Leadership Highlight: Ashley Scott

November 23, 2020 by Ashley Scott

Meet Ashley Scott, CTEDU Associate Provost!

From creating meaningful connections with people in the CTEDU community to empowering women to feel great about themselves, Ashley’s someone we’re so grateful to have on the team. 

Q: What is your core motivation style? How does this impact your work?

A: My motivation style is 2 (heyooo fellow 2’s!!). As a helper, I love working with and serving others. It brings me joy to help a team member or coach in our community. Being in connection with others and being a part of something larger than myself brings me life and helps empower my purpose and passions. My greatest strength is my ability to meet others where they’re at and partner with them in whatever they are accomplishing. 

An area of growth for me is that I can be a yes woman to whatever comes my way. With a strong desire to help, I want to have my hand involved in many projects and I have been learning to step back and empower others in their strengths. If I stretch myself too thin, I ultimately will not be able give 100% in all areas and it’s a gift to be fully present in everything I am involved in and be able to celebrate the work of everyone in our community. 

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: My heart beats for women to know their value and worth. Outside of my work with Coach Training EDU, I have a Life Coach practice focused on empowering women in autoimmune wellness and self worth. 

I also have a project called “the lovely initiative” and it’s one of my favorite projects to work on outside of work. It’s mission is to provide women with an opportunity to clearly define the attributes that they love about themselves, to express themselves through photography and to ignite this love in others. The project started a few years ago when I was first diagnosed with an autoimmune disease and I was truly struggling with my own inner dialogue and identity. There was an awakening to the reality of women in the community and how many of us struggle with our self talk and how that overflows in the way that we connect with one another. 

I started to talk about this with other women and over and over again, they were confirming their negative inner dialogue. Each of us confessed how it was much easier to be a friend to others than to ourselves. We are so unkind to ourselves and I had this overwhelming desire to start something that would help women break the lie that says we cannot love who we are. I asked five women if they would go to coffee with me and let me take a few pictures of them. Our coffee dates allowed a space for women to proclaim what they loved about themselves out loud. I ask each lovely feature “what makes you lovely” and then ask them to write it out after we meet to share. After we celebrate the unique and beautiful aspects of each feature, I take photos of each of them. I didn’t have any experience in photography but knew that it was vital that each woman’s beauty was captured and shared. 

And what is my hope for this? First of all, that women will be able to walk confidently and boldly as themselves each day. I want women to thrive and celebrate what they are capable of (there’s so so so much!!).

I also crave authenticity and a more intimate community amongst women. I believe that when we begin (and then wholeheartedly) love ourselves, we are able to be true to who we are with others. We are able to love and accept them more fully too. It lets us pull down our masks and say “I love myself and I love you. This is where I am… Where are you?” It casts out shame and says this is who I am – right here and right now. 

It says I don’t have to pretend. It allows a sense of comfort and desire to go deep. 

When we love who we are, we can celebrate our successes and also welcome vulnerability in our (and others) struggles or pains. It tosses aside jealousy, envy and judgement and pierces through superficiality. 

Loving yourself opens a door to a whole new (awe- inspiring) community. 

Now it’s your turn…

What makes you lovely?

Don’t let the list end today…

Let’s be friends to ourselves.

Ask yourself these questions: Do I accept myself? Do I speak to myself with destructive or life giving words? Do I believe I am valuable? What makes me feel lovely? What is lovely about me? 

Write it down. Post it on your wall. Say thank you to that compliment. Speak it to yourself every morning until it settles in.  Then, let it overflow into the rest of your life. 

If you have anymore questions for Ashley, let her know in the comments!

You can also connect with her on her website www.newbloomcoach.com or via instagram @narratelovely.

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