Authoring, Book Publishing, and Coaching with Crystal Daye

This weekly podcast inspires you to step outside of your comfort zone. My name is Zaakirah Muhammad, and I'm your host of the Living Legacy Podcast. I am a cancer survivor, brand cultivating strategist, author, and world traveler. This Living Legacy Podcast features women of purpose sharing stories of resilience. They are single and married. They are artists and entrepreneurs who run businesses and juggle parenthood. If you are ready to hear interviews about professionalism, entrepreneurship, travel, life, and love, you are in the right place. They will share stories of how they overcame adversity while seeing life through a different lens. Let's get into it.

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Today on the Living Legacy Podcast, we have Christal Daye. She is known to captivate and connect with people as a relevant, transparent, and transformational speaker. She propels her audience to action by challenging them to never settle for less. She, like myself, is a dynamic, multi-passionate entrepreneur. She's a coach, a podcaster, a brand strategist, award-winning bestselling author, uh, international certified life coach, and a speaker corporate trainer. So she is a woman of faith and she believes in servant leadership and unselfishly using her God-given purpose to positively influence and impact lives globally. She is also the COO of Daylight Publishers. So We're going to talk about what it's been like for her growing up and currently living in Jamaica and what it was like to not only publish one book, but more than one book. And then later on, create a coaching business and a publishing company. So welcome Crystal on Living Legacy Podcast. Thank you for being here.

Hi, thank you so, so much. I am so excited for today. I was looking forward to it actually.

Yes. And I think today is a great day for a great day, right? We can always—

I know.

Everything going on, it's definitely a way to be uplifting for others, and I feel that's our purpose. That's definitely our purpose.

Yeah, I agree, I agree. I mean, as you said, there's so many things that's happening all over the world, and there are days when you just feel like, like, you know, just give me a break. But there are other days where you really have to just choose to see the best in the day, and today is one of those days.

Exactly, exactly. So let's start with who Crystal is. Uh, let's talk about little girl Crystal. Who was little girl Crystal?

So as you mentioned, I currently live in Jamaica and I grew up in Jamaica. Now, little girl Crystal, uh, I think— so I was always very ambitious. I've always had some— I always felt like the environment that I was in, that was not my end-all and be-all. So just a backstory, I grew up in what we call the ghetto or inner city of Jamaica. And I, I put it— when I talked to my international audience, I said, picture the projects in the US, right?

Yeah.

So there's a lot of poverty where I grew up, a lot of violence, you know, just in the communities that I grew up in. But, you know, I've always been— always tried to say, you know, I'm so grateful for the parents that, you know, God had blessed me with. Because like my father, he saw the value in education, and from a young age, he instilled that value. So I would always be told that education is my way out of the inner city. Now again, picture most of the girls in my community at 16, they are getting pregnant. You know, the boys drop out of school by grade 9. You know, a lot of them pick up guns. A lot of them get into stealing and robbery and stuff like that. You know, a lot of the women, you know, have 2, 3, 4 baby fathers, you know. So that's a lot of what you will see around, you know. A lot of the girls also get into prostitution. And, you know, so that— This is what I kind of saw, but my— I felt like I was sheltered. Like, I didn't realize it was that bad until, like, I grew up and saw these girls doing these things. Because one, my father was very strict, so I couldn't go outside. I didn't play. I tell people I can't ride a bicycle. Like, fun fact, Christa can't ride a bicycle, right? Because I didn't get a chance to. I, I spent a lot of time just reading books, studying, and trying to do good in school. Um, but the Outside of that, I felt like it was a fairly okay, um, childhood. I love my brothers and sisters. I'm the eldest, and, you know, that— the joy of my life were my brothers and sisters, you know, or sitting, um, you know, and dreaming about having businesses, dreaming about traveling. We didn't have family members that traveled a lot. We knew one or two persons, but we didn't have people like, oh, you know, you're getting a lot of things from overseas. You didn't have I grew up having these big dreams and through education, but basically, uh, that was what childhood was for me. Um, you know, just, yeah, it was, it was okay. I, I knew I was poor because, uh, you know, I, I remember going to bed without, um, without food. I remember going to school with one uniform. for the whole year. I remember my parents not paying the school fee and, you know, being embarrassed at school because your parents haven't paid the school fee. I remember these things, but I felt like there was just a resilience in me. And I think the motivator came from, I wanted to do better for my siblings. That was big. I wanted to do better for them. So, you know, that's how, you know, I just, what childhood was like for me. I didn't know much about God. I remember my mommy telling me about God and telling me to pray. And I remember from a young age praying and having faith that there was a God and, you know, praying and negotiating with him, you know, God, if you help me to do this, then— so I remember that till teenage years.

