Meet Lineo (pronounced di-ne-wo) Kakole | Strategist, Identity Designer & Art Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lineo (pronounced di-ne-wo) Kakole and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lineo (pronounced di-ne-wo), is there something you believe many others might not?
Work-life balance: It doesn’t exist and trying to pursue it will leave you with a lack of fulfilment in both areas of your life. There is no balance. I recently listened to Emma Grede’s guest podcast session with Jay Shetty where she unpacks the reality of trade-offs when choosing to aggressively pursue a career. You can’t do it all and you can’t have it all. There is no balance; only priorities. For me, my creative career is my priority and that means other areas of my life have suffered. My weekends are not for brunch with friends; they’re for working on my business because during the week, I work in it (and to become a true entrepreneur, you must prioritise working ON your business, or you’re actually just self-employed).

I actually don’t even consider myself an entrepreneur yet because I spend more time working IN my business than ON it right now. It’s hard because there’s a social narrative around women, and especially black African women, being able to ‘do it all,’ but you can’t and the sooner you accept that, the sooner you can set your priorities and make progress on living a life that is beautiful to YOU. Entrepreneurship is like deciding to be an Olympic Athlete. Your life is going to look completely different from people who haven’t made that choice and thats okay.

I used this article by Harvard Business review (https://hbr.org/2023/12/use-strategic-thinking-to-create-the-life-you-want) to create a life strategy and determine my priorities using the PERMA model. In this season, my top 3 priorities are vitality, positive emotions and achievement, with relationships being the very last priority right now. You can just imagine the pushback from society and my community, because we assume, on a moral level even, that women should prioritise relationships/marriage/family (work-life balance). There is no balance; only priorities.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My art is a fusion of my passion for contemporary representation of BIPOC communities and decolonizing design. I stand out through my relentless commitment to challenging stereotypes and creating brands that celebrate the richness of African creativity. I’m exceptionally proud of my resilience. Despite starting in March 2021 amidst personal tragedy and resigning from an abusive job, I’ve been unyielding in pursuing my goals, turning to Instagram to launch my freelance brand identity design career.

Getting here wasn’t easy. I’ve navigated financial literacy hurdles, burnout, and the loss of friendships, but my resilience has kept me going. I’ve learned the importance of perseverance, prioritising my goals, and embracing unconventional ways to stay connected. I believe in the principle of compounding, trusting that my upfront efforts will lead to exponential growth and eventual time/financial freedom.

Design and marketing are predominantly white industries, yet serving a BIPOC-majority consumer base. It’s no wonder then that traditional marketing and public relations have often failed Black communities, offering little more than repackaged Western narratives. But as Africa’s middle class grows and its consumer power strengthens, there’s a hunger for authenticity for brands that truly understand and represent their audience.

I’m the “Kim Kardashian” of my family and community (lol), but really. That is how confident I am in myself, my work and determination to have a joyful life (as far as it’s up to me). Just give me time.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Firstly I would take them to Acid, a femme-led food and wine bar in Johannesburg. I was actually the creative strategist, identity and web designer for this restaurant (https://www.acidthebar.com/ – https://ceconline.co.za/fine-wine-vibes-with-joburgs-new-female-owned-restaurant-acid-food-wine-bar/).

We’d have to do food and drinks there. Then Mamakashaka and Friends hosts creative events, like Live podcast recordsings and book clubs, so I’d have to see if there is anything interesting happening that week. “MAMAKASHAKA & FRIENDS ” is centred around a single idea, creative collaboration in order to build community and the brain child of Nandi Dlepu, a South African creative producer. I will be honest, I’m not a very good outdoors host and someone more social would likely be able to give a better answer. Perhaps we could also go cycling in the city with Cycling Corner (https://www.instagram.com/p/C324To6titv/?hl=en), a creative cycling community in Joburg led by broadcaster and creator, Lwazi Madonsela. By the way, I’m actually a good dancer so maybe a dance class with Bontle Modiselle (https://bontlemodiselledancestudio.com/) and lastly, I’ve just launched a dinner party brand called HOSTED (https://www.hosted.community/) so it only makes sense to do one intimate evening at home around my dining table. I don’t have a dining table. Right now that space has a back drop and camera equipment, but its the thought that counts (lol).

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Chris Do and his brain-child The Futur. This is first design/business community I was part of when I first started freelancing in 2021.

Firstly, especially coming from an African country, its so important to create an international network. What I loved about Chris Do is that the content The Futur shares for FREE on Youtube and Instagram, was so high in quality, that applying the lessons helped me start earning enough to then join their Pro Group. A lot of creatives are waiting to be discovered. The truth is that no one is coming. You need to advocate for yourself, and doing that is actually learning business acumen. Creativity is not enough. We must understand the business of design to be successful creative entrepreneurs and hands down Chris Do helped me with that.

Website: https://www.dinewo.co/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dinewo.co/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lineo-kakole-21533176/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVVq_KBewmg

Other: Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dinewo.co?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc

Image Credits
Shannon Daniels – https://www.instagram.com/shann.daniels/ (My headshot/personal brand photography) Thato Lehoko – https://www.instagram.com/thatolehoko/ (HOSTED Photography) From Phoenix is actually a candles and wellness brand based in Atlanta (https://www.fromphoenix.co/) that I did brand dientity and packaging design work for. Founded by Arkia Ivey, with brand photography done by photographers from Atlanta, I’m just not able to recall atm.