We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ashur Bratt a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Ashur, thanks for joining us today. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

My relationship with my parents and their impact on my life and career is a nuanced tapestry of challenges and unexpected gifts. While they didn’t do everything right – and in fact, their unresolved issues created significant challenges for me – they also, inadvertently, set the stage for my current work as a connection coach.
Growing up, I found myself in a position where I had to struggle to get my basic childhood needs of attachment, safety, clarity, stability, and more, met. This led me to become a people pleaser, an effective shapeshifter, and extremely empathetic, but also hyper-vigilant. These traits were survival mechanisms in response to my environment.
However, my parents also made a crucial decision that would prove transformative: they placed me in various programs centered around self-expression and emotional awareness. This juxtaposition – the need to adapt to a challenging home environment coupled with exposure to tools for authentic self-expression – created a unique crucible for personal growth.
For instance, I engaged in theater and emotional support programs and was encouraged to explore and express a wide range of emotions. At home, I might have felt the need to suppress certain feelings to keep the peace, but on stage and in community, I could let them flow freely. This duality taught me the power of emotional authenticity and the importance of creating safe spaces for self-expression.
It’s a paradox: the very circumstances that caused my trauma also provided the fertile ground for my personal development and eventual career path. The skills I developed to navigate my childhood – empathy, adaptability, emotional intelligence – are now the cornerstone of my work as a connection coach.
I am the product of having bravely confronted my trauma and consciously working through it. This journey of self-discovery and healing has given me unique insights and tools that I now use to help others.
So while it’s true that my parents’ unresolved issues put me in a challenging position, it’s equally true that their emphasis on self-expression and personal growth gave me the resources to transform those challenges into strengths. I am the product of my lived experience – both the difficulties and the opportunities for growth.
In essence, my parents gave me both the wound and the path to healing. It’s this complex journey that has shaped me into the connection coach I am today, capable of guiding others through their own paths of self-discovery and authentic connection.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m a connection coach specializing in helping individuals, particularly millennials, rediscover their authentic selves and build lives aligned with their deepest desires. My journey to this work is deeply personal and rooted in my own experiences of navigating childhood trauma and learning to honor my inner voice.
Growing up, I developed a keen ability to adapt and please others as a survival mechanism. This made me an excellent shapeshifter and empath, but it also disconnected me from my true self. Through years of self-work and a fortuitous exposure to programs emphasizing self-expression, I learned to reconnect with my authentic voice and transform my challenges into strengths.
Now, I use this hard-won wisdom to guide others on similar journeys. I work primarily with people pleasers, boundary-challenged individuals, and those who find themselves saying ‘yes’ when they really mean ‘no.’ My clients are often stressed, feeling trapped, losing sleep, or sensing a disconnect between their current lives and their true desires.
What sets my approach apart is the use of a powerful technique called ‘circling.’ This practice invites individuals to fully inhabit themselves, to notice and honor what it’s like to simply be them even when its scary or uncomfortable. It’s a profound tool for cutting through personal barriers and accessing deep, often uncomfortable truths.
My services include one-on-one coaching, group facilitation, and group coaching programs. In these spaces, I create a safe environment for clients to explore their inner landscapes, confront their fears, and tap into their innate resilience. We work together to develop practical strategies for setting boundaries, making choices from a place of authenticity rather than obligation, and bringing their greatest joys and desires to life.
What I’m most proud of is witnessing the transformations in my clients. There’s nothing quite like seeing someone shed years of people-pleasing behaviors and step confidently into their power. I believe wholeheartedly in human resilience, and I love helping people discover strengths they never knew they had.
If you’ve ever felt like you’re living your life on someone else’s terms, if you’re tired of saying ‘yes’ when you want to say ‘no,’ or if you’re simply curious about what it would feel like to fully honor your authentic self, I’d love to chat. Whether you’re a millennial like me or from any other generation, if you’re ready to dive deep and create real change in your life, let’s connect.
Remember, the journey to authenticity can be challenging, but it’s infinitely rewarding. And you don’t have to walk it alone. Reach out if you’re ready to start listening to your inner wisdom and building a life that truly resonates with who you are at your core. Your authentic self is waiting – let’s discover it together.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Building my reputation as a connection coach has been a natural extension of my personal journey towards authenticity. It’s rooted in the same principles that guide my coaching practice: showing up fully, listening deeply, and sharing openly.
My reputation hasn’t been built through traditional marketing strategies, but rather through consistently embodying the principles I teach. I lead by example, demonstrating what it looks like to live authentically and prioritize one’s inner wisdom. This approach stems directly from my own experiences of overcoming people-pleasing tendencies and learning to honor my true self.
I’ve found that simply by being present, listening attentively, and sharing my own insights and vulnerabilities, I offer value to those around me. It’s a form of free value that comes from being unabashedly myself in every interaction. This authenticity is magnetic – people often express a desire to navigate the world with the same level of self-awareness and genuineness they see in me.
For instance, in casual conversations or social gatherings, I practice active listening and respond from a place of true alignment with my values. This often leads to profound connections and discussions, even in unexpected settings. People notice this difference, and it piques their curiosity about my work.
The transition to creating a business has been an interesting journey. In many ways, it’s simply adding a financial component to what I’ve always done – being fully and authentically myself. However, it has presented its own challenges. Building trust and touching lives happens organically through my interactions, but translating that into a business model requires a delicate balance.
What’s crucial is that the ‘me’ who shows up professionally is the same ‘me’ who shows up in personal interactions. There’s no separation between my ‘business self’ and my ‘personal self’. This consistency has been key in building trust and credibility.
I’ve found that people are drawn to this authenticity. In a world where many feel pressured to wear different masks in different situations, seeing someone who is consistently, fully, and unapologetically themselves is refreshing and inspiring.
My reputation has grown through word-of-mouth, as those who interact with me share their experiences with others. It’s not about selling a service, but about living a philosophy that resonates with others and inspires them to seek more for themselves.
In essence, I’ve built my reputation by walking the talk. By doing my own inner work, facing my own truths, and showing up authentically in all areas of my life, I’ve created a living example of what’s possible when we align with our inner wisdom. This authentic presence is what draws people to my work and has helped establish my reputation in the field of connection coaching.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

