[00:00:00] Podcast Intro: Are you ready to change your habits, sculpt your destiny, and light up your path to greatness? Welcome to the epicenter of transformation. This is Mic Unplugged. We’ll help you identify your because so you can create a routine. That’s not just productive, but powerful you’ll embrace the art of evolution, adapt strategies to stay ahead of the game and take a step toward the extraordinary.

[00:00:29] So let’s unleash your potential. Now here’s Nick. 

[00:00:34] Mick Hunt: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another episode of Mick unplugged where we dive into the stories of remarkable people. Who inspire us to go further. And today’s guest is a powerhouse in the field of personal development. She’s a speaker, she’s a coach, and she’s an author known for her transformative insights.

[00:00:52] She brings passion, energy, and a deep commitment to helping others reach their fullest potential. Please welcome to the show. None other than miss Italia, Torna, Benny, Italia. How are you doing lady? I’m awesome. I am awesome. So I got to let you know, I’m scared. You have this powerful book. You have this book about decoding men and I’m scared.

[00:01:18] I’m scared. You might’ve decoded me a little bit. But we’re going to go right into it. It is, it is. And so I will tell all the men that are listening, the book is actually amazing. Not worried that it wasn’t going to be. The book is actually amazing. And you’re going to learn some things about yourself in this book.

[00:01:36] So I tell you going into it, decoding men, right? It delves into your understanding of men based on 19 years of experience, studying our characteristics, our behaviors. Again, I’m a little scared, You share what initially sparked your interest in this area of study. 

[00:01:53] Italia Tornabene: Yeah, I actually was an exotic pole dancer for many, many years, and I would have to decode men within the first five minutes of meeting them because as an exotic dancer, you can either mold your personality to match that person and to get them in the VIP room, right?

[00:02:10] That’s the whole. That’s the whole point. It’s 

[00:02:12] Mick Hunt: the selling point. Not that I’ve heard stories. I’ve heard stories, you 

[00:02:16] Italia Tornabene: know, but you know, um, we all have our specific clientele and for me At the time I owned two businesses. I had 65 employees and for me it was the workaholics And the businessmen that I would get along with the most, I’d be able to have actual conversation with them.

[00:02:33] And I really, if men walked in, like in a group, I was in Vegas, so there was a lot of bachelor parties there. Within five minutes, I would have to scan them and see like, which one is my client? How? Because. If I know which one is my client, I know I’m going to be making money. I know I’m going to have a connection with that person.

[00:02:51] And I think it took me about 10 years to really hone that into the point where I was kind of, it was a game with me. Am I right? Am I wrong? And I would actually take notes like, you know, this one’s a workaholic. These are their characteristics. This one’s a nurturer. This one is a caregiver. You know, this one’s the party animal.

[00:03:11] This one’s the, the longterm guy. You know, you have that one guy that. You know, wants everything long term. So anyways, it took me probably about 10 years to master it to the point where I was making money, a lot of money. And people were asking me why and how I was making so much money. But I think it was just because I really, really learned how to decode men.

[00:03:29] And you guys are the simplest creatures. You really, really are. I think, you know, as women with social media, we have such high expectations of men and It’s getting ridiculous. I think social media has really, really heightened that, but I think you guys are really, really simple creatures, and if we understood each other more, communication would be better, and with better communication, you can actually hold on to that person long term.

[00:03:56] Mick Hunt: You know, I’m not even offended that you called me simple because I would actually agree. I would agree. It’s the simple things that I’m going to say the simple things that matter. And I think that’s that’s true for men and women. Simple things matter. But I do think for men for us, The simplicity of life, right?

[00:04:13] Totally makes sense. So you, you talked about a couple of insights. So I’ve read the book. I don’t want to say it. I would love to hear from Italia. What are some key insights that readers can expect to gain from decoding men regarding understanding guys and men’s mannerisms and behaviors? 

