The Sparring Cards

A thinking tool for people who overthink.

The Right Question Changes Everything

Most breakthroughs don’t happen because we find the right answer.

They happen because someone asked us the right question.

Not the smart-sounding question. Not the impressive one.

The one that made the noise stop for a moment.

The one that made us feel something.

The one that gently collapsed the story we didn’t realize we were trapped in.

That’s why I made the Sparring Cards.

Not a System. Not a Hack. Just a Mirror.

They’re not a framework.

Not a strategy.

Not a productivity hack.

They’re an invitation—to sit with a deeper kind of question.

One that can’t be answered with a quick fix or clever phrasing.

Only with honesty.

Clarity Doesn’t Come from Thinking Harder

I used to get stuck in overthinking.

Looping. Planning. Perfecting.

Telling myself I just needed more clarity, more time, more proof.

But clarity doesn’t come from thinking harder.

It comes from noticing where we’re afraid to feel.

And asking ourselves the kind of questions that make it safe to look there.

The Sparring Cards are built around that idea.

Each one holds a simple but sharp question.

A mirror, more than a map.

They’re designed to interrupt mental loops, open perspective, and reconnect you with the real work—whatever that means for you.

How to Use the Cards

• Use them alone—when you’re stuck, spiraling, or avoiding something you care about.

Start with your idea in mind (a project, a decision, a tension you can’t name). Pull a card. Let the question land. You don’t need to answer it right away. Just sit with it. See what shifts.

• Use them with a friend—when you need to be seen clearly.

Name your idea in a few words. Let them ask the question. Let them listen. You’ll know what to say. And when it’s your turn, return the favor.

Creative Fight Club: A Dojo for Ideas

• Use them in Fight Club Mode—the core of our in-person gatherings.

This is part of a wider experiment I’ve been running called Creative Fight Club. It’s like a pop-up dojo for real conversations.

Small group. One-on-one rounds. Honest feedback without advice. And these cards are the engine. One idea. One question. One real conversation at a time.

Back to Yourself

You don’t need a plan.

You need a question that brings you back to yourself.

Pull a card.

Sit with the question.

Answer honestly—then follow where it leads.

That’s it.

You’ll know when it’s working.

You’ll feel it.

A shift. A breath.

A sense that maybe, just maybe,

you were never really stuck—

just circling around the truth you hadn’t named yet.