Tips to unleash your inner Goddess/God with Tellwell author of the month, Rita Kakati-Shah
Rita Kakati-Shah, the author of The Goddess of Go-Getting, holds many roles both in the business world as an entrepreneur, founder & CEO, public speaker, media contributor and, now, author. She is an award-winning gender, diversity, and inclusion career strategist, speaker and coach. She founded and runs, Uma, a company that provides strategic expertise in those areas to Fortune 500 companies.
The Goddess of Go-Getting was launched on International Woman’s Day by the Consul General of India in New York and has become the number one bestseller across three categories on Amazon.
Kakati-Shah was born and raised in London, England and is from Assam heritage. She now lives in New York City with her husband and children.
You have a unique voice, so tell the story in your voice, not in someone else’s. Once you find your voice, you’ll feel the passion and your writing will flow!
Rita Kakati-Shah, author of The Goddess of Go-Getting
Authors may battle imposter syndrome, question their ideas and talent, and struggle to let go of fears. How can authors unleash their inner Goddess/God to overcome their fears?
Love this question! First and foremost, you have to remember that as an author you have your own voice. Even if two authors were to recount the exact same story, their prose and expression would be different. You have a unique voice, so tell the story in your voice, not in someone else’s. Once you find your voice, you’ll feel the passion and your writing will flow!
What habits or rituals have you adopted that have helped you overcome fears and unleash your inner goddess?
When I first started the process of writing, I put a lot of emphasis on researching techniques and writing structures. I tried too hard to stick to a single genre of writing. For example, I started off thinking I was going to write a business book, which promptly started to sound more like a memoir. When I let the rules go and wrote to tell my story, I realized that I couldn’t write about my professional life without incorporating personal anecdotes, and vice versa. So in short, listen to your own style and voice, as ultimately it’s your story and art of storytelling that people are going to bond with, not theoretical writing concepts.
What inspired you to write The Goddess of Go-Getting?
My journey with diversity and inclusion started from my experiences as a little girl growing up in a suburb of London, England and continued through to my professional experiences after I entered the workforce. So by virtue of my background, decades of lived experiences and knowing what needed to be changed and approached differently in the world, is really what compelled me to put pen to paper. I wanted to write something that makes a difference, to empower, inspire, and resonate with everyone regardless of their background. This book is for women, youth, schoolchildren, as well as for leaders of companies.
What were some of the key steps you took to ensure the book received attention and press once it was published?
I made sure to line up my pre-reviewers before the book was published, and outlined my launch strategy weeks in advance. I arranged pre-launch book talks to create hype where quotes and themes were discussed, which also helped build up my readership database too.
What book marketing advice do you have for authors who may not have the same networks as you but are motivated to market and promote their book?
Ultimately, it’s all about being comfortable with putting yourself out there. Use social media channels as much as you can. Build a strategy utilizing marketing quotes, pictures of your book with other readers, and post images from book talks too. There’s no right or wrong strategy, you just need to maintain consistency and keep posting and marketing yourself. This helps you stay top of mind. Ask friends and reviewers to post and share for you too!
How has running your own company helped you in writing, publishing and now, marketing your book?
One thing you never have enough of is time! So if anything, running my own company has taught me that if you want to do something, you just have to do it. You cannot wait to find the right time, as that will never come. As an entrepreneur, you also learn to take risks and so are unafraid to dive into new and exciting situations such as authorship!
You have been featured on Forbes, Fast Company. Your book has landed on multiple Amazon bestsellers lists, and you have spoken at and booked several high-profile speaking engagements. Tell us about your recent notable accomplishments as it relates to your book (and please don’t be shy).
That’s very generous of you, thank you! My book was launched on International Women’s Day this year, 8th March, by the Consul General of India in New York, Randhir Jaiswal, and endorsed by the First Lady of Assam, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma. It was a wonderful event where in addition to launching the book we celebrated the successes of global Indian women through a power panel discussion.
I also did a special pre-launch book talk for patrons of St. George’s Society of New York, which is one of the oldest charities in America, predating the Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War, founded in 1770.
A few days later, I was in Dubai delivering a keynote about the importance of “The Rules of the Playground”, a chapter from The Goddess of Go-Getting on how education is paramount to impacting attitudes and the overall mindset of students.
Most recently I did a talk in Bari, Italy covering key tips from my book on negotiation and confidence for entrepreneurship and crowdfunding. Highlights from several book talks in London include discussing the Decency Quotient (DQ) as a tool for leadership with the City Women’s Network and King’s Business School, as well as various talks to schoolchildren, students, colleges and universities on themes such as failure, politics and impact. Stateside, I was in Los Angeles, New York, Washington DC, and then Dallas giving book talks to corporate and academic audiences, and as I write, am preparing to give the keynote at a finance conference in Miami. Next month, I have more talks coming up in the UK, Germany and Singapore. I’ve probably missed a couple, but that’s the gist of it!
What was the most rewarding experience in your author journey?
When independent readers started posting unsolicited pictures and leaving reviews on platforms like Instagram, Goodreads, and Amazon, stating that the book genuinely impacted their way of thinking or made them feel super confident and empowered, that was the moment.
What do you hope readers will take away from your book?
A combination of unshakable confidence, inspiration, realization, and awareness! It’s written in storytelling prose in order to be relatable and resonate with anyone and everyone!
Keep an eye out for Rita Kakati-Shah’s upcoming children’s book. She will also be discussing her book in several podcasts including Ellevate, Authors Unite, Covey Club, and Herstory to name just a few.
Learn more about Rita on her website, follow her on Instagram, and check out her YouTube channel!
Rita Kakati-Shah’s children 
Rita Kakati-Shah with her family
