One on One with Mista Yu

Brittany Russell - LA Roots, L3 Coaching, and a life of G.R.I.T.

• Mista Yu

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A mirror moment can change a life. When Brittany Russell realized she didn’t love herself and was attracting the wrong patterns, she didn’t chase a quick fix—she built a practice. We sit with Brittany, an energy and embodiment coach and founder of L3 Coaching, to unpack how West Coast roots, corporate code switching, and a sudden layoff forged a calling to serve women of color and any woman ready to do the work. The conversation moves from identity and pressure to practical tools that make change stick, grounding big ideas in everyday choices.

Brittany breaks down her G.R.I.T. method—growth mindset, radical resilience, inquisitive introspection, and tenacity—and shows how to apply it when you’re tired, burned out, or rebuilding confidence. We get specific: how to audit energy drains across beliefs, habits, people, and environments; how embodiment turns “future you” into a daily routine; and how tiny actions beat overthinking when fear spikes. She’s open about the hard parts—failed engagement, anxiety, and two rounds of burnout—and how community and a personal board of directors helped her step into new rooms and new outcomes.

You’ll hear candid insights on wealth building as a Black woman, protecting mental health in a noisy world, and choosing mentors who model the life you want. We also talk visibility: Brittany is claiming stages and her voice, and she invites you to claim yours. If you’re ready to stop rehearsing the old story and start living the new one, this conversation offers both courage and a clear path forward. Listen, share it with a friend who needs it, and if it resonates, subscribe and leave a review so more people can find the show.

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SPEAKER_02:

Welcome back to the Mr. U. Of course, I'm your host, Mr. U. In studio with the studio and founder of L3 Coaches. In the house.

SPEAKER_01:

What's going on, Mr. U?

SPEAKER_02:

What's going on? Everything's going on. Good to have you in here with us. Excited about this conversation. I've oh, I gotta question for you. So I gotta make sure I use this time wise. I got so much that I want to ask you about. Everything in in between is variable. But so you're upbringing your childhood. Where's Brittany from? How'd you get from where you were to where you are right now?

SPEAKER_01:

That's a good one. So I'm proud about where I'm from. I am from Los Angeles, California, the city of Joel's. Yes, the West Coast. That's the best coast. Okay. Oh, that struck a nerve. I shouldn't have used that one.

SPEAKER_02:

I know we're not starting off the show with that kind of stuff.

SPEAKER_01:

I struck a nerve. I'm just saying.

SPEAKER_03:

I'm just saying. No, she doesn't. Okay, but keep going.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm currently in Atlanta, Georgia. Uh, once I left LA, I lived in Dallas, Texas for a little while, went to school there, established my career, and then uh decided to take a leap and uh move here to Atlanta back in 2016. And so I have been here ever since, uh laying the foundation and the footwork and just just doing the good work.

SPEAKER_02:

I love it. Tell me something you miss about the best coast.

SPEAKER_01:

It is. I mean it's okay. So so nobody doesn't let the West Coast people do it, okay?

SPEAKER_02:

Y'all, what do you guys do so well?

SPEAKER_01:

From from our from our dancing skills, our music, we like funk. Come on, y'all. We like dancing.

SPEAKER_02:

This can't be this can't be a real thing.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, so this I've changed my life. Let me say this. I've changed my life, but everybody knows what the crit walk is. I'm just I'm just saying, you know, we own swag, you know. We got our music, we got the beach. You could be at the the desert one mountains the next day.

SPEAKER_02:

The beach, I can get I can get with that part the whole deck. No, you lost me on that part. Okay, so the beach, what else you got? Come on, because this is this ain't going well so far.

SPEAKER_01:

But how we talk, we can be we don't have an accent now. I've been in the south, so don't judge it based off of me, but we don't have an accent, we got diversity. I mean, we got little areas like Beverly Hills, we got up north, the wine country, big bear, San Diego. We got the Latin flavor up in there.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, I was why you in why you in Georgia then this is so great. Why you down there in the dirty dirty? I don't understand.

SPEAKER_01:

The taxes are too high back home with the cost of living ramp.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, just give me away. Your wallet is impacted by the I see. But no, I get that. I get that. I got I got an infatuation with San Diego that I can never explain. But my wife was like, Why you like that place? I have no idea. Never been been there, but I want to try it out. But I heard about the how expensive it is. Like, wow.

SPEAKER_00:

You got to very you you just you just gotta you gotta go do it.

SPEAKER_02:

I love the beach part though. You got you got me on that one. So tell me, tell me what you're doing. I know that you're uh you're definitely serving uh black and latino population in regards to your coaching. Tell me why they would have focused on what you've been trying to accomplish and who are doing now.

