What happens when you refuse to pick one career lane and decide to build your own?

Luba Kaplanskaya has worked across law, PR, social media and marketing and found a way to bring them all together.

Born in Saint Petersburg, Luba moved to Los Angeles as a young child and grew up travelling between the US and Russia. She became the first in her family to attend university, double-majoring in ecology and evolutionary biology and psychology before an unexpected opportunity led her into law.

While working full-time at a law firm, Luba landed her first marketing client and began building her own social media and marketing agency. Her personal brand has since helped her attract clients, land collaborations and become a regular podcast guest.

In this episode of Authentic Advantage, Luba joins host Anna Shepherd to chat about:

• Breaking into an industry without the usual experience or connections

• Building a business while working full-time

• Why personal branding isn’t just for influencers

• How your digital reputation can open doors

• Where AI is already changing legal and marketing work

• Why Luba tells AI to stop agreeing with her

• Setting boundaries and getting comfortable with saying no

• Making quick decisions instead of letting them linger

• Saving, investing and resisting “shiny things”

Luba also reveals why she keeps zero unread emails, would happily skip a four-day bachelorette trip and believes challenging experiences—from remote camping to Burning Man—have helped her work out exactly who she is.