[00:04:31] Italia Tornabene: Right. So I broke it down to about 12 different personalities and in those personalities, and you know, and this is women and men can read this, but you can figure out your partner by the characteristics of each one of those codes, I say, and let’s say, you know, your husband’s a workaholic.

[00:04:50] And, and you’re taking it personal, you know, it’s just that he has a personality that’s very driven and don’t take a personal, 

[00:04:58] Podcast Intro: you 

[00:04:59] Italia Tornabene: know, and a woman needs to be his rock and be his powerhouse in a situation like that. So I’ve broken it down to almost bullet points. Like if he does this, this, that, and that, or if his traits are this, this, that, and that, he is this.

[00:05:13] And then it goes into love language, too. And I think it’s important for all of us to understand our own love language. For me, it’s gifts. I mean, my friends, my family, I’ll always buy them gifts. You know, that’s just my love language. But everybody has a different love language. And, um, that too I break down so people can understand that.

[00:05:31] So, you can decode your man by looking at the characteristics of each category. And say, okay, he’s this. And sometimes there’s a mix, you know, sometimes there’s a mix, but at least I break it down to where if he is this or this or a mix, this is how you address them. This is the best way to deal with your relationship and the best way to address that person.

[00:05:49] And, you know, it’s great for people in the sex work industry, but it’s also great for relationships. Because like I said, you guys are very simple. And with so many Yeah, I mean, you know, relationships hopefully can last a little bit longer. 

[00:06:03] Mick Hunt: So it sounds like this is the cheat code for men. So like, I’m going to have to write a counter to this book called breaking the cheat code or something.

[00:06:13] So can you discuss some of the common misconceptions or stereotypes about men that your book aims to dispel? 

[00:06:21] Italia Tornabene: So we’ll go to communication. And I learned this from, from dancing and talking to men. They would tell me stuff like, you know, my wife, you know, she hasn’t slept with me in months, right. And I’m listening to them and I’m like, okay.

[00:06:36] And being a dancer, you hear everything. You’re a psychologist, you’re a therapist, you know, you’re there for entertainment, you’re there for emotional support. But I would hear what they say and then I’d break it down and I’m like, okay, that’s not why she’s not sleeping with you. She’s not sleeping with you because you just said she gained 50 pounds.

[00:06:55] She doesn’t feel comfortable about herself. You know, it has nothing to do with you. Women and men communicate differently. A woman may say something and expect a man to understand what she’s saying because she means something completely different than what came out of her mouth and literal, like, okay, well you said this, this, that, and that, and that happens a lot.

[00:07:15] So the breakdown of communication happens a lot. But like I said, you know, if you understand your partner or you understand the man that you’re with by decoding him. But then that communication should go a long way, and yeah. 

[00:07:26] Mick Hunt: I love it. I love it. So you said earlier that the book is for both men and women.

[00:07:31] So why do you feel it’s important for both men and women to have a deeper understanding of the male behavior? And again, guys, I got us coming back. Don’t worry. I’m writing, I’m writing the sequel to this book. Don’t worry. 

[00:07:44] Italia Tornabene: Uh, actually, you know, it came to us in a great light. It’s not a bad book at all.

[00:07:51] It’s not, 

[00:07:51] Mick Hunt: it’s not. 

[00:07:52] Italia Tornabene: Yeah, it’s not. I think for, for women, like I just said, you know, if you’re in the sex work industry, you can pretty much decode a man in five, 10 minutes by talking to him, you know, just a little bit or even seeing what he’s wearing, those little things. And for a man, you might want to understand your circle of friends better.

[00:08:09] Maybe you have a communication barrier with one of your friends and you’re just like, man, I can’t understand this guy. Right. So it’s good for you to read. And also men have male partners too. So it’s a great book for them. 

[00:08:20] Mick Hunt: There it is. I love it. So you said that dancing provided you a great means of life from a financial side, 

[00:08:30] Italia Tornabene: right?