SPEAKER_01:

I appreciate that. So let me go ahead and say this. I recently decided to expand um to not just my black and Latina sisters, but also just to women of color as a whole, because um I am them, they are me. The reason why I decided to truly lock in on that population is because I understand them. And I'm not saying that I don't understand my brothers and sisters that you know are not of color, but just a there's a different type of connection. Um, there's a different type of understanding of the upbringing, things that we may experience on a day-to-day, um, how we have to show up in life, right? Like, and when I talk about that, I'm talking about things. Um, I come from a corporate uh corporate background. And so things like code switching, you know, things like not being able to show up as your authentic self, things like having to prove yourself, you know, because your family's putting pressure on you to be the college graduate, the doctor, the you know, successful person, meanwhile, nobody else let me not touch on that. It's the pressure, the identity.

SPEAKER_02:

No, definitely. I I can I can relate on a different side of things, but I don't totally understand where you're going with that. So someone who is not a person of color and is a woman and they're watching this because they probably are. How are you in a place where you can help them outside of the norm? Perhaps can you do you connect and never never want enough people to help them find a place to get what they need? Yes, imagine a scenario. How'd that look for you? How do you handle it? How have you handled it?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, so let me put in my secret sauces, Mr. You is I truly have the ability to connect with people of all background races. That I've been like that since I was a little girl. So while I may specialize in women of color, I can help just about any woman that is ready to start doing the work on herself. Um, what it looks like is truly, I'm gonna tell you how my coaching works because it really does. It helps every person. I want to help her figure out what is it that is draining your energy? Is it your mindset? Is it your habits? Is it your beliefs? Is it people? Is it your environment? Is it your relationship, your career? Like we got to start talking about that first. So once we start to identify, okay, what's draining sis's energy? And I call her sis too, because she is my sis.

SPEAKER_02:

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01:

Once we start doing that, then the next part of the coaching is like the embodiment piece. And a lot of people are like, Britt, what is embodiment, Mr. You? The embodiment is like having this dream, like this idea of your future virgin self, right? You can see her or him. And what I do is I help you start to live that out in real time. How does that person show up? How are they speaking? How are their habits? What's their routine like? What do they say? How do they dress? How do they smell? Like we start to live that out in real time. So I can help just about any woman that wants to do the work and that really wants to focus on those areas, hands down. I won't shut it down.

SPEAKER_02:

I don't I don't doubt it. I believe you can as well. I want to get into why you started L3 coaching, but I will want to get a little bit of background uh on you before that. At what point did you realize that you needed to help yourself? I know a lot a lot of coaches. I mean, I always ask coaching people who are coaching and mentoring. There's certain questions I asked them. I'm gonna ask that today on this show, too, because I so many folks I had that call themselves coaches and and stuff, and they put that title on themselves, they anoint themselves as coaches. Oh, I know and and and it makes me cringe. I cringe just thinking about it right now. But I want to understand the kind of background where did you realize there was a pivot for you? Yeah, you know, I'm in trouble. I need some help myself, I need to be coach myself before you got to the place where you became a coach.

SPEAKER_01:

That's a good one. That's okay. So it hit me because I remember the moment, it hit me like back in 2017. I I was a year in here in Atlanta trying to rediscover myself, figure out who I was, and it dawned on me that I didn't love myself, like I literally did not love myself. Um not only did I not love myself, but I also didn't think that I was beautiful. So I have that piece, but then here's the other piece. Oh, ooh, this is when it gets this is look, this is when it gets real because a lot of a lot of women they know they know what I'm about to say. I started paying attention to the types of people I was attracting in my life, partner-wise. I started noticing a track record, and you know, after a while, you can sit here and say, Well, you know, I what's wrong with them? And I can, you know, I keep attracting these types of men, but Mr. U, I had to put that mirror up.

SPEAKER_03:

Uh-oh.

SPEAKER_01:

I had to put that mirror up. And when I put that mirror up, it was like as clear as day. Sis, you got some work you need to do. And that's where the true journey started.

SPEAKER_02:

And from that, L3 was born. Is that L look?

