 1215.

From the website RochesterCathedral.org : "The Magna Carta ("Great Charter") is a document guaranteeing political liberties that was drafted at Runnymede, a meadow by the Thames, and signed by King John on June 15, 1215, under pressure from his rebellious barons. By declaring the sovereign to be subject to the rule of law and documenting the liberties held by “free men,” Magna Carta provided the foundation for individual rights in England and eventually throughout the English-speaking world. Rather than introducing new laws, the aim of Magna Carta was to hold the King to account on laws already in existence."

In 2019, after attending Synagogue with a dear Jewish friend and mentor, and reading a book in the Torah studies library about the inspiring 5,000 year history of the Jewish people, I was ready to learn more. Pictured is my yarmulke after spending 2024 Passover on Sunday with a three generation Jewish family in Toronto learning seated at a dining table listening to the story of Moses and Exodus, appreciating what it means for Jewish people.

Many gratefully say they found and continue to find my lived lessons invaluable, and even life-changing. It was in 2006, after starting to blog and share my learnings, and art and experiences with inquisitive friends and colleagues, that the requests to teach my methods and strategies grew. In 2013, while working together in Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia in the same office, I met my future AssertiveU™ advocacy and communications advisor and partner the British English-born Evelyn Skye Blaise.

In KL, after my book My Isl@m was temporarily banned by mistake, it didn't take long for Skye and I to decide to leave Malaysia to Canada. Once my Canadian visa got issued first before my expected US Visa renewal, I got on with plans. In January, 2014, I landed in Vancouver International Airport (YVR) to seek protection from persecution from the Sudanese regime. A few months later, Skye arrived in Vancouver too as allies.

Later in September, 2015, after a week-long values and leadership development seminar I attended at the Aspen Institute, and in particular, crucially after my experience with Senator McCain just days later in Washington DC, it started to make more sense for me to consider starting a new kind of educational endeavor. It was thanks to the Senator's encouragement that I went down this vocational path that brought you and I to this moment.

Inspired by the Aspen Institute, at AssertiveU™ we do not shy away from facing challenges of the human experience too often ignored by the "New Thought" and human potential movements. Moreover, similar to Esalen Institute, at the heart of our venture is our proven transpersonal psychology-based, spirituality-informed approach infused into everything we do.

After all, without peace and human rights, we cannot realize our human potential and express our human creativity. Despite initial doubts, and in response to the increasing demands on my time and bandwith, in mid 2016, I founded this new venture now available virtually and in-person for you.

Me standing at the United Nations HQ General Assembly podium in Manhattan, New York City in 2006 in front of an empty hall practicing and visualizing myself as a speaker addressing world leaders on important issues.

Me in 2006 inside the UN Security Council in the seat of the Secretary General.

Bit by bit, with steady patience, I rediscovered my love for God and spirituality, the grand Mystery of everything: an experience available to you. Referred to as Ma'at in the Mystery School temples of the Nile Valley as the indestructible Unity of Existence, the Morning Sun in Christianity, the Beloved in Sufism and Source in New Age spirituality.

As an artist and musician, besides Gospel music, I appreciate the universalist Inayati music-honoring Sufi Muslim lineage of Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan and poems on the angel of the veil Metatron. For the Sufi way in the words of Kabir Helminski is "a way of life in which a deeper identity is discovered and lived. This deeper identity, beyond the already known personality, is in harmony with all that exists." Indeed, a Reality beyond the veil.

As a writer and storyteller, accounts of the story of Joseph's rise as accurate wise dream interpreting confidant to the King of the Nile, and then as ruler of Egypt, hold special meaning for me. My father used to read the story to me from the Quran when I was little to help me sleep better because of terrifying nightmares I was having. Unlike the story of Moses and the tyrant pharaoh in it whose reign was one of terror, the King in the story of Joseph offers contrasting timeless lessons on the power and importance of dreams for developing your self-awareness, ethical leadership, strategic foresight and good governance.

Me with my editor Daniela Rapp standing in front of the iconic Flatiron Building in Manhattan in New York City where earlier in 2012 I signed my book publishing deal with St. Martin's Press for my author debut as Amir Ahmad Nasr with My Isl@m released in June 2013, not far from Hell's Kitchen, Daredevil's neighborhood in the Marvel universe.

