Marco Pasini

POSITIVE INTELLIGENCE® · COHORTS FROM OCTOBER 2026

Positive Intelligence — mental fitness for people who carry a lot

What happens to us isn't what weighs us down. It's how our brain responds. And that response is trainable — like a muscle. Seven weeks, a small cohort, about fifteen minutes a day.

For founders and C-level·for people running on empty·for couples

Led by Marco Pasini, certified Positive Intelligence coach. Live, online, in a small group.

THREE WAYS INTO THE SAME TRAINING

Is this for you?

Positive Intelligence isn't a niche tool for one group. It's foundational training for the mind — and it lands in the same place for three very different people. Pick the mirror you recognise yourself in.

You deliver on the outside. And on the inside that isn't enough to hold you.

WHAT YOU FEEL

Restlessness under the surface

Everything looks fine from the outside — and something inside still doesn't sit right.

You lie awake after productive days. The self-doubt should get quieter the more you achieve. It doesn't.

The feeling of always being switched on. With no real off button.

WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS

Reactivity instead of clarity

Decisions feel heavy even when the facts are clear.

In team situations you react more emotionally than you meant to — and you notice it afterwards.

Conflict, feedback and people issues eat energy you need elsewhere.

WHAT BECOMES POSSIBLE

Inner steadiness

Clarity under pressure — even when things are on fire.

Calm that isn't withdrawal but a different mode of responding: less Judge, more Sage.

Relationships that hold — with your team, your co-founders, your family. And performance that stops feeling like survival.

If you're nodding at two of those three, you're in the right place.

THE TOOL BEHIND IT

What is Positive Intelligence?

Positive Intelligence was developed by Shirzad Chamine — Stanford lecturer and bestselling author. The framework draws on neuroscience, positive psychology, cognitive behavioural therapy and performance research, and turns it into something that works on an ordinary Tuesday.

The core idea is unspectacular, which is exactly why it holds: what happens to us isn't what weighs us down — it's how our brain responds. That response isn't a character trait. It's a trained reflex. And what's trained can be retrained.

So Positive Intelligence doesn't work on symptoms. It works on the thinking and reacting patterns themselves.

7 weeks

length of the foundation programme

~15 min

daily training through the PQ app

10

saboteurs that take the wheel under stress

5

Sage powers as the counterweight

17 of 18

emotional intelligence competencies strengthened by PQ practice

3:1

ratio of positive to negative interactions in relationships that hold

And research shows a group is the deciding factor in whether new mental habits actually stick. That's why this is trained in a cohort, not alone in front of an app.

The ten saboteurs

Saboteurs are internal patterns that fire automatically under stress. Each one started as a survival strategy — a strength that got overused. The goal isn't to fight them. It's to see through them and take away their power.

  1. 1

    The Judgethe universal saboteur. Judges you, others and your circumstances. Everyone has one.

  2. 2

    The Hyper-Achieverself-worth through performance. The next summit counts, the one you reached doesn't.

  3. 3

    The Controllersafety through control. Letting go feels like risk.

  4. 4

    The Hyper-Rationalescapes into thinking when feeling is what's called for.

  5. 5

    The Pleaserconnection through accommodation. Says yes where no would be wiser.

  6. 6

    The Restlessalways moving, never quite here.

  7. 7

    The Hyper-Vigilantscans permanently for danger. Alertness as a default state.

  8. 8

    The Avoidersidesteps conflict and discomfort for as long as possible.

  9. 9

    The Victimemotional withdrawal as an answer to overwhelm.

  10. 10

    The Sticklerperfection as the measure. For themselves and everyone else.

You can find out which ones are loudest in you in about five minutes — with the free saboteur assessment from Positive Intelligence.

Take the free saboteur assessment

The three pillars of mental fitness

Weaken your saboteurs

Recognise your automatic patterns, name them, and take their power step by step. Not fight them — see through them.

Strengthen your Sage

Activate five wise inner powers: Empathize, Explore, Innovate, Navigate, Activate. Compassion, curiosity, new paths, a clear compass, decisive action.