[00:08:30] I 

[00:08:30] Mick Hunt: was homeless. You were homeless. Oh, talk to us about that. I was homeless, 

[00:08:34] Italia Tornabene: um, I was homeless multiple times. I have a 19 year old son and he was about four years old. five years old, his father decided to come back into his life. And it was literally a 10 year battle custody battle of going back and forth and back and forth.

[00:08:47] And it got to the point where all of my money was going towards fighting for my son. And at the time, um, I was working for the government and he would think with degrees and working for the government, you would have enough money to sustain yourself and to survive. But it was impossible. I think towards the end of my career, I had three degrees.

[00:09:07] I was, um, working full time and my studio that my son and I lived in, a studio, was, uh, 3, 800 a month and my paycheck was 4, 300 a month. And that was with three degrees and working for the government for 10 years. And I was so sick of maxing out my credit cards every month. I was so sick of living check to check to the point where it was like, if we didn’t have groceries, I had a couple of noodles under my desk, you know, for, for the next couple of days until I was able to get paid again.

[00:09:37] It got to the point where I started dancing probably like two, three times a month just to fight the custody battles and be able to pay for the attorney. And then when I moved to San Diego and I was working and I mean, yeah, and I was living in that studio, I found a club down there in San Diego and it was so lucrative.

[00:09:56] Just the few days that I worked, I realized like maybe it’d be best for me to do this part time and keep as a part time job so I can start building more of my savings. And I was making anywhere from five to 10 grand a weekend. And I was still working for the government and working two jobs like that. I was probably working like 60 hours a week.

[00:10:15] Maybe more after 10 years. I did my tenure. They call it a 10 year when you work for the government for a certain amount of time where you’re fully invested. And I quit and I decided to go on this journey of dancing full time instead of part time and just stack my chips. And that’s what I did. And it’s done very, very well for me.

[00:10:34] Mick Hunt: I like it. You stack tips and I’m going to let everyone that’s listening know and understand. Talia is one of the sharpest financial minds that are out there, right? I tell people don’t let the pretty face fool you. She has a very sharp financial mind. So not only does she have the book decoding men, she also has a book.

[00:10:55] Easy investing and this book, I have actually picked up quite a few tips. So Italia, what inspired you to write a guide specifically aimed at simplifying the investment process? Because I thought that was so key of just understanding investment. I’m going to say in everyday terminology and everyday strategies.

[00:11:14] So what was your inspiration behind 

[00:11:16] Italia Tornabene: a few things? So it started because I’m writing my autobiography. This is actually a big part in it because it’s a rags to to Rich’s story, but my investment strategies had a lot to do with it. And, you know, my sister’s my assistant and she’s reading it with me. And she’s like, Oh, she’s proofreading the book.

[00:11:36] She’s like, I’ve never even thought about this stuff. I didn’t know that you did this stuff. And I was like, yeah. And I realized like we grew up in a very, very private. And savings to my family was a 401k and pulling out of that 401k as many times as they can a year to make money. And we were never taught about savings and investing wasn’t even in their vocabulary, you know, like there’s no such thing.

[00:12:01] And we don’t learn that stuff in school, which we should. We should definitely learn it in school, but that stuff at school. So here I am homeless living check to check and you know, everybody tells you open a savings account safe, but anybody who’s lived check to check will understand this once you have a savings account, you know, you may put 500 in there or a thousand dollars in there when you’re living check to check.

[00:12:24] That’s a big deal, you know, but, um, when, as soon as an emergency hits. You’re pulling out that money and you really never get a chance to save because you’re truly living check to check. Like I was working for the government, but I started investing when I was homeless and I invested in tangible things.

[00:12:41] And the reason why is because I knew if I had that money in the bank, I would save. Spend it. If, if I got a flat tire instead of figuring out and getting a used $50 tire, I would get the $300 tire, you know? Right. So, um, what I started buying was gold and silver bars. And I know people think, how do you buy, you know, gold and silver bars, but you can buy them on jam boyan from anywhere from $50 to a hundred dollars.