The in the middle of nowhere Fortune 500 private company campus PETRONAS University of Technology where I studied from 2004 to 2008 Business Information Systems with a major in Knowledge Management and a minor in Corporate Management. It was here where I started blogging as Drima the voice behind The Sudanese Thinker while also actively participating in campus speech activities and performing live music and songs at the convention hall pictured above.

Me in 2016 speaking to a packed highly engaged room at the German American Institute in Heidelberg, Germany on the dangers of populism and unchecked immigration and the value of freedom and healthy integration.

Consequently, as the founder of AssertiveU™ my facilitation methods draw from the timeless wisdom traditions and are therefore capable of resolving stubborn issues where other methods failed. While I am in favor of modern inventions, one must not ignore or dismiss the power of timeless principles that are timeless for a reason. They are in harmony with the very fabric of reality in our vast Cosmos. And therefore, in harmony with yours and all that you innately are.

Personally, my track record producing literary, impactful advocacy and investigative journalism as a secular classical liberal humanist has attracted praise from a global audience and influential readership. They include respected Academy and Emmy Award recognized Hollywood personalities, Marvel and Disney storytellers, former White House officials, US Department of Defense, Five Eyes intelligence and NATO national security professionals, celebrated founders, Ivy League academics and tech investors, and fellow artists, activists and entrepreneurs. I have also been on panels as a speaker with senior members of the Obama administration speaking on tech innovation and the Middle East.

Me speaking in 2015 about the impact of the digital media revolution on religion, culture and politics in the prelude to the Arab Spring and the implications for years to come at Washington DC think-tank Cato Institute.

I am a featured personality in the Nick Nanton Emmy nominated documentary film Live Your Quest along with Tom Chi of Google X, Reverend Michael Beckwith of Agape, and the NYT best-selling authors Jack Canfield and Lisa Nichols, among others. And my writing has been featured in dozens of global journalism media outlets in more than 13 languages telling stories about spirituality and human flourishing with better alternative models of reality that free you to thrive. Through strategic and open source intelligence, I remain engaged in constructive consultations and award-winning initiatives for national security. And I certainly do not intend on stopping.

I strive to merge the best and most proven of timeless Eastern and Western philosophies, practices and storytelling traditions to serve you with greater understanding and versatility, amplified by A.I. in order for you to fast-track your growth with true resilience, real influence and profound R.O.I.

From making education ubiquitous, greening the deserts of planet Earth and achieving food security for all to renewing freedom and democracy and living healthier longer life-spans assisted by humanoids. Together with better advocacy, I believe we can achieve it, sooner, by leading with stories of possibilities rooted in real solutions to space travel and witness humanoids growing palms from the Nile in lush gardens on Mars.

Throwback to 2011 of me speaking for the first time as Amir Ahmad Nasr at the Oslo Freedom Forum in Norway in front of global media, heads of state and Nobel Laureates on the Arab Spring and past non-violent revolutions in my birth place of Khartoum, Sudan at the confluence of the White and Blue Niles, becoming the one storied Nile we know of.

Me as Drima Starlight in my first appearance in February, 2020 for my first TEDx talk, now on TED.com

I am committed to donating time and money to my local YMCA and charities that support American and Canadian veteran causes in particular the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) which researches treatments for PTSD that save lives and advance healing, and also to charities that support food security in impoverished areas in Sudan.

When I am not facilitating, I am deep at work as a writer on my book trilogy and as a screenwriter, singer-songwriter, director and producer on my debut upcoming cinematic concept album and documentary film venture, thanks to valued encouragement of a Grammy Award winning producer and an Academy Award winning executive producer and fellow education alumni. Today at AssertiveU™ we facilitate intensives for mission-driven CEOs, thought leaders, entrepreneurs, creators and executives, like you, to own your true voice, unlock your potential aided by A.I. and fast-track your growth to the next level.

An image going back thousands of years demonstrating the centrality of music in spiritual practice.

Ultimately, AssertiveU™ is as valuable as you make it. An accelerator, a launchpad or a modern day leadership mystery school... Regardless of how we are described, we aim and strive to offer magic and facilitations like the "Make a Wish Foundation" when facing "life-altering, complex physical and health challenges along with overwhelming mental and emotional burdens. A wish can stir the strength and optimism that are crucial to fighting physical, emotional and psychological adversity. Wishes are treatment." Indeed. They allow us all "to return to childhood, rediscover play, experience joy, and reconnect with family, friends, and community." Be your own best wish granter. You deserve it.