Practise PQ-Reps

One- to two-minute exercises — mental push-ups. They pull attention out of the ruminating head and back into body and senses, building new neural pathways.

Seven weeks that upgrade your inner operating system

  1. 1

    Self-Command & PQ-Reps

    The foundation: interrupting mental patterns in the moment, using simple body-based exercises.

  2. 2

    The Judge

    The universal saboteur that evaluates everything and everyone. Including you.

  3. 3

    Your accomplice saboteurs

    The two or three patterns loudest in you — and what they originally set out to protect.

  4. 4

    Empathy & self-compassion

    No lasting shift without self-compassion. For many this is the most uncomfortable week and the most important one.

  5. 5

    Sage perspective, Explore & Innovate

    A different read on your circumstances. And the two Sage powers built on curiosity instead of judgement.

  6. 6

    Activate

    Moving into action and staying there. Decisively, without the Judge braking.

  7. 7

    Navigate

    Your inner compass. What actually matters — and how that becomes clear decisions.

After the programme there's a closing session where we sort out what stayed and where you keep going.

How a week runs

  • ·One live pod session (60–90 min) — in your cohort, led by Marco. Content, practice, reflection in the group.
  • ·About 15 minutes daily — guided PQ-Reps through the PQ app.
  • ·One learning module at the weekend (approx. 1 hour) — video and reflection.
  • ·One written reflection prompt per week — personal, for you.

Live and online·small cohort·pod sessions are not recorded

Why no recordings

What's in the room stays in the room. That protects the openness — yours and everyone else's.

What's included

  • PQ app access for the duration of the programme
  • Seven weekly pod sessions (60–90 min) live with Marco
  • Personal saboteur assessment and debrief
  • Daily guided PQ-Reps through the app
  • Weekly reflection prompts
  • Access to the PQ community
  • A closing session after the programme

What others took away

Every voice I've collected over the years — unfiltered, in their own words. Most of them are in German: these are participants' own words, so we leave them as they are.

From the PQ cohorts

Mich hat überrascht, wie einfach es gehen kann, wenn man erstmal anfängt, sich mit sich selbst zu beschäftigen und zu verstehen, wie verschiedene Dinge auf mich einwirken und wie ich sie bewusst wahrnehmen und kontrollieren kann.

MatteoFounder
Die positiven Veränderungen waren massiv: mein Umgang mit Stress. Ich habe meine Existenzangst verloren. Ich habe eine tiefere und engere Bindung zu meinem Sohn und zu meiner Frau gefunden.

Jakob HolderbaumGründer, Holderbaum Studios
Das Leben ist voller Höhen und Tiefen — und ein Satz ist mir besonders hängen geblieben: Alles kann, alles sein. Durch das PQ-Programm habe ich verstanden, wie entscheidend es ist, die eigenen Saboteure wirklich zu kennen und bewusst mit ihnen umzugehen. Statt Energie zu verlieren oder in Prokrastination zu verfallen, gelingt es mir zunehmend, diese Muster zu erkennen und in positive Energie zu transformieren. Das führt für mich zu mehr Leichtigkeit, Klarheit und Sinn im Alltag. Insgesamt war das für mich ein echter Game Changer.

Sven ZuschlagFounder, „Now CEO of my life“
Dass Persönlichkeitsentwicklung Marco am Herzen liegt, war mir klar. Was mich während der Kohorte überrascht hat, ist etwas anderes: WIE sehr die PQ-Methodik ihm selbst in schwierigen Zeiten geholfen hat. Die ehrlichen Beispiele aus seiner eigenen Erfahrung haben eine Glaubwürdigkeit und ein Vertrauen erzeugt, das ich selten erlebt habe. Spürbar verändert hat sich mein Umgang mit Stress, meine Arbeit und meine private Gelassenheit. Und was mich zusätzlich überzeugt hat: wie wissenschaftlich fundiert das Programm ist — und dass es nicht nur im Business-Kontext wirkt, sondern auf das generelle Wohlbefinden.