[00:13:03] Whatever I had left over, um, that I could invest, I started off with 50 a month, 50, 50. And then you see these little gold bars, little silver bars stacking up in a safe. It’s exciting. And when you do reach an emergency, it’s like by the time you cash that in or sell it, you’ve already dealt with what you needed to deal with.

[00:13:22] And you learn other ways to deal with it. Like I said about the flat tire, you know, if I get a flat tire, I could buy a 50 used tire rather than a 300 one. So I started stacking, you know, gold and silver. Um, and then I really don’t know where this came from. I just know I did some research, but domain names.

[00:13:40] So domain names are very interesting. Like you have your own website, right? 

[00:13:44] Podcast Intro: For your 

[00:13:45] Italia Tornabene: podcast with as much traffic as you drive to it. I’m not sure how much you bought your domain name for, but back in the day I bought mine on GoDaddy. For as little as a penny. 

[00:13:55] Mick Hunt: Wow. 

[00:13:56] Italia Tornabene: This was, you know, like 10 years ago, I bought mine for as little as a penny.

[00:14:00] Um, I started a couple of paralegal businesses in my early twenties. And those domain names, like I said, I don’t know where it came from. I must’ve gone on a rabbit hole and did some research, but those names that I bought for a penny, you know, or a dollar. Ended up going for thousands of dollars because the traffic that’s driven to them So then I went down a rabbit hole wondering what domain names do people want the most at this point in time?

[00:14:26] It’s health and fitness. So if you buy some domain names, you can make up a name, you know Um, it can be Nick unplugged health and fitness, you know, it it’s It could be that and you’re just holding on to it and it could be, it could be attached to your website. Yeah. That domain name will go up in value.

[00:14:42] Now I have 10 pages on GoDaddy of domain names that are worth thousands of dollars. So that was another investment that I did. And I have held onto all of them. I haven’t sold any of them. Another one is land though. 

[00:14:55] Podcast Intro: I 

[00:14:56] Italia Tornabene: had 5, 000 and I bought three parcel plants in Tennessee with that, that amount and somewhere, you know, one was 500, the other one was a thousand.

[00:15:07] The other one might’ve been like two grand, but to this day, the land hasn’t gone down in value. It’s only gone up. And I get, uh, offers on it constantly by attorneys or people that are buying land. And I learned a lot when I bought land. So you want to get like agriculture is a big one. That one’s going to always increase in value.

[00:15:26] Mick Hunt: Absolutely. 

[00:15:27] Italia Tornabene: Yeah. Residential land is great, but it has to be like in a track already with water, sewer, all that stuff hooked up. And now I own land in Arizona, Tennessee, Kentucky. And in New York, 

[00:15:41] Mick Hunt: I 

[00:15:43] Italia Tornabene: just keep buying up land, cheap, cheap land, but it’s there. If I have an emergency, I can cash it out real quick.

[00:15:49] You know, I’m planning on holding onto it for my son. Cause I figured 20, 30, 40 years from now, it’s going to be worth a whole lot more than I bought it for. And these little things that I’ve done to invest, I just started, that was just the very start. You know, the little things that I did next thing you knew, I had a Portfolio worth a couple hundred thousand dollars.

[00:16:10] And I mean, where do you see a return like that? Where you could buy a domain for a dollar or a penny and it’s worth two, 3, 000 a couple of couple of years later, just let 

[00:16:18] Mick Hunt: me tell you something on that. So I’ve got a friend, you remember late nineties. When the internet really became a thing, right? Because when the internet first started, it was new cycles was essentially what you found on the internet, right?

[00:16:30] New cycles and silliness. But I had a friend who we were in college in the late nineties, bought several domain names off of companies that he knew were big brands that hadn’t thought about the internet yet. 

[00:16:43] Podcast Intro: Yes. 

[00:16:43] Mick Hunt: This 20 year old bought seven. And I can’t say the names of these companies, but he bought seven domains.

[00:16:50] And in a year. Made 500, 000 

[00:16:53] Italia Tornabene: smart. Yeah. And you know, 

[00:16:55] Mick Hunt: like literally in the crazy thing is if he would have held out or if we both were just smart and thought about it, that could have been like 500 million because the internet is your lifeline, right? Like your domain is your lifeline for major corporations.