By the way, it's not too late to learn how to ride a bicycle.

I will consider.

So you talked about you read a lot growing up, and I think every great writer starts off being a good reader. So tell us how you got into writing your first book.

Hmm, so you know, the funny thing is, I tell people I don't remember dreaming about becoming an author. Probably it's just something I've never seen. You just think that only, you know, popular people can become authors. So even through— I always wanted to do law because I always hear that I talk too much. So I was like, okay, lawyer, talk too much. And then when I was in like grade 11, thereabout, I was like, okay, I could— I wanted to become a politician because again, I grew up in inner city. I'm like, okay, I love helping people and how else to help people than through politics? I wanted to get into politics. And then I just kept changing my career. And then I settled for business. And I settled for business, one, because by the time, like, And I'm going to share how the book came in. By the time you finish high school, like, my mommy had other children, so I'm like, she couldn't spend any more money on me. She had to spend the rest of her money on— so I had to go and look for a job, you know. And business felt like it was easy. I needed a degree, it was easy. I didn't have time to sit and study and challenge myself. I just needed to make money, get a degree, so I can help my parents. Fast forward, I think when I became a Christian, I remember distinctly when I became a Christian, and I remember I was just seeking God for my purpose, and it was just somewhere in between that the idea of a book came about. Again, by then I probably met like about— that was about 2015— I met like about 2 Jamaican authors. I'm like, whoa, you know, whoa, how did you become an author? And, you know, I remember just kind of being very curious about this writing thing. And yeah, I just— I tell people, to be honest, like, I don't know. I know that while I'm a bright girl, or people would say I'm a bright girl because I did well in school and stuff, I don't think I was the writer, you know, that, that, that those writers that people like, I'm the best writer in the world. What I do know is is that I love people and I wanted to help persons. And that's how the book was birthed. I just wanted to share my testimony of, you know, how I became a woman of purpose. So I became a woman of, um, you know, how I found my identity in Christ. And, and, and he kind of led me into, into writing. And yeah, after that I got studying the publishing industry and, you know, the, the 9 years, like, oh, this could be a career. This could be a thing.

thank you for writing a book and thank you for writing your story because yes, we need more women from the diaspora and, and, you know, the Caribbean to be able to do that, especially for the publishing company. I, as soon as I saw that you, you know, started Daylight Publishers, I'm like, that you're already, you know, taking the less taken path in a good way. So that's a very good thing. And I feel like we're also similar though because I did good in school, but English was my best subject in school. But I too, I didn't think of being a writer. I wrote in my journal, you know, just to stay sane during school, but— That was it.

Yes, like you do. Like, and I think sometimes with— and, and if your listeners are listening, sometimes the things that come so naturally for us, we don't realize how powerful it is to our purpose. Because even speaking, I remember I tell people, when I was leaving high school, I got like the top grades and they were, um, they nominated me as valedictorian. And I said hell no, because nobody will ever get me to speak on a stage. Like, I was that terrified of speaking. Like, I love to talk, but the idea of talking in front of persons, like, I just did not think that that was something I'm capable of. And similarly with writing. And look at me now, you know, it just is like writing and speaking and coaching are like things that comes like naturally, like breathing for me. And, and that's how I realized that purpose is really already in us, you know, it's not like the external things that I felt like I needed. It really was innate.

Now let's talk about that journey to finding your purpose, because, um, not many people are blessed to be able to find it, or they, they find it, but it loses them. And then it takes them a while to get back to it. So talk about what it was like to find that purpose.