Georg SchaalCo-Founder, peopleIX GmbH
PQ ist mit Abstand das stärkste Programm, das ich in 20 Jahren Selbstoptimierung erleben durfte. Mit spielerischer Leichtigkeit, unabdingbarer Liebe zum Menschen und einer faszinierenden Logik grub es sich sukzessive bis zu den tiefsten Schichten meiner Persönlichkeit und Glaubenssätze. Hervorheben möchte ich Marco als Coach, der PQ nicht nur in jeder Minute lebt, sondern mit seinen wertvollen Erfahrungen und seiner Empathie an den richtigen Stellen veredelt.

Christian ChaléatFounder, Ethnovis
Am Anfang des Programms war ich sehr gestresst und hatte Schwierigkeiten, meine Emotionen in diesen stressigen Phasen zu kontrollieren. Als ich gestartet bin, war mein Ziel, zu verhindern, in diese emotionale Verfassung zu kommen. Zu verstehen, dass ich das gar nicht muss — sondern weiß, ich kann diese Verfassung verlassen mit Hilfe der Tools und Routinen, die ich im Laufe des Programms erarbeitet habe — war transformativ für mich.

Daniel von MirbachCo-Founder, Dat-Ads
In vielen Situationen trete ich jetzt erstmal zurück — dadurch habe ich weniger Stress und mehr Ruhe im Umgang mit meinen Mitmenschen. Für mich kam die Teilnahme zum richtigen Zeitpunkt, und ich bin wirklich froh, dass ich in dieser Zeit diese Unterstützung erfahren durfte.

CoraBereichsleiterin, Sozialsektor

From the couples cohort

PQ und Marco haben unsere Beziehung für mich auf ein neues Level gehoben. Wir haben im Training lernen dürfen, alles miteinander zu teilen — auch jedes Judgement unserer Saboteure — und vom anderen darin geliebt und gesehen zu werden. Ich durfte lernen, wie es sich anfühlt, tiefe Verbundenheit und Sicherheit in meiner Beziehung zu spüren.

Paula & Philipp
Der größte Game-Changer für mich sind die Saboteure — plötzlich waren sie sichtbar. Seit ich verstehe, was Jakobs und was meine Saboteure sind, haben wir die Ebene von ‚du bist‘ und ‚du hast‘ verlassen. Wir schaffen es sogar, gemeinsam über sie zu lachen. Wir hatten vorher schon viel Paartherapie gemacht — PQ hat unsere Verbindung noch einmal so gestärkt, dass ich heute sagen kann: Ich bin mit Jakob wieder vollkommen in Liebe verbunden.

Chrissy & Jakob
Marco hat uns sehr geholfen und zielführend begleitet, unsere eigenen Denk- und Verhaltensmuster besser zu verstehen. Dadurch kommunizieren wir heute bewusster und gehen gelassener mit Konflikten um. PQ hilft uns, Stress früher zu erkennen und unser Familienleben und unsere Partnerschaft nicht hinter dem Berufsalltag verschwinden zu lassen.

Angelika & Tom

On working with Marco

Voices from mentoring, consulting and workshops — not all from a PQ cohort, but all about the same way of working.

Marco ist ehrlich, tief am Menschen interessiert und vermittelt spürbar die Freude, die er am Coaching hat. Seine gereifte Art, Wertschätzung und Offenheit schaffen ein vertrauensvolles Umfeld, in dem alles gesagt werden darf.

Rebecca GöckelCEO und Gründerin, NOMOO Eis
Ich hatte zehn Jahre Therapieerfahrung hinter mir und kam neugierig dazu — heute bin ich schlicht begeistert. Es hat mir gezeigt, dass ich mich selbst liebhaben und mir verzeihen darf. Es wirkt bis in meine engsten Beziehungen. Marco will, dass du wächst, und baut dir einen Raum, in dem genau das möglich wird. Von allem, was ich kenne, war das tiefer, komplexer und besser — und es hat mehr gehalten, als es versprochen hat.

