Kineta Kelsall is a founder, global social strategy director and trainer, working with leading brands including JD Sports, Motor Sports Magazine and Google Cloud. She is a LinkedIn Learning instructor, a certified Meta Trainer, and a trusted advisor to clients across paid social, brand strategy on social, and influencer marketing.
Which single daily habit or practice could you not do without?
I’m actually not too bad at creating habits, perhaps they are micro obsessions, but not to sound cliche, MOVING and drinking water (preferably sparkling). 1Rebels (the best gym class ever), walking, hiking – just making sure I move. Oh and dancing when I’m feeling fancy.
What’s been your luckiest break?
I don’t know if it’s luck, but starting SOS and getting the response I got from past clients made me feel lucky and very grateful. When I think about career turning points, LinkedIn bringing me on as a learning instructor was an achievement that made me feel lucky. Then seeing new clients trust me to educate their own clients, and the digital marketing institute inviting me to share insights on their podcasts – these moments where people believed in what I have to offer felt good. Perhaps more than luck, it’s gratitude I feel for these opps and the trust people have placed in me.
What’s your best failure?
I’m not a huge fan of the word ‘failure’ because the sentiment rings with disappointment. I’ve certainly not achieved things I’ve wanted like jobs in the past, promotions, but actually I probably wasn’t ready or right and actually it’s led me to where I am now, doing something that’s actually mine that I can say i built with my own two hands and 10 fingers. Those ‘no’s’ were redirects to my ‘hell yeahhh’ which is School of Social.
Looking back those ‘failures’ felt so rubbish at the time, but they forced me to get a jiggy on and trust my gut. Honestly, if I’d gotten what I thought I wanted at that time, I’d probably be sitting in someone else’s business right now instead of building my own. So my best ‘failure’ was actually just life nudging me onto my own yellow brick road.
What is the best investment you’ve ever made, either financial or time?
When I have given time to work on myself I would say I get the best returns for my brain. I did a 6 week silent meditation course which was grounding. It was also very hard, but I have never, ever felt so at peace. Being still gave me more return than anything I’ve ever put money into. I know people talk about meditation being good, but doing it consistently, wow it feels insane.
Which podcast or book would you recommend others to read/listen to, and why?
I’ve been listening to Richard Wiseman’s ‘On Your Mind’ podcast. It’s not new, but it’s really good at breaking down social psychology in ways that just make sense. I love learning about the brain, and Wiseman explains complex concepts so clearly that it’s actually calming to listen to. Understanding how our brains work helps explain why we behave the way we do, which I find really comforting.
What one piece of advice would you give your 21-year-old self?
Invest is best. Why don’t we get taught this in school?! I wish I understood the power of micro saving when I was 21 – even £20 a month would be worth a small fortune by now.
Who or what has had the single biggest influence on your working life?
My old team at Jellyfish. I spent most my time working in the training team, and taking on that job put me in front of businesses globally that I never thought I’d work with – from every single sector you could think of: Sport, Publishing, Pharma, Food & Bev, Tech, Engineering. It put me in situations that pushed me to my limits intellectually and gave me opportunities to meet very interesting people to learn from, shout out to Daniel Solomon who taught me everything I know about facilitation where I worked with him running Google GDA. It threw me in the deep end to learn stuff I didn’t know existed or my brain could manage, and that opp really set me up for starting School of Social. I LOVED that job. I realised that you could learn anything if you put your energy and time into it. And for that I am forever grateful.
Tell us something about you that would surprise people.
I used to be able to run 100m in just shy of 12 secs. If you try to chase me, you probably won’t catch me. Just saying…
If there was one thing you could change about your career, what would it be and why?
I don’t believe in looking back and wishing something happened differently. You can change your career at any age if you want to, so I’ll flip the question, if I could duplicate myself and do something else, I’ve got an idea for a social media app that would solve ALL my problems. But if that doesn’t get off the ground, no investment, no prototype, I’ve always thought I’d enjoy running a hostel. I love meeting people from all walks of life, and there’s a kind of energy in those spaces that I find very infectious.
What does success look like to you?
If i’m giving 5 days of my week to running SOS and only getting two off, I’ve got to enjoy that 70%, right? Sure, money keeps me and my partner moving, but I couldn’t run a startup just for the cash. Success, for me, is doing work that actually feels like something, something with purpose. That’s why I love the training side of my business. It feels really really good to help people.