SPEAKER_01:

Well, L3, that you know what at that point in time, it was a journey because no, L3 wasn't even born at that time. I started, I just kept like, okay, here let me say this real quick the journey to self-healing is not an overnight type of deal. It's not even something that's gonna happen in a year, like it is a literal journey. I have been on this self-healing journey for well over like six, seven years now, and I'm still in it. L3 coaching happened after I hit two rounds of burnout, a failed engagement, oh wow, anxiety, suicide ideation. That's when L3 coaching was founded, and that's where that idea came out.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh my goodness. Well, tell me this now. This is another question I always ask coaches, and they all take seem to take it well. When you have maybe rewind just a little tiny bit. When somebody has something that happens in their life, sometimes they feel like I need to write a book. People who want to go on a podcast, and I've been finding myself coaching people in podcasting, people want to start podcasts or expand their podcasts. Never thought I wouldn't do that, but they had something something important to say.

SPEAKER_01:

So fabulous question. Thank you for that. Um, for me, I knew I had a calling on my life. That's number one. Okay, I knew I had a calling on my life because I have innate gifts that people were able to identify. Hmm, you you might want to look into a coaching. So when I say innate gifts, you're like, what does that look like? Okay, one, I'm a natural encourager. I always want to see people win. Like, I want to see you win, I want to see you do well. Um, I always enjoy speaking life into people, right? Like, not tearing people down, but building them up, helping them see themselves from a place of like success from a from a positive perspective. And then also, Mr. You, the other secret sauce was I've always just been like a positive person. And don't get me wrong, I I have my days, I'm human now, okay. But for the most part, I've always just been like a positive person and a light. Like I look to brighten people's day. That's just what I do.

SPEAKER_02:

So yeah, you do.

SPEAKER_01:

Thank you for that. Thank you.

SPEAKER_02:

You do that, you do it very well.

SPEAKER_01:

I receive it, I receive it. So, yes, I think that you would be a great coach. And I was like, Oh, okay, let me go look into this and I mean let me see what this is all about, and so here I am. I love it.

SPEAKER_02:

So, who coaches you?

SPEAKER_01:

Who's coaching me? Well, one is Jesus Christ, okay, because he is my first coach. I gotta give him the honor. But I'm gonna be honest with you, I got several coaches because there's several. I and and I'll say this. Um, I like it for everyone who does have one coach, dope, dope, dope, dope, dope. But I got several coaches, right? Because there are different areas in my life where I need accountability, where I need encouragement, where I need direction, I need somebody who can see something in me that I can't see in myself. So I have different types of coaches, several different coaches, people that I look to, and I'll tell you this: I don't take advice from many people. Like, you gotta be a stand-up person, a stand-up guy or a stand-up woman for Brittany Russell to follow behind you.

SPEAKER_02:

You heard that?

SPEAKER_01:

I'm just and that goes that goes that goes for the men too. I I'm I'm I'm a single woman, but uh, I would definitely say that.

SPEAKER_02:

I I heard the message. I'm not even single and I heard the message. Did y'all hear what she said to everybody in the whole world? I love it. I heard loud, loud and clear. I love you. Have multiple coaches that I'm a firm believer in the personal board of directors, having everybody if you need different areas of your life, you're doing that. I love it. I love you. Didn't even uh make it gender-based and see you know what some men can coach me as well.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm like, oh, facts.

SPEAKER_02:

I respect that because people don't think yeah, no time for that on this. We're gonna keep on moving. Okay, but what are some unique challenges for you as an African-American woman in today's climate?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, um, I think one is just wealth building is a challenge. Um and it's funny because that comes that that's where my mind is really focused on right now. It's a challenge because I haven't seen it done before. Okay. There's no, I mean, and no offense, I love my family. Uh, you know, I always gotta put throw the disclaimer, but I haven't seen success. The type of success that I envision, right? Like people are successful in their own way, but what success looks different for me, and what I'm looking for, I haven't seen it. Not only that, Mr. You, I didn't see it growing up. Yes, I was in LA, yes, there was Beverly Hills and all these affluent areas around me, but when it came to seeing somebody that looked like me, no, I didn't. Um, some other challenges, I would say, you know, just figuring out the path ahead. Like I was laid off from my my corporate job back in May, and I had it all, I thought I had it planned out. Let me say that. I thought I had it planned out, thought everything was gonna be good, and out of nowhere, boom, the job was taken away. And so now it's like you're on this path of one uncertainty because y'all y'all see what's going on out here, it's a lot going on. Yeah, come on, we can't discredit that, right? And then um, just trying to figure out like what the next step looks like while also maintaining my health. That's the third one mental health. There's so many things pulling at us, right? We got social media, we got AI, we got you know, trauma and pain from our past. We were see it, it's just so many different things that are pulling on us mentally, and so maintaining my my mental health and my sanity and my peace, it can be challenging, but I'm very deliberate and intentional about protecting that piece of my life. And uh, I feel like I'm doing pretty good. I showed it with a smile today, so fair. And I'm smiling now, so I'm gonna keep it on you as long as you're on the show.