Michael Lützespark-consult
Unser Workshop mit Marco war inspirierend, strukturiert und hat uns in kurzer Zeit zu echten Ergebnissen geführt. Besonders beeindruckt hat mich die Kombination aus klarer Struktur und kreativer Leichtigkeit.

Markus ZilligersGeschäftsführer, ELEMENTA Therapie

Investment

€1,490

plus VAT · per person

Seven guided weeks · PQ app access for the programme · saboteur assessment · closing session

The price is per person — if you come as a couple, you each have your own place.

The cohort is deliberately small so everyone genuinely gets airtime. When one group is full, the next one follows — that's a capacity question, not a pressure tactic.

THE FIRST STEP — FREE

Experience it before you decide

Before the next cohort starts there's a free discovery workshop: 90 minutes, online.

You won't get Positive Intelligence explained to you — you'll experience it. A first reframe moment, where a saboteur thought turns into a Sage perspective. Plus a few body-based exercises and honest examples from Marco's own story.

Afterwards you'll know whether the cohort is right for you. No sales pressure.

Next date: October 2026 — exact date to follow · 90 minutes · online · free

Save a spot in the discovery workshop

And who this isn't for

IT FITS IF …

  • ·you're ready to start with yourself
  • ·you can commit to seven weeks — at about fifteen minutes a day
  • ·you'd rather work in a group than alone in front of an app
  • ·you want to change patterns, not just manage symptoms

IT'S NOT (YET) THE RIGHT THING IF …

  • ·you're in an acute crisis that needs therapeutic or medical support
  • ·someone else thinks you should do this
  • ·you're looking for a quick technique rather than training
  • ·in a couple, only one of you actually wants it

Important: Positive Intelligence is mental fitness training, not a psychotherapeutic method. It doesn't replace psychotherapy or couples therapy and isn't intended to treat mental illness or acute crises. It's a preventive, resource-oriented programme. If you're unsure whether this is right for you right now: write to me. I'll tell you honestly if something else would be the better first step.

YOUR COACH

Marco Pasini

An entrepreneur since 2009. I know the patterns this programme is about first-hand — the head-driven, controlling operator who functions instead of living. Positive Intelligence was part of my own shift towards a more present, heart-led way of working.

Today I work at the intersection of emotional resilience, leadership and self-regulation. As a certified Positive Intelligence coach I've guided founders, executives and couples through the programme.

“I don't fix anyone. I remind people who they already are.”

Marco Pasini

Two doors

Either is a good first step. Pick the one that fits.

I'd like to …
This is me

Questions that come up

How much time does this take?+

One live session per week (60–90 minutes), around 15 minutes of app training a day and roughly an hour at the weekend for the learning module. Deliberately built to fit a real life — including a parent's.

Do I need prior experience?+

No. We start at zero.

Is this therapy?+

No. Positive Intelligence is mental fitness training. It doesn't replace psychotherapy or couples therapy and isn't intended to treat mental illness.

How big is the group?+

Deliberately small, so everyone genuinely gets airtime. The exact size is confirmed for each cohort.

When does the next cohort start?+

From October 2026. You'll get the specific dates after signing up — or in the discovery workshop.

Are sessions recorded?+

The pod sessions aren't. What's in the room stays in the room. The learning modules in the app are available any time.

What if I miss a session?+

Not a problem. You get the material, and we pick up what matters in the next session.

What language is it in?+

Cohorts run in German by default; English-language cohorts on request. The PQ app is mostly in English.

What does it cost?+

€1,490 plus VAT per person. That covers seven guided weeks, PQ app access for the programme, the saboteur assessment and the closing session.

Can we do this as a couple?+

Yes. You go through the programme together — that's exactly where the value sits. The price is per person, so you each have your own place. And if you want to work through the breath as well: together with Eva of LUFTHUNGER there's a couples cohort combining PQ with Buteyko breathwork.

A first step that costs nothing but 90 minutes