[00:17:09] And if, even if you’re not a major corporation, even for individuals out there, I tell people go by your domain name, your name at a minimum protect, because you don’t know where you’re going to go. You don’t know who you’re going to become. Your name is important. It’s the one asset that you’re always going to have.

[00:17:27] And think about that as a brand. 

[00:17:28] Italia Tornabene: Exactly. Exactly. You’re a hundred percent right. And, and these are things that people don’t teach you. I mean, everybody pushes the stock market on you. I remember 2008. And like I said, I was living check to check my whole life. And a 2008 hit and the markets dropped and everybody was like, Oh, it’s going to go back up, you know, buying the stock market now.

[00:17:47] And I put everything I had into it. Had there been like a thousand dollars, you know, but to me, that was a lot of money. I lost it all. And it’s like, everybody pushes the stock market on you, but it’s like, there’s so much. So many other ways to invest money, especially if you’re living check to check and you can’t afford to lose a dollar, you can’t afford to lose it.

[00:18:05] You know, then gold, tangible gold. I know people will invest in gold online. Uh, I want to hold mine. I want to know that I have it. I don’t want to lose. I’m not sending my money on the internet anymore for that. 

[00:18:16] Mick Hunt: Yeah. 

[00:18:18] Italia Tornabene: So I talk about that stuff in here. I also talk about something that really helped me out too, was custom whole life insurance.

[00:18:25] And that’s way too much for me to talk about on here. I do suggest I have 

[00:18:30] Mick Hunt: an insurance background like that. That was my 25 years. Absolutely. 

[00:18:34] Italia Tornabene: And it’s great. And, you know, even if I don’t ever have to use it, I know that my son’s going to be set for life for life. 

[00:18:43] Mick Hunt: There you go. A couple other, like one or two key concepts or strategies that you introduce in easy investing that most people don’t think about, 

[00:18:52] Italia Tornabene: I would say the domain and the physical goal.

[00:18:54] And land. I mean, those are, those are the three things that really have done well for me. And I never would have thought about it had I not, you know, done my own research and, and went down rabbit holes. 

[00:19:04] Mick Hunt: What can people expect to get out of the book? Easy investing. Like, what are some benefits that the readers are going to get from that book?

[00:19:11] Italia Tornabene: Start saving. It’s really not for your avid investor. It’s not for somebody that has a huge portfolio. This is for somebody that is living check to check, doesn’t have a savings account because they can’t hold on to it. This is going to be your golden ticket to start investing. This is going to be the beginning of beautiful future for you.

[00:19:30] You can hold on to it for years. Yeah. 

[00:19:33] Mick Hunt: And I’ll be honest and very transparent. Like I feel like I’m really good at financial strategies. Your book even taught me things again, in a simplified version, so much so that I gave that to my kids and I was like, Forget everything dad told you just read this because it truly is to your point.

[00:19:52] If you’re new at saving or investing, or if you have financial struggles, because all of us, I don’t care where you are today, all of us have been there. And I don’t want people to think that you’re too big to have been there because we all have been there. This book reinforces concepts. It reinforces strategies.

[00:20:11] And for that person, that’s like, where do I go? How do I start? This book is the key. I promise you, I promise you, Italia, what are some misconceptions or fears that people have about investing? And then how would your book break those down? Because again, I want you to say it because even my kids saw a couple of eye opening things, and I’d love for you to address that.

[00:20:31] Italia Tornabene: I’m actually writing a children’s book right now. It’s done, but it’s actually for kids and it’s barnyard animals saving like a squirrel saving nuts and stuff like that. Just teach kids about dating. It’s important, you know, but back to your question, it’s losing money. It’s the same fear. I have the same fear you have.

[00:20:48] I’m the same fear people have that are jumping money into crypto right now. It’s the fear of losing it forever. That once that money is lost, Gone. It’s gone, right? You put it in the stock market, stock market crashes tomorrow. And I feel like everybody’s been living in fear the past four years since COVID happened.

