Built on Real Conversations That Changed Outcomes

We started sontheriq in 2018 after watching too many people walk away from financial discussions feeling like they'd left value on the table. Not because they lacked knowledge, but because the conversation itself went sideways.

See How We Work

Professional financial discussion between colleagues reviewing negotiation strategies

Financial professionals collaborating on negotiation planning and strategy development

Why Financial Conversations Fail (And What Actually Works)

Here's something we noticed working with hundreds of professionals: most financial negotiation training focuses on tactics and numbers. Walk in with this offer, counter with that percentage, use these power phrases.

But when we sat down with people who'd been through those programs, they kept saying the same thing – it felt scripted. Unnatural. And when the other person didn't follow the expected script? Everything fell apart.

Our Approach Changed in 2020

A client in Sydney was preparing for a major supplier renegotiation. Instead of drilling tactics, we spent three weeks just understanding how conversations actually flow. What happens when someone pushes back. How to stay present when you're nervous. The negotiation went so differently from their previous attempts that they called it "the first time I actually felt like myself in the room."

That's when we rebuilt everything. We stopped teaching negotiation as a performance and started teaching it as authentic communication under financial pressure.

Today, our programs focus on three things: reading the actual dynamics in the room, adapting your communication style in real-time, and staying grounded when stakes are high. Because financial discussions aren't won with perfect scripts – they're navigated with genuine presence and flexible thinking.

1,240+ Professionals Trained Since 2018

87% Report Improved Confidence

42 Industry Sectors Represented

What We Learned From 1,000+ Real Negotiations

Every program we run builds on patterns we've identified from actual financial conversations – what trips people up, where communication breaks down, and what makes the difference between productive dialogue and stalemate.

Training session demonstrating practical financial communication techniques

The Melbourne Property Group Case

In early 2023, we worked with a property development team facing tense investor renegotiations. Their biggest challenge wasn't the numbers – it was managing emotional escalation when discussions got heated. We focused entirely on de-escalation techniques and reading non-verbal cues. Six months later, they'd restructured three major partnerships that were headed toward litigation. The lead negotiator told us the difference was "finally having tools for when conversations go off the rails, not just when they go according to plan."

Professional workshop on financial negotiation dynamics and strategy

Teaching Pattern Recognition Over Scripts

We stopped teaching fixed approaches in 2021 after realizing participants couldn't apply them in real situations. Now we teach pattern recognition – identifying when a negotiation is stalling, when the other person is genuinely confused versus strategically delaying, when you need to slow down versus push forward. One participant from Brisbane used these skills during a salary negotiation that included surprise equity components. Instead of sticking to her prepared talking points, she recognized the shift in dynamics and adjusted her approach. She later said it was the first negotiation where she felt like she was "reading the room rather than reciting lines."

Thorsten Bjørnsen

Lead Trainer & Program Director

I spent twelve years in corporate finance before admitting what everyone knows but nobody says: most negotiation training doesn't work in real conversations. The turning point was watching a colleague completely freeze during a critical vendor negotiation despite weeks of preparation and perfect mock sessions.

That's when I started researching what actually happens in financial discussions. Not the textbook version – the messy reality where people get defensive, information emerges unexpectedly, and emotions run high even when everyone's trying to stay professional.

I founded sontheriq to teach what I wish someone had taught me: how to stay present and adaptive when financial stakes create pressure. Our programs at sontheriq focus on developing your ability to read situations as they unfold, rather than memorizing responses for situations you hope will happen.

Between 2018 and now, I've worked with over 1,200 professionals across Australia. The feedback that means most? "This was the first training that felt like it was designed for real conversations, not perfect ones."

What Guides Our Training Philosophy

Reality Over Theory

Every technique we teach comes from analyzing what actually worked in real negotiations, not what sounds good in workshops. If it doesn't hold up under pressure, we don't teach it.

Adaptation Over Scripts

We focus on developing your ability to recognize patterns and adjust in the moment. Because no real financial conversation follows a script, and pretending they will only sets people up for failure.

Presence Over Performance

The goal isn't to perform negotiation tactics flawlessly. It's to develop the capacity to stay grounded, think clearly, and communicate authentically when stakes are high and emotions are present.

Practice That Reflects Reality

Our training sessions deliberately introduce the chaos and unpredictability of real negotiations. Participants leave prepared for conversations that don't go according to plan – because that's most of them.