Intellectual Sparring Partner (Noun): A friend, colleague, or acquaintance whose combination of background, competency, and personality makes them well-suited to strengthen the quality of your reasoning and decision-making via active, grounded discussion and debate.

Background: Different from your own across a number of vectors. A fundamentally different “map of reality” is ideal.

Competency: Exhibited clarity and depth of thinking. An analytical mind that is able to deconstruct problems into component parts.

Personality: Kind (but direct). You want to feel safe with the person and know that they operate from a basic stance of kindness—but that this kindness does not interfere with their willingness to be direct. This is essential.

Establish structure with regular “sparring sessions”—1 hour on a fixed weekly or monthly cadence, with clear topics and desired outcomes to guide the discussion.