My journey to becoming a connection coach has been a wild and beautiful ride, guided principally by my intuition and a deep commitment to savoring life. While it might appear from the outside as a series of pivots or career changes, I see it as a continuous unfolding of an authentically lived life.
I’ve worn many hats – high school teacher, carpenter, start-up founder, travel guide, psychedelic therapist, and now, connection coach. But these aren’t separate chapters or abrupt pivots. They’re more like different facets of the same gem, each reflecting a core aspect of who I am and how I engage with the world.
For instance, as a high school teacher, I didn’t just stick to classroom lectures. I took students on experiential walking tours of the world, both in nature and cities. This wasn’t a deviation from teaching; it was an extension of my belief in immersive, holistic learning – a principle that still guides my coaching practice today.
When I co-founded a start-up called WeShare, it wasn’t a random leap into the tech world. The company was dedicated to creating gifting communities where people could ask for what they wanted and share what was abundant for them. This was a direct extension of my natural inclination towards open communication and resource sharing – skills that are central to my work as a connection coach.
Even when faced with unexpected challenges, like when our start-up lost funding during COVID, we didn’t simply give up. We pivoted to providing PPE at cost to spaces in need. This ability to adapt while staying true to our core mission of serving others is a skill I now help my coaching clients develop.
My time as a carpenter taught me the value of patience, precision, and creating solid foundations – all metaphors I use in my coaching work. As a travel guide, I honed my ability to navigate unfamiliar territories and help others find their way – skills that translate directly to guiding clients through their personal growth journeys.
My work as a psychedelic therapist deepened my understanding of the human psyche and the transformative power of altered states of consciousness. This experience informs my holistic approach to coaching, recognizing that growth often involves exploring unfamiliar mental and emotional landscapes.
Now, as a connection coach, I’m not pivoting away from these experiences – I’m synthesizing them. I’m taking a step back to help others find their own path of intuition and authentic living. I’m using the wealth of experiences I’ve gathered to guide others in listening to their inner wisdom and crafting lives that resonate with their deepest truths.
What might look like career shifts from the outside are actually expressions of how a life changes and grows over time when lived intentionally and authentically. Each role I’ve held, each ‘pivot’ I’ve made, has been a full expression of who I was at that moment, honored with my time, focus, and life energy.
This journey has taught me that true pivots aren’t about changing direction entirely, but about expanding our experience and finding new ways to express our core values and passions. It’s this lesson – the art of evolving while remaining true to oneself – that I now share with my clients as a connection coach.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://subscribepage.io/ConnectionCoaching
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashurellis/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashur.bratt
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ashurellis

Image Credits

Marlena Sloss