By Kari Arneson
When it comes to dating and relationships, do you ever feel confused and unsure how to maneuver around the often bumpy terrain? If so, Donna Estes Antebi is here to help. The entrepreneur, patent holder, business consultant, author, blogger and life coach has made it her mission to help women from all walks of life navigate modern-day relationships. Her latest book, The Real Secrets Women Only Whisper has a warning: “Keep this book away from men!” because of her real insight into the nature of men’s minds. She gives women brutally honest advice about sex, love, dating, money, marriage, divorce, cheating, children and everything in between. According to Antebi, “Every single woman who reads it will absolutely utilize one piece of information in there that will change her life for the better.”
We spoke with Antebi via phone last month. Take a look at what she had to say:
What inspired you to write such an honest book about relationships?
I originally wrote the book because I was asked to speak to my friends’ daughters who were moving out on their own. My friends wanted me to talk to them about what it’s like being a grown-up woman in the world, the kind of things mothers feel uncomfortable doing. I started putting my thoughts together, and then I thought, Oh my goodness – if I knew at their age what I know now…and off to the races I went.
This is the right book at the right time. It’s for all the women trying to play a new game by old rules. Women no longer have the luxury of learning from their mistakes. I would continually loan it out to women who were dealing with some sort of crisis. Then we wanted to make it available to all women simply because the stakes are so high.
Where did your knowledge and advice about love, marriage and men come from?
The Real Secrets is a culmination of my life experience as an entrepreneur, a life coach, a wife, a stepmother, a mother. I found a way to humorously pass on insight into easy-to-remember segments. Between myself and my husband, we have eight children. Five of his, one of mine and two of ours. We’ve been together 20 years. This book is about my experience and things that I’ve observed from the women around me.
Why is it important that women keep this book away from men?
I reveal to women the secrets that allow them to fully understand the nature of men. And there are so many secrets about understanding human nature that we really don’t need to give men any ideas. For example, I share with women the 21st century high-tech ways men are deceiving 21st century women.
But the interesting thing about my book is men can’t keep their hands off it. My book gives them anxiety. But then when they read it, they find it valuable. They feel like it’s eavesdropping on a conversation they want to hear. I think it’s good to have secrets. Men can’t resist anything that comes with a warning: “Keep away from men.” It gives women an understanding of the nature of men and insight on how to leverage that knowledge.
If women take away one piece of advice or life lesson from your book, what should it be?
This book helps woman change the domino effect of her choices. The book shortcuts the learning curve for women so they don’t have to learn every lesson the hard way. The single most important decision a woman will make is who to have a child with. It really will determine the rest of your life. You can have a starter marriage, but not a starter family. I have very counter-intuitive advice to help women save their marriage. There’s an infidelity crisis in America. For women with marriages in crisis, I give advice on how to save it.
Do you have any upcoming projects we should know about?
I’m still in the middle of doing a book tour, radio and television interviews and I have a couple of speaking engagements coming up. I’m an entrepreneurial mentor in the Founder Institute, an entrepreneurial incubator for small businesses. I do a lot of life coaching and work with women in business. I’m good with helping women get to where they want to go.
Cupid thanks Donna Estes Antebi for her time! For more information, visit her website at www.TheRealSecretsWomenOnlyWhisper.com, Facebook page, or follow her on Twitter: @donnaantebi. To purchase a copy of The Real Secrects Women Only Whisper go to Amazon.
