The SIEL Project
About The SIEL Project
The SIEL Project was founded on a simple belief: that social skills are not something you're born with or without — they're something that can be learned, practiced, and mastered. And when young people learn them early, it changes everything.
Social anxiety among teenagers is at an all-time high. College students report feeling lonelier than any previous generation. Young adults are entering the workforce without the basic skills to build professional relationships. And yet almost no one is teaching these skills in a systematic, practical way.
The SIEL Project was created to fill that gap.
Meet The Founder
John Bush is a professional social skills coach with over a decade of experience and over 10,000 hours of real-world coaching. He has helped hundreds of people — from shy teenagers to adults paralyzed by social anxiety — learn to connect with confidence.
John's path to this work was personal. He struggled with social skills himself, and that experience drives everything he does. He knows from the inside what it feels like to walk into a room and not know how to connect. And he knows — from thousands of hours of coaching — exactly what it takes to change that.
Through his for-profit coaching practice, John works with individuals who can invest in private coaching. The SIEL Project is his commitment to making sure cost is never the reason a young person doesn't get the help they need.
John holds a degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara and hosts The Social Connection Chronicles podcast. Learn more about his coaching work at coachjohnbush.com.
Our Focus
The SIEL Project primarily serves young people from middle school age through young adulthood — the years when social skills are forming, social anxiety tends to peak, and the habits of a lifetime are being set. We work with:
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Middle and high school students navigating one of the most socially challenging periods of life
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College students experiencing isolation, social anxiety, or difficulty making real connections
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Young adults entering the workforce who want to build confidence and social presence
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Parents and educators who want to better support the young people in their lives