SPEAKER_02:

I'm gonna do my best anyway. So, you're helping people to do the same thing that you just I think it's highlighting. Tell us about the grit method. What are you doing for your clients via this method? What is it? What do you think about it?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, so here's the thing with grit, right? It it is what it sounds like, and I know it can be a little counterintuitive when you think about like someone. Um, my real client is usually someone that is like tired, drained, or recovering from burnout. But grit is having a growth mindset, you know. I think it's so important in today's day about having a growth mindset, opening yourself up to learn new things, looking at the lessons and not the failures in life, you know, just being open-minded because there's so much to learn with everything that's going on around us. So you got the grit, that's growth mindset. R is radical resilience. You got to know how to bounce back in 2025 and forward. Okay, there are so many obstacles, they just throwing them at you left and right, so many things coming at you, and you know, it may take you down, but it's kind of like a fire light. You you gotta know how to you know bounce back.

SPEAKER_02:

Rob and weave.

SPEAKER_01:

That's the LA, that's the LAB. And then uh the I stands for um inquisitive introspection. That is making sure that you take time out to reflect, to spend time with yourself in a quiet place, to you know, think about what you want in life, where you're going, what's taking place, all these different top things going on, but you need to make sure that you are spending time with yourself and reflecting. And the last one is tenacity. When it comes to dealing with life, you got to have tenacity, you gotta have that persistence, you got to keep going, you got to keep going and push through the roadblocks and whatever is in front of you because it's gonna make you stronger. There's something to learn that that's where that growth is really going to happen. So, like I said, people hear grit and they're like, Oh my god, like, no, no, no. Grit is a process to really help you step out of who you were into who you need to who you want to be.

SPEAKER_02:

We got time for a few more questions to try to get them in. Let's go things that you learned about yourself that you realized you didn't like sometimes.

SPEAKER_01:

I let fear really get in the way. You yeah, what what yes? Oh my goodness, yes, it could be debilitating.

SPEAKER_02:

You're doing good at hiding it. I'm not supposed to go, but you you you're doing good because I I would not have guessed that, but go ahead, sure.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, I'll say this like I this is good for me because I I love talking to people, I love connecting with people, but there are things that literally scare me, like, and here not only does it scare you missing you, but I start overthinking, and then I just go off of a deep end, and I literally gotta like yank myself like back to reality and be like, sis, chill out, like you're you're doing 10 much, but it would be so bad that it would give me anxiety at one point. Wow, and so a lot of times, like my fear does get in the way of me taking steps forward. But the one thing I've had to learn, even like once being laid off, is you gotta push past it, you just gotta push past it. Don't even think too much into it. So that's one of those things that like I'm like, sis, come on now.

SPEAKER_02:

If I was coaching you, probably East Coast all day on you. Did you you are not gonna give it all no? I would not let you sit there. Let me I would not let you I can't let you do it. Okay, okay. Next, so you and I are part of an incredible community together. Uh is how I is how it's how we met. I'm excited about it. I'm excited about what you're doing within it. But what does it mean for you to be a part of community? There's some wins that you got from the community if you can.

SPEAKER_01:

Perfect time in. Thank you so much for asking that question. Let me tell you something, Mr. U, at the beginning of the year, I was in like this transition in my life. I had just walked away from my relationship. Um, I had just walked away from a toxic role. And I remember saying, like, I need I knew I need a new set of friends. And not only do I need a new set of friends, I want friends, I want to be with friends in environments where they're doing better than I am. Because I wanted to level up. Okay. I wanted to level up. So when the opportunity came to join this community, it was like it was low-key, like heaven sent. I was like, thank you, because I knew, okay, I'm about to be in the room. People always talk about being in the room. This was the opportunity to be in the room. And what what some wins that I have gotten by being in this one community? Connection, legit connection. Okay, not people that are just trying to take advantage of you, you know, being phony fake, like real people that are hungry for success, that are making moves happen, um, and that are that are showing up and living out their calling. The other one um is opportunity. Okay, yeah, you put yourself out there and start connecting, like opportunities will start to drop in your lap, like this one right here, right here. And then uh the other one is getting you to push outside your comfort zone. You got to be open to communicating with people, setting up virtual coffees, sharing what you do, different things like that. So those are some of the um gems, but then also let me say this because I I left one out. I was about to I was about to close it up. Mentorship and friendships, hands down. There's something that I can learn from everybody that I connect with, and I take those relationships and connections serious.