So I'd be lying to say the truth is like, for me, I'd be lying to say my faith in Christ has not been the most paramount thing with purpose. But what I've learned on the journey is that a lot of times we are searching for this purpose thing as this big thing. And as I said, it's just something innate, it's not for you. And that's one of the things I realized, like, I wasn't— God didn't place me on this earth for me to have the best education, have the big car, the big job. Like, even though those things are great, the truth is your purpose and the true joy comes from serving persons. So when I remember just desiring, like, from I was young, I always wanted to mentor young girls. And that's because, again, I grew up in the inner city and I knew that the mindset, like, you know, if somebody didn't intervene in their lives to tell them that there was a different way to go, many of them would have gone down the path of, you know, promiscuity and all of these things. So I started to just do things I was passionate about, and that came from serving people, serving teenagers, praying for women. The book You know, just came from me sharing my story as an inspiration. And I say, that's how purpose for me came. When I stopped looking into, okay, how can I do this for Crystal? How can I do this? But who can I serve? My community, how can I serve my church? How can I serve even my organization? People would tell you when I was working a 9-to-5 job, I was that person like, listen, the place is boring. We have a sports club. I'm gonna be the activities coordinator at the sports club, and I'm hosting events. So, that after work people have something fun to do, you know. And I realized my purpose came in wrap-up. It felt like, okay, initially it was helping women to live wholesome, godly lives, and that was it. However that looks. Wholesome means not just spiritually, but okay, how can I help them to tap into their gifts? How can I help them to accomplish their dreams? And however that looked in different seasons, that was my purpose. So somebody listening You know, your purpose might be to serve. You are great with children. You're amazing with children. How can you serve? Like, every time you think, you see yourself picturing yourself with a daycare center, and you're like, well, I don't have the money for the daycare, you know. But what can you do? No. Can you, you know, have some friends over with their children and you teach them? You know, sometimes we see purpose as just being on a stage and platform, but it's serving. No. And for me, the Bible says, you know, when I'm faithful with little, I would be blessed with much. And I've seen that in my life when I had conferences or when I have workshop with 5 teenage girls, right? And I was faithful in that. I know summer gone, August gone, I hosted a teen summit, a teen mentorship. 500 teens signed up. And I was like blown away because I remember when I was just teaching 5 teenagers. You know, and I see how my purpose have evolved because I was faithful with little.

Let's keep the conversation going. Follow us on social media @livinglegacypodcast. Leave a comment, introduce yourself, and tell us how the podcast has inspired you. This episode is sponsored by my new book called Seeing Life Through a Different Lens: A Survivor's Memoir on Overcoming Adversity with Resilience. You can visit zaakirahnayar.com.

Absolutely. That's all it takes to take the perseverance, the patience, and definitely being proactive as well. Those are definitely very important to finding your purpose. That's the four Ps right there.

That's a word right there.

All right. So how many books have you written exactly? Six.

Six. All right. So six. Living a Royal Reality. Empowered for Such a Time as This. Empowered for Such a Time as This was. where it was written at a time when I just left my 9-to-5 job. I felt like I was on this purpose journey. I was going well, and then God told me to leave my job, and I was struggling with just, who am I? You know, because I realized when— I was a senior procurement officer at a government institute, right? So I realized when I was no longer the senior procurement officer, somebody asked me, Christa, what are you? I struggled to say I was an author. I was a speaker. Like, it didn't feel good, you know, it didn't feel as prestigious. So that was birthed from me reminding women again, you know, that their calling is powerful no matter how minuscule you think it is. Whether you're a stay-at-home mom, whether you are just a sole entrepreneur, you are the only person in your business right now, you know, like, it is powerful. And that was what— then I had like become a Christian life coach. I recently— I have 2 teen— 2 devotionals. I have a devotional for teen and young adults, and I have a Living a Raw Reality Teen Edition that was written with— I mentored 12 teen girls and helped them to birth their stories, and they wrote that. So that is an amazing book because the girls are sharing their story of, you know, being raped, being, you know— and these are teenage girls coming out. So that was a powerful project for me. So yeah, I think it's 6. I do have other projects in the pipeline, but the truth is I started my publishing company in 2017. Up since the last 3 years, I've published over 100 authors. And because I've been so busy trying to help other people birth their dreams, I've kind of put mine to a back burner for a little bit, a little bit, just to help others. But eventually I believe that others will come to life.

