How sparring works
You bring a decision that matters. I ask the questions nobody around you is asking, push where the thinking is thin, and hand it back. The call stays yours, and so does the credit.
The difference
The same decision, three ways
Say you’re thinking about hiring a COO. Here’s how it goes, depending on who’s in the room.
With a coach
“What’s making you want a COO right now? What would it mean to let go of operations?”
The work is on you: readiness, control, trust. You leave knowing yourself better.
With a consultant
They map your org, benchmark the market, write the role and run the search.
You leave with a COO. The thinking that got you there leaves with them.
With a sparring partner
“What problem is this hire supposed to solve, in one sentence? What will you stop doing the day they start? What if it’s the wrong person in nine months?”
And then, maybe: “I think you’re hiring a COO to avoid a conversation with your head of sales.”
You leave with a decision you’ve tested yourself. Maybe the same one. Maybe not.
After a consultant, you have a COO. After sparring, you know why, and you'll make the next call faster.
The real comparison
One wrong hire costs more than a year of sparring.
So does
A project nobody dares to stop.
A plan everyone agreed with too quickly.
A deal you should have walked away from.
There are two ways to work with me.
You don’t need to arrive with the right question. Often the real one shows up while we talk. That’s where the value is.
Where it starts
Before you commit
One call that will shape the next years. A hire, a pivot, a deal, a restructuring. We take it apart, with everything tied to it, until you know where it holds, where it breaks, and whether it’s the right question at all. Then you commit or you walk away, and either way you know why.
What you leave with
A decision you can defend to your board, your team and yourself.
The risks named before they surprise you.
A plan for the case where you’re wrong.
Three sessions, timed to your decision: when it lands, when the options are on the table, and right before you commit. A direct line throughout.
$2,500
Where it continues
Your sparring partner
Not for every decision. Some sessions start with a decision, many with a hunch, and the real question shows up in the room. A sparring partner doesn’t fight your fights. He makes you better at them. Over time, you start asking my questions before I do.
What changes
Clear thinking on the calls that shape your year.
A place to say the half-formed thing out loud.
Judgment that gets sharper, so you need me less, not more.
Two sessions a month and a direct line throughout. Month to month.
$4,000 a month
“He doesn’t give you standard advice. He challenges your thinking and helps you see things you might otherwise miss.”
Martin, CEO, former Googler
Settled upfront, so the time is only for your decision.
We meet across a table. When an ocean is in the way, by video.
In English or German. What you bring stays outside the building.
If after the first session we’re not the right match, your money comes back.
Questions leaders ask first
How is this different from coaching or consulting?
Coaching usually works on you, toward a goal over months. Consulting works on your company: analysis, a plan, a project. Sparring is narrower: a live decision, tested from every side, then handed back to you. Plenty of leaders use all three. I spent years in Google’s peer coaching program, so I’m a fan.
Have you sat in my chair?
Not in yours. Sparring doesn’t need that. It needs someone who notices what nobody is asking, and who has no stake in the answer except yours.
What if I need to move a session?
Move it any time up to a day before. Inside a day, write to me and we’ll find something fair.
Who isn't this for?
Anyone who wants to be told what to do, needs a cheerleader, or is looking for a quick fix. If you’re carrying something heavier than work, I’ll gladly point you to someone better placed to help.
It starts with a first conversation.
Thirty minutes. Free. Come with a decision or just a hunch. There’s no pitch at the end.
Sascha