[00:21:03] It’s just this nonstop fear of what’s happened to the economy, what’s happening with inflation. And in my book, you’re actually purchasing physical, tangible things that do not decrease in value. And it’s gold. Gold right now is at the highest it’s ever been. But let’s just say the economy does flop. That gold’s going to go for even more.

[00:21:22] There’s only a few lands that you can purchase, right? They don’t keep rebuilding land, right? You only have a few plots that you could purchase. And then gold is a rare commodity as well. So these are rare things that you’re holding on to. A domain name. There’s only one dot com. You know, there’s all these dot nets and stuff like that.

[00:21:41] But the dot coms are the main, main ones. You know, you can’t just, um, Just purchase it again. Nobody can come along and just take it. Yeah, so these are actual tangible things So, you know, that’s why it’s important for people that are living check the check and that want to invest and save This is so important because you’re not going to lose your money this way this way you’re gonna Hold on to it.

[00:22:03] Mick Hunt: I love it. 

[00:22:04] Italia Tornabene: It’ll take some process, but it’s there for you to cash in at any time. J. M. Boyan buys back their gold and silver, copper, whatever you want to buy. So if you had an actual emergency and let’s say you stacked up a few grand and you’re like, I need this. It’s dire. Just go back to Jane Boyle and they buy it from you.

[00:22:21] Mick Hunt: Absolutely. All right. You’ve been so gracious with your time and I appreciate you more than you know. So a couple of questions, I’m going to get you out of here. Okay. One. So make unplug. We talk about going deeper than your why and being fueled by your because, right? Like I think everyone’s why I’m not saying it’s superficial, but your because is your reason that you do the things that you do.

[00:22:42] Right. So today what’s Italia’s because? 

[00:22:45] Italia Tornabene: I have lived the craziest life. I’m sure we all have a story, but I think that our journey is, especially if we’ve had a tough journey, it’s because we can handle it. And I think that my purpose on this earth is to help others and to learn through my hardships. So I remember, you know, I used to curse the heavens and say, why me?

[00:23:06] Why me? Like, how could this happen to me? You know? And I realized because I was strong enough to get through it, but there’s so many people that I talked to. that feel like they’ve lost hope and they may be 10 years older than me, but I’m like, Hey, no, I’ve been there, you know, you’re going to get through it and I just want to help other people.

[00:23:23] I want to help other people succeed. I want to help other people get through horrible times. So that kind of hope to do with my autobiography and little books like this, you know, help people have a better future and some more hope and faith in this life. 

[00:23:35] Mick Hunt: Love it. Freaking love it. All right. Last question.

[00:23:38] You mentioned the books and the autobiography coming up. So where can people find, obtain, get the books? Where can people follow Italia? Like what, where, where do we follow Italia? 

[00:23:49] Italia Tornabene: I would go to my Instagram. It does have all my links on it. And it also has my website on it. So you could purchase the books on Amazon or through my website.

[00:23:58] Or on Tik Tok. So if you go to Tik Tok and you purchase it, then you get a signed copy. I would follow my Instagram because it has all the websites on there that you need. 

[00:24:08] Mick Hunt: All right. 

[00:24:09] Italia Tornabene: At Italia Tornabeni. 

[00:24:10] Mick Hunt: Italia Tornabeni. Absolutely. Well, Italia, I appreciate you. This was amazing. A ton of great tips.

[00:24:18] Everyone come back and listen, write down all the tips that Italia gave you, because I promise you, you will not be disappointed. And as always remember, Your because is your superpower. 

[00:24:29] Podcast Outro: Thanks for listening to Mick Unplugged. We hope this episode helps you take the next step toward the extraordinary and launches a revolution in your life.

[00:24:40] Don’t forget to rate and review the podcast and be sure to check us out on YouTube at Mick Unplugged. Remember, stay empowered, stay inspired, and stay unplugged.