That's what happens also when you're fulfilling your purpose. Your purpose is feeding you that. you kind of forget about, you know, your personal project. But when the time is right, those personal projects will literally be like an alarm blaring, like, it's time. It's time to work.

Yes, yes.

Now, um, what else do you do specifically? Why did you decide to become a coach? What kind of coach are you?

Um, so initially when I started, I started as an empowerment coach because again, I love women. I had done my coach— like, I felt like I was coaching all my life. So I, I was a teenager that at the end of the year, I will meet with my friends and like, what's your New Year's resolution? You know, what are your biggest strengths and weaknesses? And they would be so annoyed because I'd be emailing, what are you, you know, what, and things like that. So I feel like I've always been coaching, but when I came into the realization that there was more, um, you know, I got certified as a life coach and I started to do empowerment coaching just to kind of help women to, to walk in their calling, um, you know, discover their gifts and stuff like that. Um, currently I, I realized about a year and a half that I actually love coaching coaches. So here in Jamaica, I started to train Christian life coaches here in Jamaica, and I've done that probably about 150 coaches here. And mainly because I realized I can't do everything, you know, people want relationship coaches, people want health coaches. So I've been training coaches. So currently I only focus on book brand business. So I don't do life coaching anymore. Through writing books, I've discovered that I have to use a lot of my coaching skills because a lot of persons come, especially when they're writing memoirs, and they are just not healed. They are just not in a place to share their story. So I find that I still have to do a lot of life coaching things, but now my focus is on that. And I love— I realize that I love teaching coaches the skills, but I no longer want to necessarily help them to do that because there I do have a community of coaches to refer people to.

Mm-hmm, perfect. Yeah, and I think, um, that almost leads to the next question of how can we find your books, take advantage of your services, find your podcast, Like, where can we find you online?

Well, you know, uh, podcasts. So I tell you, you know, um, listen, big up to yourself as a podcaster because people think that podcast is just, oh, like you just interview people. Like, no, there is so— one, I find there's so much power with interviewing people, giving, allowing them to come on your platform and to share with your audience. That is— so you doing this, like, I'm so, so grateful. If your listeners are listening, I am so happy to be here because I know the podcast journey and the insecurity sometimes, you know, of there are so many podcasts, where do I fit in? How can I make my show different? And, you know, I got into podcasting this year after like 2 years, you know, desiring this, but being afraid of my voice, you know, being afraid of, uh, you know, what would people say? So shout out. So again, my, my, my podcast is Diary of a Jesus Girl. And that was birthed because I felt like when I came into church and became a Christian, I was almost like— people wanted fake. They wanted me to act like, okay, I'm saved, sanctified, and I'm not struggling with anything and I'm heading to heaven. And I was struggling. I wanted a boyfriend. I still wanted to go party. And nobody wanted to talk about the real thing. So on the podcast, I interview people and talk about, you know, abortion and masturbation and, you know, things like real issues on the faith journey and how do you deal with that and encourage, hoping that it will encourage others, you know, to still walk out the faith walk and push. My books are on Amazon, they're on Kindle. I would— I'm a social— I tell people I'm a social media person, like follow me on Instagram, on Facebook, like every day I'm on. I love social media. I think social media is a powerful platform to connect with people, and I love connecting with people. So, you know, just reach out to me.

My—

if you are interested to write a book, you know, Daylight Publishers, and I'm sure you leave the links. So Daylight Publishers, I offer a complimentary session first because I like to— I don't take on everybody as a client. I want to hear— I want to ensure that our vision is aligned and also I can serve you Right? Because if I can't help, then I won't try to to take you on as a client. So I do complimentary consultation just to hear more. And yeah, I just love people helping people. I for the book checklist, I do have a freebie, and it is Bentley B I T forward slash L Y bestseller. Cheat Sheet. So if you download that, you will get a course and you get the checklist and you will get ebook, you know, just to help you to get started on your book writing journey. And for somebody that's listening, believe me, your book is wanted. I know that you're, you're doubting because there's so many books out there, but believe that, you know, your message is so unique. There are many people talking about purpose, identity, but there's truth is my book has gone to places that I've never been, you know, and persons all over the world are being blessed because of my unique perspective. And that's what your book would offer.

