Hi Dina, welcome to Small Business Trendsetters.  

Oh thank you, Luana. It’s such a pleasure to be here with you. 

Tell us more about your journey, what led you up to this point? 

Well, it was quite a journey! I think the most significant thing that changed for me was – well, actually, there were a few things. 

I was in IT for many years, and while I always felt that I was very successful, it wasn’t really my passion. So, when I stumbled upon coaching, specifically NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) coaching, I loved it from the moment I met it. It was love at first sight, and it continued to develop from there. 

After a while, once I’d established my success on this new career path, it started to plateau. It was then that, out of the blue, I received the opportunity to become a publisher. 

And what went through your mind at that time? 

You know, the backstory of this is that many years before I had read The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. It really made such an impact on me, and I thought to myself, ‘I would love to write stories like this’. But, of course, I never did. And then this publishing opportunity came to me, and I had a physical feeling about it in my body. I could feel and just knew that this, this is for me. 

So, long story short, I started studying and went on to build my own publishing company! Within a few months, I had my first book, a published multi-author (which was an international bestseller), and I published my third book in December 2023: My Mess is My Message Volume 2. 

At the moment, I’m busy with my fourth book, which is, again, a completely different type of book. It’s part of my character that, once I’ve mastered something, I then go on to see how I can push the envelope with it. So this next book is a whole different model of multi-author book, and I’m very excited about it. 

So what makes this next one different to the others?

For starters, all the others included about 20 authors. This one will have 111 stories in total, and it’s called I’m So Glad You Left Me. It’s a book with a twist. And I think if you see the initial title, you might think of it as a little bit spiteful, but it’s quite the contrary. It’s not about blame and shame – it’s about personal transformation. 

It’s really to inspire others about what is possible and for people to own their story, which is the only story that they can actually write about. 

You’re known in the industry as somebody who is a trendsetter, can you let us know more about which of your ideas are unique?

To the publishing industry, I bring this new kind of book. Meanwhile, my other books – the 20-author ones – are very much run of the mill. But to do a book with 111 stories in it… While they’re much shorter stories, it’s a much bigger project. 

It takes a lot to actually gather so many people around a project and to launch that many international bestselling authors at one time, but that is my purpose: to give people a voice. I want to help people get their message out there into the world so that they can be heard. And they, in turn, can then really expand their visibility and brand in a big way by leveraging the opportunity. So that’s another thing that I do that’s different: I teach my authors how to leverage the project and to build an online business around it. 

What sorts of results do your clients get after the book is published and they follow your advice on leveraging?

I teach them how to set up a speaker sheet for themselves, how to pitch for podcasts, and how to really leverage their story so that they can share it on different platforms. And, of course, the online business they build on the back end should have an infrastructure, a program, and a freebie that they can offer, so that when we launch the book, they can capitalise on it. 

As we know, when a book launches, it really is wonderful, but you have to leverage what you have achieved, because many authors don’t. They write the book, they publish it, and then that’s it. But you have to take it that step further if you want to build your business with the book, and that’s something that’s really important for me. It’s very important that the authors make a return on their investment. 

Can anyone write a book, Dina? 

Yes, but I think there are criteria. Especially for nonfiction books, you need to be an expert in your industry. Please don’t use AI to write a book on something that you have no idea about. Use your own expertise because I won’t work with someone who uses ChatGPT to write a book – it’s not your idea! 

I’m with you on that one. People are starting to sound the same, and so people are really craving human connection. Do you think?

Yes, and it’s worth the extra effort. When we publish nowadays, we actually have to mention that ‘this book was not created by AI’. I think AI robs humanity of creativity. 

Don’t you think that the most beautiful part of writing a book is the actual creation? Everything that we go through emotionally, getting everything down on paper. 

Exactly. Without that journey, it just becomes a scheme to make money. I think that it needs to come from your heart, from your experience. It’s for you to write your story in a way that nobody else can or will. 

Anyone can write a book. And even the best writers, the best authors, have editors. That’s why we have editors – to polish what we say so that it can be said in a slightly better way. But if you know what you’re talking about, if you have expertise, of course you can write your book, and your story is important.

I saw that you’re also a Quantum Human Design specialist, Dina. Tell us more about that! 

I initially left the coaching to do the publishing, but then it’s come full circle, and I am now a Quantum Human Design specialist. So, I coach people on manifesting their dreams in alignment with their human design. 

It really is quite interesting. I’ve always been fascinated with manifestation, and I’ve always studied alignment, vibration, and energy. I actually turned my business around towards the end of last year by deliberately practising vibrational alignment! And then, another very important piece of the puzzle for me was human design. So, I signed up to study it. 

I just found it fascinating how absolutely unique we all are in how we are Divinely designed, how we are created to come into this life with everything that we need to fulfil our soul contracts. In other words, our human design tells a story of the role that we are here to play, as well as our character. 

Your human design can help you understand your strengths, the pitfalls you’re going to encounter, the lessons and challenges you’re going to overcome, what you’re here to do and why you’re here, and it is incredible to coach people through that. It’s a process that helps people know how to create in the best way. 

One of the reasons why so many people are burned out is that they don’t know who they really are. They also don’t know how to create in the best way for how they’ve been designed and what they’re here to achieve. And that was my story as well. 

We push against the universe, and because we just leap into action when we get an idea, when we jump for it, we fall flat on our face because we don’t get the results that we want. This happens because, when we’re co-creating with the universe, there’s a cosmic dance. When you know what that dance is and how that works for you, then it becomes much easier, and you know how to conserve your energy, how to respond, when and what to do next. So, you’re much more relaxed. You’re able to let go of the stress that ‘I have to make this happen’, or ‘this is how it should be’, or ‘who I am is not okay’, and all those false ideas. 

I love that. There’s so much noise around us, aren’t there? People telling us that their way is the only way with conflicting advice all around and it’s really hard to know who to listen to. Well, who better than your own human design? 

Absolutely, it tells you everything! The beautiful thing is that it’s such a science, because it is the combination of Eastern and Western Astrology, the Judaic Kabbalah, the Hindu Chakra System, the Chinese I’Ching, and Quantum Physics. 

How can people find out more about you? 

The best way to find out more about me is to go to my website at www.dinamarais.com. That’s where you can see everything that I’m busy with in terms of both the publishing and the coaching. 

Thank you so much for coming on today Dina. It’s been an absolute pleasure talking to you. 

Thank you, Luana. It’s been awesome! Thank you so much for your time, I really appreciate it.