Knowing the company over time has value.
When we know the people, decisions, previous attempts and ways of working, we do not start from zero every time.
The RatioSana approach
RatioSana means common sense.
Ratio is reason. Sana is healthy. In practice, that means looking first at what is actually happening, avoiding unnecessary complexity and not promising what we cannot honestly track.
A good conversation is not enough evidence for us. We care about decisions, behaviour and results that show up in the business afterwards.
Core belief
Change that does not show up in behavior has not happened.
Insight can be useful, but it is not change by itself. Change is when the conversation actually happens, the decision gets made, the task stays with the right owner or the sales meeting ends with a clear next step.
When knowledge is not enough
If someone knows what they should do and still does not do it, we want to understand why.
Different reasons call for different responses. That is why we do not try to solve every problem with another model, another presentation or more motivation.
They do not know how.
They need a concrete sentence, structure or skill. Then we practise.
They are afraid of the consequence.
We name the fear and test what could realistically happen instead of avoiding it.
The status quo gives them something.
Not acting can protect control, importance or distance from an uncomfortable outcome. That needs to be put on the table.
The commitment was unrealistic.
Then we change the step or the timing. A smaller action that happens is worth more than a large promise that does not.
How we run the conversation
Understand first. Then help. Be clear at the end.
If we offer a solution too early, we can easily solve the wrong problem. If we keep taking over, responsibility becomes blurred. And if nothing is clear at the end, the conversation remains just a conversation.
01
Understand the situation
What actually happened? What do we know, and what are we only assuming?
02
Help without taking over
Bring perspective, tools and challenge without running the client’s company for them.
03
Be clear
What is expected, what needs to be said, what happens next and when we return to the commitment.
Scoreboard
A scoreboard, not a feeling.
We agree a few things that are worth tracking and return to them over time. If nothing moves, that is information about the work — not something to explain away.
If what we are tracking is not moving, we change the way we work — not the story about why it was still good.
Before
We agree what we want to change and how we will recognise it.
During
We return to real situations and look at whether the new behaviour is actually being used.
After
We look at what changed, what did not and what now makes the most sense.
Boundary
We do not credit coaching for outcomes we cannot honestly connect to the work.
Partnership
Sparring can be long-term.
For some companies, the most valuable thing is an ongoing relationship with someone who knows the context but remains far enough outside to ask the uncomfortable question, prepare an important conversation or bring attention back to a commitment lost in day-to-day operations.
An outside view sees different things.
A sparring partner can ask the question nobody inside is asking anymore and keep focus on issues that are easy to postpone.
Partnership is not taking over the company.
We can be deeply involved in preparation, thinking and development, while decisions and responsibility remain where they belong.
Approach
Start with what is actually happening in your business.
The first conversation is there to understand what is going on and whether it makes sense for us to get involved. We do not need to know in advance how long the relationship will last.
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