Yeah, I'll definitely also leave everything in the show notes, um, so everyone can find it. And now before we go, I do have 2 fun questions that I love to ask all my listeners. You ready? Okay. I'm ready. The first one is, when this is all over, Um, and people can— more places open up to travel, where's the first place you want to travel to?

Ah, so let me cheat a bit because even though we weren't supposed to travel, I went to the US. I went away in August, um, because my mom, my mom lives— migrated last year. Um, so I went up for my stepdad's birthday. But, um, to be honest, I'm hoping that I'll be able to make it on a cruise next year. I love cruises. I did one once, so I would love to do a cruise for summer next year for my birthday again. Um, wherever, somewhere Caribbean cruise, European cruise, whichever my pocket can afford at that time. But definitely I want to do a cruise, um, when, when all of this is over.

I love that, I love that. Yeah, I got a lot of family members that are cruise, um, deprived right now, so I know.

Listen, cruises are amazing. Free complimentary food. travel. Like, can't get better than that.

I love it. And then the next question is, if you were, God forbid, to die tomorrow, what would you want your legacy to be?

That's a, that's an interesting one. Um, you know, the truth is, uh, 2 things. One, I tell Eve, I, I would want to be remembered as a woman that pushed people to Christ. Um, you know, anytime somebody remember me, I'd want them to say, you know, She really lived a life that was pleasing to God. Because boy, it would have been vain if me sacrifice all of this without, you know, not making it to heaven, to seek God. And then 2, to be known as a woman that propels people to their dreams. I believe a lot of persons' life happens and they have forgotten their dreams. They are doubtful of their dreams. And I believe my life mission has always been to help people to realize that your dreams are possible. Yeah, and the final thing, and I'm hoping that even after this I will be able to open a bookstore here in Jamaica, and that's a dream of mine that I'm hoping that, you know, if I leave soon, it will be there. Because, you know, I want— I really want people to find love in books and to find, um, hope in books.

So I, I, um, I don't say hope, I say do, you know, because it's definitely needed. Um, because I, I mean, Jamaica is known for the music, but what about the books, you know? So—

Agreed.

Yeah, and the positivity. Like, I find while we are like unfortunately known as a country And which we didn't get into today, but, you know, we are known for the country, I think, in terms of the top 10 countries in the world with crime and violence. Like, a country with— a small country with 2.8 million, and we are in the top 10 of the most violent countries in the world? That's ridiculous. And unfortunately, you know, crime is so high here. So, but there's just so many amazing people and so many amazing things that Jamaica has to offer. And sometimes it's lost in the weed that we are known for and the, you know, the music. So yeah, I do pray that, you know, Jamaica one day will be known, you know, for the literature and the hope that is offered through its people. And, you know, hopefully that Crystal Day is one of the names that will come, come to their minds.

I think so too. And yeah, I mean, I've been to Jamaica. I went to Negril But even, I mean, I flew into Kingston, went to Negril, but even then when I was there, I'm like, I felt safe there, you know, compared to most people would be here in the US at this moment.

So yeah.

Yeah.

Thank you. Thank you for that.

Thank you. Thank you for being on the Living Legacy Podcast. It's been an honor.

Uh, thank you so, so much. I can't wait. And I love the name Living a Legacy. Um, I tell people all the time that a book Leave a legacy. Like, when I die, my books will be here, and that's why you write books. So yes, thank you.

Thank you for listening to the Living Legacy Podcast. Be sure to subscribe, follow, and download so you don't miss the next episode. If you want to learn more, you can visit zaakirahnayyar.com. That's Z-A-A-K-I-R-A-H-N-A-Y-Y-A-R.com. Do you have any suggestions on a topic you want to be talked about? Leave them in a review. If you love this episode, be sure to share it with your friends.