Prital Patel: Spontaneous traveller who devotes energy to staying fit

Prital Patel is the CEO of Creative FCB, an advertising agency in Nairobi. PHOTO | POOL

Prital Patel’s deep-in-the-capillaries of Nairobi’s Westlands office radiates the right kind of energy. Despite trying her best to restrict herself, Prital possesses an energy that pulls you like a bad habit.

She gives the vibe of an outgoer’s outgoer, and for all her claims that she is boring, there is an unmistakable whiff in the air that these four walls in her office stand trial for trying to harness an out-of-control civil protest.

Tiny exaggeration aside, talking to Prital feels like seeing lightning trapped in a bottle. It is here, wherewith over 18 years of experience in brand strategy, brand architecture, financial management, marketing communications and business development, she runs the ship as CEO of Creative FCB (née Creative VMLY&R).

The foodie carries herself with military rectitude and devotes much energy to staying fit—a lifelong obsession. She goes to the gym six days a week, at 4 am, that is when she is not hiking, or doing something adrenaline-inducing.

What’s the first thing you did this morning?

I’m an early riser. I am up at 4 am. No alarm clocks. My body is used to it. So, at times I catch up with some work. I try and do my e-mails at that time, and then I work out at 4 am. Sometimes, even 3 am. I exercise six times a week.

So, I do it three times with a trainer. I am also into yoga. So once a week I try to do that. And on Sundays, if I have company, I will go to Karura Forest for a walk.

That’s my ‘me time’, and it helps me a lot. Not just in terms of fitness, but you have to give it 100 percent. And your mind can’t wander, it forces me to be present and not get distracted.

Does the gym help with creativity or does it takes your mind away from it?

I think the training bit helps me. I don’t think it’s creativity per se. But creativity somehow comes when you’re doing nothing. And your mind wanders to different thoughts and ideas. But to answer your question, do I ever feel uncreative?

I think after four in the evening, my team even knows if you want to talk about the bigger stuff. I’m not at my best after 4 pm, I’m very much a morning person.

Do you do a lot of nothing?

I try to. On Sunday afternoons, more than likely I will do that, whether it’s just catching up on Netflix or just chilling at home or reading. Sometimes, I spend time with my nephews, it’s my energy boost.

And your Saturdays?

I love hiking. Before I used to hike on Saturdays, but unfortunately, I lost my mom last year. So, I haven’t really pushed myself to go hiking yet. But that was a big thing for me.

But normally Saturdays would be running errands and personal grooming, and then there will inevitably be some kind of cooking.

You’ve spoken about your me time, I think three times now. What’s so special about your me time?

The fact that it’s mine. I think the agency world is so dynamic. No two days are the same, I think it’s that adrenaline rush.

Whether it’s a pitch, whether it’s coming and you see a brilliant idea and you are kind of expanding on it. And I think that me-time is pretty much where the priority is myself and what I feel like doing.

So, whether I’m super energetic and do an extra yoga class or, you know, catch up with friends or for movies, it just works. My mind is switching off work.

What’s the weirdest job you’ve had?

I was in finance for two years. And I bought into this company [Creative FCB] from scratch when it was just a shell. So, I would say this is the weirdest because I had nothing, I had no background in this industry.

How did you know you were good at this?

I believe in a greater force or spirituality or supernatural power. When I started this, I didn’t believe I knew much about it, but I would say a few years down the line, I felt I had an eye for detail and I could tell what is good, creative, or not. Would I stop this and go to something else? But I just feel this is me.

What’s the best part about being CEO?

Seeing that the level of commitment, ownership is there on a day-to-day basis. And then it’s the little things that make a difference in life.

You know we used to do like once in a year we’d go out in the community as a whole company to help or do something very random, which is not just giving food and I believe you need to teach people to fish versus giving the fish and I think those little bits where you’re giving somebody an opportunity, which is not just related to say CSR (corporate social responsibility) it’s not, I don’t believe in doing things for CSR.

But how do we now start giving opportunities? It could be just holding somebody’s hand.

What’s the most boring part about being you?

I’d be very happy just to sit and do nothing. But if you tell me to go outdoors, I’ll jump at the chance.

What’s it you always thought to be true, but you now realise it isn’t?

I’ve always believed that people should show up as who they are. So what you see is what you should get.

And, unfortunately, as time goes by, you realise—and it’s the ones that you have helped—are the ones who make you see that maybe you just wanted to see what you wanted to see.

What do you think makes you, you?

I have a very responsible side, but then I have a side that is very spontaneous and wants to do new things.

I like the adventure of trying new things out, which gets me out of my comfort zone and maybe scares me a lot. I am a foodie too, and I like travelling. I wish I could do more of it than I am.

What’s the most spontaneous thing you’ve done so far?

I’ve done silly things like decide on a trip the night before I go and drop everything. I went to Rhino Charge. I think the outdoors draws me.