SPEAKER_02:

I love it. That's that's really good. You're networking and you're doing it clearly different than people that are in normal networking spaces, they're doing you're not doing it, you're doing something way different. I value this so much, I appreciate it so much. All right, so this is our final question. I want to have you talk to the people, then where they can find your words. This is our CNV question. Everybody that comes through gets asked this question. Clay vocation. So, not to diminish the uh incredible thing you've done in your life, but theoretically and temporarily, I mean racing off of the board. What is Britney Russell doing right now outside of what she's already done? That means you haven't done it before. This is uh a new career, a new mission, a new vocation for you. What is Britney Russell doing most likely right now?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, oh gosh, ooh, that's a loaded one. Let me let me see if I can get this one.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, so I say burlesque dancer. You can't shop me. This person's so buttoned up and it's gonna be a brother.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow, no, look. Hey, shout out to them.

SPEAKER_02:

I always say just go ahead. Whatever you say, it'd be good.

SPEAKER_01:

No judgment there. Shout out to the burlesque dancers. Uh, that's not my calling. Um, but I'm here here's where I'm at with mine. One, I've I've I've launched my business, right? I've been an employee, a corporate employee for 12 years, longer than that, because I started working when I was 15. Um, so I've been an employee for a very long time. I'm doing something new by launching my own business, and I'm actually stepping out and doing it. Um, the other thing that I'm doing that I have not done before is appearing on podcasts and look building opportunities for me to start speaking on stages. I am a speaker. Let me say that again. I am a speaker, and I know that it is a calling for me to be on stages, sharing my story, motivating people, talking to people. So that's the other piece. Like just letting my voice be heard and no longer being afraid of what I sound like, what I look like, what my voice, you know, the things that I say, showing up as myself, right?

SPEAKER_02:

That's you know this is this is this is why we can't live in isolation, live in our own heads. If somebody unbiased, like myself, I mean Brit Brit Brittany, Brittany is is is my people, but I can still so entrenched that I can't see what's going on. Yeah, all the things that she's concerned about that she thinks she can't do, I'm like, I've seen her do it already. In a short sample style, I seen her already enlighten and inspire on that level already in a in a small sample size, but she's struggling with seeing it. Y'all get that? You see how this is see how this works? Yeah, it's up in here.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, facts.

SPEAKER_02:

Please. First of all, this is a blessing for you to be on our show. You made our show brighter, and I I love you for it. I thank you for it.

SPEAKER_01:

Thank you.

SPEAKER_02:

About two minutes to let everybody know where they can find your work and give a shout out to the people, maybe somebody uh specifically you want to talk to. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

So um, you can find me on LinkedIn. Please search me, Brittany N. Russell. Okay, embodiment and energy coach. When you see that title, that is your girl. You can also find me on IG at L3 Coaching, and I'm not talking about the letter L and the number three, it's E-L-L-E-T-H-R-E-E coaching. I am also on TikTok being my you know filtered but unfiltered self. You can find me at what I had not not like them, y'all. I'm not wild now. I'm not wilding out.

SPEAKER_02:

Your girl is not good, I don't want to see you in that light.

SPEAKER_01:

Uh, but at the the coach Brit on TikTok, and then I'm also on Facebook as Brittany Russell. And so the the final words that I want to say to the ladies and even the men out there, let me tell you something. I know we've heard this before, but life is too short, right? And it's very important that you begin to one, enjoy every day like it's your last, because it we're we're dealing with a lot of chaotic things right now. Okay, if there are things that you are struggling with, this is confirmation that it's time for you to start addressing this. Because those things that are holding you back, whatever it may be, are keeping you from truly living a life that you deserve and living your calling and being fulfilled, having joy, right? Also, start paying attention to what you're doing, who you're hanging around with, what you're spending time listening to and watching because it affects how you show up. That's where I get to the energy draining part. And then the other one is treat people the way you want to be treated. That's the time, that's something that's so timely right now. Treat people the way you want to be treated, okay? Let's love on each other, let's encourage one another, let's support each other, and uh let's heal and walk through this journey together. You don't have to do it alone. You have people like myself and Mr. U. Look at that. You got us to help you out. So reach out. You don't have to do this by yourself. That's all I gotta say.

SPEAKER_02:

I love it. You know where to find her. Hit me up, energy and embodiment coach. Hit me up, founding CEO of L3 Coaching, E L L E. Yes, yes, Britney Russell. Thank you for your time in doing this today. That's Brittany, that's the coach. I'm Mr. U. We're out of great days for watching and listening. We're doing all listening platforms and all society platforms within the half hour.

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