What was your career path, and how did you get into coaching?
I studied business administration and later international finance, and I spent many years in leadership positions—first in controlling, later as a CFO and managing director.
My time at Sixtus was particularly formative. I was thrown into everything imaginable there. In hindsight, I am incredibly grateful for that, because that is exactly where I learned how companies, people, and crises really work.
At some point, I realized that the biggest challenges rarely fail because of Excel spreadsheets or strategy papers. They usually fail because of communication, unclear roles, or people's fear of change.
That fascinated me more and more. While others were talking about processes, I often asked myself: Why does someone behave this way? Why does a team suddenly stop functioning? Why do some people get through crises surprisingly well and others don't? That is likely where my path to coaching began—long before I called it that.
Today, I know that the people who helped me progress the most were not always the ones who agreed with me the most.
For many years now, alongside my operational work, I have been supporting people and companies as a consultant and coach. What excites me most is that people usually already carry the solutions within themselves. Often, all it takes is the right questions, a change in perspective, or someone to hold up a mirror.
I am a very attentive person, but I don't always crave harmony. If I feel that someone is standing in their own way, I will ask about it. That occasionally makes me a challenge. However, I believe that development rarely happens where you only feel validated. Today, I know that the people who helped me progress the most were not always the ones who agreed with me the most.
Today, I combine both: my experience in corporate management, restructuring, and transformation with working with people.
Why do you do coaching?
What still excites me about coaching and consulting today is the moment when people suddenly realize they have more options for action than they previously thought. Often, this doesn't require complicated concepts, but rather the right questions, a change in perspective, and someone to walk the path with them for a while.
Looking back at your career—what personal lessons have you learned? What made you who you are today?
The various stages of my professional life have taught me one thing above all: one's own ego is rarely the best foundation for good decisions. I take my responsibility very seriously, but not always myself. This helps me approach people openly, listen, and take on tasks that might not be in a job description. That is precisely why collaboration often works better—professionally, but with a certain ease.
What does a typical session with you look like?
My first question is usually: “What brings you to me?” The answers are as varied as the people themselves. Some come with clear concerns, others say: “My wife booked this.” But regardless of how we start, the conversation interactively reveals what is really going on.
Clients often realize that it is not about the supposed problem at all, but about role clarity or systems they cannot see themselves.
I don't hold lectures; instead, we work together to figure out what is really behind it.
What themes come up repeatedly in your sessions?
Clients often realize that the issue isn't the problem they thought it was, but rather a lack of role clarity or systems they cannot see themselves. Many identify too strongly with their role: "I have been fired" – instead of: "My position as Managing Director has been terminated." I advise clients to consciously write down their roles: "Here I am a Managing Director, there I am a private individual." It’s like a physical exercise, and it becomes ingrained through repetition.
I also work a lot with communication systems: How do people act in hierarchical or team-oriented environments? How can they learn to communicate more clearly within these systems?
What tools do you use – and how do they help your clients?
In my sessions, I use everything I have gathered in my toolkit: face reading, systemic constellations, role-playing, and provocative therapy. Face reading helps me identify unconscious patterns in clients. The face shows not only predispositions but also how someone lives their potential: winning or losing. You can live your predisposition in a way that benefits others – or in a way that is destructive. The face stores everything: traumas, successes, entire phases of life. Systemic constellations make connections visible. And provocative therapy lovingly caricatures the client's "delusion" – when someone is stuck in a dead end, I help them recognize their own "delusion" and then put it into perspective.
Sometimes a nudge is enough, and people find their way.
I work very interactively: we reenact scenes, I mirror their language, record clients with their phones, or do role-plays. This often acts like a switch. A client who thought she couldn't communicate experienced the following: I mirrored her language and recorded her with her phone. The client then said: "Wow, do I really talk that fast?" – and realized that it wasn't a lack of communication skills, but her pace.
Sometimes a nudge is enough, and people find their way. But if I notice that something is beyond my capacity, I refer them elsewhere. I don't see myself as a coach, but as a companion. Together, we often work out creative, and sometimes surprisingly simple, solutions.
You call yourself a creative problem solver – how does that manifest when you work with clients? And what do you find yourself constantly amazed by?
For me, creativity means working with what is there – and combining it in unexpected ways. Sometimes the solution is obvious, but you don't see it because you are too close to it. An example: A client came to me who wanted to reduce his working hours – but his boss was absolutely not willing to talk. Instead of advising him to hire a lawyer, I asked him: "Have you actually documented how much you really work?" He had no idea, so I suggested: "Download an app and track your working hours for four months. Then we will know exactly where you stand."
When he analyzed the data, the surprise came: He was already completing his workload in four days. For the same salary, a four-day week was therefore justified! This gave him solid arguments for the negotiation – and he was able to act with confidence.
Another time, a client came who had developed 25 different professional fields and wanted to turn them into a company – she couldn't see the forest for the trees. Together, we sorted things out: "What is your actual purpose?"
Another time, a civil servant sat before me who was on the verge of giving up because she had been poorly evaluated by her new team. But to me, this evaluation simply didn't fit the person sitting across from me. Instead of getting lost in the evaluation, I asked: "Who was actually in this position before you? How was the team connected back then?" It turned out: Her predecessor had manipulated the system. Suddenly she understood: It wasn't about her performance – it was about power games.
What surprises me again and again? How often the solution is right in front of us! Sometimes someone comes in thinking they need months of therapy – and after one session, they know how to proceed.