Before Covid, I used to have a trainer for hiking. I’d hike every Saturday. And I saw parts of Kenya that I never knew existed, trails and waterfalls.

Do you like hiking?

Not my thing. Haha! Okay, I was hiking on the opposite side of Ngong Hills which was quite rocky, unlike the green and smooth sceneries of Ngong Hills. But you go up and it’s just green.

You just see the Mara and Kenya’s horizons. And there are some places you go to and you find tranquillity or peace within.

What is it about nature or the outdoors that calls you?

It’s just the connection. It’s the connection with the openness, the vastness, the simplicity. And again, I discovered a lot about myself through hiking, because you realise, you know, all along you think you’re fine.

But now anxiety kind of picks up a little bit. Yes. Um, because you don’t know if you’re going to make it or not. Yes. And then I at one time felt that there are a lot of boardroom lessons you can get from the hype of being outside.

It’s just to even understand yourself, you know, your strengths, your weaknesses. You need to be present because if you kind of wonder anywhere else you stumble, you fall haha!

What’s the most trouble you’ve been in?

I’ve not been in trouble haha! Do you think I am a boring person?

No, you’re not a boring person. You look like you’ve had fun.

I’ve had fun. I’ve had my 5 am mornings on the weekend. But now you appreciate your Sundays more in life as you grow older.

When you’re younger it was always about your Saturday nights. I’d be home at 3 am and then I’ll go for a tennis lesson at 9 am haha! I used to go to spin class at night. Yes.

What food comes to mind when you think of the weekend?

I will try to cook at the weekend. And probably try to cook something new if I can. I bake with my nephew. Sometimes I’ll head off to an Italian restaurant or a barbecue restaurant.

What’s your weekend soundtrack?

Sometimes, a little bit of Bollywood or the 70s and 80s music. It varies. I used to play the piano. My dad used to force us [my siblings and I] to learn while we were in school.

Were you a daddy’s girl?

I am a daddy’s girl. Guilty haha! Later on in life, I think it shifted. Maybe fathers and daughters have a different connection. Or you can get away with a little bit more with your father than your mom.

How are you like your dad?

I think that the spontaneous side is a reflection of him. People think I got my business acumen from my dad, but actually, it was my mom. She was a homemaker but she believed she didn’t get a lot of opportunities.

She insisted that her daughters need to work and that your focus needs to be your career versus the kitchen. I tell my team here that at home, we were not brought up to say that if you’re sick, you take a day off.

You needed to still work. And I remember one day I fell sick and I told her. She was like, ‘Okay, you know, rest it out.’ Then at 10 o’clock, she came in saying, now that’s enough for us, get to work.

She didn’t give me any leeway to sit at home and do nothing. So my dad would hate it for me to say this, but I think it’s been equal. Probably it’s been her a lot more than him haha!

What’s the most painful thing you’ve been told?

That I’m not good enough.

Are you good enough?

It depends. Let me rephrase. Maybe the words were not that you’re not good enough, but that you can’t do it. And I think as much as it is painful, I think it brought me to where I had to do it.

It became a challenge. The flip side to it is that at that moment in time, you are hurt or you are disappointed, and when you look back you see that was your trigger.

At that time you didn’t realise it, it was like vengeance and like, oh, I’m going to show this person that I can do it. And I did it.

What’s an unusual habit or absurd thing that you love?

Cryptic crosswords or games involving words. When I wake up at 4 am, that’s the first thing I do, especially the one on NY Times called Connections. It’s a pattern game.

What’s the dumbest thing you spent money on?

When we were growing up, my dad didn’t have much money. So when you start working, you realise the value of money because you’re doing it yourself. All that to say, I am not such a big spender!

What’s on your bucket list?

The Greater Patagonian Trail in Chile. This is not a bucket list thing, but I just want to take three months off work and go somewhere like Italy and just explore that country and do nothing for three months.

Like going to different regions, maybe going to a Tuscan cooking school. But taking three months off work is too much of a luxury.

Do you have a secret talent that no one knows about?

I do want to start playing the piano again. Or tennis. I’m exploring whether I’m going to start a bit of golf, but I’m not a very patient person haha!

You seem like you are good at a lot of things. What are you bad at?

Decluttering. I’m messy. I also don’t like any kind of motorsport, not even go-karting.

What’s your guilty pleasure?

I have a real sweet tooth. I bake cakes. You look at it and you can tell it’s homemade, not fancy. Yes. But it’s good if I do say so myself haha!

What’s something you wish you were better at?

Taking risks. I also think I put everyone else before myself. Yeah. At times I wish I could just focus on what I want or what makes me happy.

What never fails to make you laugh?

Just silly things. Yeah. It’s the small and funny things.

Who do you know that I should know?

I know a lot of people. I think you should know my family. Because I think you’re very lucky in life when your family are your go-to people.

If you could talk to any animal what, which would it be?

That’s such an unusual question hehe. I’m not a very pet kind of person. But I have dogs at home.

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