We had the good fortune of connecting with Anjabeen Ashraf and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Anjabeen, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I wanted to create a therapeutic space for communities of color, South Asians, and Muslims. At the time, I did not see many private practices led by South Asian Muslim women and thought the representation was lacking. What we see becomes our reality and often the limitations of what we can imagine so for me, having a public presence as a South Asian Muslim counselor is important to help people understand they too can do this work and it is powerful.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Starting my own private practice was a risk because I knew nothing about running a practice. I did, however, have great role models in my parents who owned many businesses growing up. Going into the mental health field 12+ years ago, there were not many South Asian Muslims that I knew of in the field and so that felt like a risk: going into uncharted waters with no mentors with similar identities. I have found my community in the field since and value mentoring the next generation of mental health professionals.

As a counselor and mental health advocate that has a public thought leadership presence, I believe that authenticity is the most important factor behind my success. I don’t purport to have all the answers or to have my life figured out 100% as a counselor. I do, however, believe that we do the best we can with what we have. As Maya Angelou said, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better” and I hope that we all experience the opportunity to grow and ‘know better’.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take them to: Venice beach and eat at Cafe Gratitude
Artesia to do some shopping
786 Degree Wood Fired Pizza for delicious Halal pizza
Watch the sunset at the Getty Center

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Latinxtherapy

Website: anjabeen.com

Instagram: instagram.com/dranjabeenashraf

Twitter: twitter.com/anjabeenashraf

Facebook: facebook.com/dranjabeenashraf

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutLA is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.