As long as you too are reflective, self-responsible, committed and resonate with our values, welcome to the AssertiveU™ campus. To learn more, sign up with your email to access your complimentary facilitation and speak soon.

- Amir Ahmad Nasr a.k.a. Drima and the Team 📞

Above on the right of a woman playing a lyre harp. It is a painting from over 3,400 years ago in a temple in Luxor north of the other woman on the left from today in the Nile valley of north Sudan where I hail from, just south of the Egyptian border which did not exist back then. Notice the similar braided hairstyles and flowy gowns worn by each of them, nearly four millennia apart. Centered above between the two is the Eye of Horus bridging both. I placed it there symbolizing devotional music as a healing, life-giving force. I am humbled and grateful to continue this sacred legacy.

Back full circle, getting ready to restring my first high school electric guitar in 2021 in Toronto to practice. Besides enjoying episodes of The Voice, I love documenting lessons from my journey to manifest my Billboard Hot 100 topping dream as the soul blues rockin’ singin' guitar slingin' otherworldly international superstar rockstar, Drima Starlight. Much love to one of my favorite mentors alive today, who happens to be one of Oprah Winfrey's favorite teachers too, Reverend Michael Beckwith who responded to me in 2016 in Cancun, Mexico with these kind words when I was open to receiving guidance: "young man, if you pursue music, it will completely change the trajectory of your life, beyond anything you can imagine."

At Ashmolean Museum, lies this "stoic statue was built by King Taharqa, conqueror of Egypt. The Ram represents the powerful god of sun and air Amun-Ra, with Taharqa standing below. King Taharqa was the third in the line of Kushite rulers whose power extended from their native Nubia to the whole of Egypt... as the pharaohs of the 25th Dynasty."

Me, the otherworldly artist Drima Starlight speaking as Amir Ahmad Nasr ( アミール・アハマド・ナスル | أمير أحمد نصر ) on Sudan's revolution, freedom and resilience at the 2023 Oslo Freedom Forum in Norway to 1,500 people, the annual event organized by the New York based Human Rights Foundation headquartered in the Empire State Building with a focus on protecting human rights and unleashing human potential in closed and authoritarian societies.


[Amir Ahmad Nasr's story] is a beautiful story about love, heartbreak, and redemption... be inspired.

— Salman Ahmad, International Best-Selling Author of Rock & Roll Jihad and Lead Singer of the Sold-Out Stadiums Sufi Rock Band Junoon

QUOTES OF WISDOM THAT INSPIRE YOUR ADVISOR & COACH, THE FOUNDER OF ASSERTIVEU™


"True desire in the heart for anything good is God's proof to you sent beforehand to indicate that it’s yours already." — Denzel Washington, Academy Award Winning Actor

"Poetry and lyrics are very similar. Making words bounce off a page." ― Taylor Swift, Billionaire Singer-Songwriter

"There are two mistakes along the way to Self-Mastery: Not starting it and not going all the way." — Master Shi Heng Yi, Shaolin Kung Fu Teacher

"I think it's important for people to stay human and remember that genuine human connection is more fulfilling than anything that technology has to offer. We all have it within us." — Jon Batiste, Grammy Award Winning Musician, Poet & Philosopher

"God walks out of the room when you do music for money... If a song needs strings, it will tell you. Get out of the way and leave room so that God can walk in." — Quincy Jones, The Biggest Most Influential Music & Media Producer in History

"Each of us has a personal calling that is as unique as a fingerprint." — Oprah Winfrey, Humanist Media Billionaire

"The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way... Energy can't be created or destroyed, and energy flows. It must be in a direction, with some kind of internal, emotive, spiritual direction. It must have some effect somewhere." — Keanu Reeves, Canadian Actor & Musician

"Be an instrument of peace. Enjoy yourself—have fun with your existence. Learn to listen to your inner voice and don’t overdose on yourself. Keep your darkness in check. Let music be a healing force. Be a real musician: once you start counting money before notes, you’re a full-time wannabe. Put your guitar down and go outside and take a long drink of light with your eyes. Go walk in the park and take off your shoes and socks and feel the grass under your feet and mud between your toes. Go see a baby smiling... Feel life, all of it, as much as possible. Find a human melody, then write a song about it. Make it all come through your music." — Carlos Santana, World Renowned Legendary Guitarist & Spiritual Revolutionary

