From football scout to mentor
"Success can be something very beautiful, but if we chase after it in order to feel valuable and good, then we are doing something wrong – and sooner or later we will notice. It can go so far that at some point we feel completely empty, constantly frustrated and dissatisfied, and lose the joy in our greatest talents."– Jannis
Training
Psychological Systemic Coach
Chief scout
FC Ingolstadt 04
Scout U15-U16
Real Madrid C.F
Scout U14-U16
Hamburger SV
Scouting coordinator U8-U14
SV Werder Bremen
Master
Master in Talent Identification and Development in Soccer
Universidad de Madrid – Escuela Universitaria Real Madrid
Bachelor
Sports Science & Hispanic Studies (Spanish)
University of Oldenburg & University of Bremen
When someone asks me about my path, I usually answer like this:
"First I searched for success, then for myself. Now I help other people begin their search – and lead a more valuable, more honest life."
My CV sounds pretty good at first glance: competitive athlete in childhood and adolescence, elite university in Spain, and finally scout for Real Madrid, HSV, FC Ingolstadt and Werder Bremen. This journey was exciting, but also marked by significant performance anxiety.
Lots of talent, lots of pressure: me as a little kid playing tennis.
Even in childhood I had learned to link my self-worth to my success: when I performed and met expectations, I felt good; when I “failed”, I almost lost my footing.
This unhealthy dynamic, which many of us are familiar with, became a major problem over time, as it robbed me of more and more joy in life and pleasure in my lifelong passion: sport.
The more responsibility I took on at work and the more successful I became, the worse it got. The question “Who am I without my success?” soon became so loud that I could no longer ignore it.
“Sooner or later, we are all forced to sit down, reflect on our lives, and ask ourselves who we are and what the meaning of our life's journey is at this moment.”– Jon Kabat-Zinn
Sometimes the hardest steps are the most valuable. For me, that step was the decision to seek therapeutic help and answer the questions: “Who am I? What do I believe? What can I change to feel better?”
I developed valuable strategies for dealing with stress and gradually managed to create a healthier workday for myself. It was difficult, but it worked.
But much more happened: little by little my eyes opened to my very personal entanglements and entrenched ideals. For the first time I got in touch with wishes and needs I had always ignored. The more I discovered here, the clearer it became to me: I need a real new beginning. A radical reorientation that allows me to lead a more authentic, more meaningful life – and to help others do exactly the same.
I know how valuable it is not to walk your path alone, but with people who have experienced similar things. People who listen to you, show you new perspectives and whom you can confide in. As a mentor, I take on this role for you and give you the opportunity to get to the bottom of yourself, so to speak.
Life is never easy, but it can feel more joyful, more genuine and richer. Living courageously and listening to your heart, not to fear, is a real possibility for each of us. We just have to be ready to take the first step.