"The stories of past courage can teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage itself. For this, each [of us] must look into [our own souls]." — John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States

"America's greatest strength has always been its hopeful vision of human progress... Our shared values define us more than our differences. And acknowledging those shared values can see us through our challenges today if we have the wisdom to trust in them again." — John McCain, the Late Honorable Republican Senator & 2008 Nominee for US President

"Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light‐years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the intricacy, beauty, and subtlety of life, then that soaring feeling, that sense of elation and humility combined, is surely spiritual." — Carl Sagan, Astronomer

"Misunderstanding arising from ignorance breeds fear, and fear remains the greatest enemy of peace." ― Lester B. Pearson, 14th Prime Minister of Canada

"The sound and music are 50% of the entertainment in a movie... All art is dependent on technology because it's a human endeavour, so even when you're using charcoal on a wall or designed the proscenium arch, that's technology." — George Lucas, the Creator of Lucas Films, Producer of Star Wars

"Storytelling is the most underrated business skill today... Companies that don't have a clearly articulated story don't have a clear and well thought-out strategy." — Ben Horowitz, Titan Silicon Valley Investor

"Do your little bit of good where you are. It's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world." — Viola Desmond, Canadian Lawyer, Entrepreneur & Civil Rights Icon

"While God has both Jalal, or Sacred Masculine, and Jamal, or Divine Feminine, historically too much attention was given to masculine eclipsing the tawhidic (unifying) balance with the feminine. The future will reclaim the feminine as a way to enhance the harmony and beauty." — Amina Wadud, Revolutionary Muslim Woman Challenging Patriarchal Interpretations & Leading Mixed Gender Prayers in Mosques as a Scholar Imam

"Following Jesus leads us from our fake selves to our real selves, from living in our heads to living from our hearts, from advancing our own agenda to receiving the gift of His, from thirsting for the next transient thrill to drinking deeply of eternal life." — Thomas Merton, Author & Christian Mystic

"Britain has two competing traditions – one rooted in ideas of freedom, equality and democracy, and another that sees these words as mere rhetoric to be trotted out at will and violated whenever it serves the Machiavellian purposes of power." — Akala, Author of Natives: Race & Class in the Ruins of Empire

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair." — Charles Dickens in His Famed Novel, A Tale of Two Cities

"If there's a book you want to read [or a song you wish to hear, listen to and enjoy] but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it [and sing it]... He had a language that was assertive, eloquent and political, but not devoid of love." — Toni Morrison, Winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature on the Imperatives of Being a Storyteller & on James Baldwin's Writings

"When the lips are silent, the heart has a hundred tongues... Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it... If you only say one prayer in a day, make it thank you." — Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi, Beloved Sufi Poet

"In order to change an existing paradigm you do not struggle to try and change the problematic model. You create a new model and make the old one obsolete." — Buckminster R. Fuller, Visionary Futurist

"I believe you can look to the past to determine the future. Anything that comes at you, it's a moment in time. You get through it, so long as you're in-tune and making decisions based on the things that you truly and genuinely believe in." — Todd Lieberman on Inside the War Room Podcast, Acclaimed Executive Producer With 8 Movies Opening at #1 at the Box Office, Along With a Total of 11 Academy Award Nominations & 3 Oscar Wins

"In the cave you fear to enter lies the treasure you seek." — Joseph Campbell, Mythologist

"Your heart is the light of this world, don't cover it with your mind." — Mooji, Contemporary Teacher of Universal Spirituality

"Art is one of those things. Setting the bar low, especially to get started, frees you to play, explore, and test without attachment to results. A river of material flows through us." — Rick Rubin, 8-Time Grammy Award Winning Producer

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[AssertiveU™ founder] Amir is one of the smartest and most trustworthy human doings, and one of the finest human beings I have ever met.

He is a quick and accurate study, enthusiastic, positive and not only listens and gets what you want to do and how to get there, he also listens into your future and gets where and who you want to and could be.

He will leave the world much better than he found it."

— The Late Dr. Mark Goulston, Fortune 500 Strategic Advisor & Author of the International Best-Selling Books Just Listen & Real Influence