Recently, I asked a room full of entrepreneurs a simple question: “How many of you have a dream you’ve never acted on, personally, professionally, or both?” Almost every hand went up. One or two were too cool for school.
Then I asked the harder question: “How long have you been sitting on it?”
The common answer? Years.
Years.
Here’s what’s crazy: Most of these people had read all the books, attended the seminars, and could quote Tony Robbins verbatim. They weren’t lacking motivation or information. They were drowning in it.
I used to be one of them. The perpetual information consumer, way more ingesting information over taking action. Always looking forward to the next conference. Sound familiar?
Then something shifted during a conversation with leadership legend John Maxwell at one of our company events. He didn’t give us another pep talk or share another success story. Instead, he handed us something far more valuable: a simple framework that transformed how I approach literally everything in business and life.
What if I told you that the difference between where you are and where you want to be isn’t about finding the perfect plan, the right moment, or even conquering your fears? These are important, yet what if it’s about something so ridiculously simple that you’ll kick yourself for not seeing it sooner?
Spoiler alert: It takes less than 8 minutes to learn, and once you see it, you can’t unsee it. This is about turning that overwhelming gap between intention and action into something as natural as, well… climbing stairs.
Does this resonate? Do you remember a moment when you finished reading an entire personal development book, closed it, and thought, “Well, now what?” Or maybe walked out of the convention center after hearing that amazing motivational speaker and thought, “I am excited but a little overwhelmed!”
We feel momentarily inspired, but by the next morning, back to our old habits instead of taking action on our dreams.
The Problem with Most Advice
Here’s a statistic that might surprise you: According to a study by OnePoll, 92% of Americans have a dream business idea, but 66% of them never take any steps to pursue it, citing fear of failure as the primary reason. Why? Because most of us are great at consuming information but terrible at implementing it.
Maxwell understood this. When he spoke to our team, he didn’t just give us another motivational speech. Instead, he outlined a practical process for turning ideas into action: Test. Learn. Adjust. Reenter.
Creating the STAIRS Framework
As I listened to Maxwell’s process, something clicked. I realized I needed a way to make this memorable—something I could actually use every day. That’s when the STAIRs acronym was born:
Start – Take action on something (a first step)
Track – Pay attention to the process and note the results
Analyze – Think through your steps. Are the results in line with your time and/or monetary investment?
Improve – Adjust your approach, attitude, and activities as needed
Refocus – Take the next action based on your evaluation, and Repeat the process
The beauty of this framework? As you repeat this process, you’re literally climbing the STAIRs toward your dreams, one step at a time. Even if you go “back to ground zero,” you are ahead of where you began because you have eliminated one option and LEARNED.
A Real-World Success Story
Let me share how this worked for Sarah, a real estate professional I coached years ago. She’d always wanted to start a community newsletter but felt overwhelmed by the idea. Using the STAIRs method, she:
Started with a simple one-page email to 50 past clients
Tracked the response rate (12 people replied positively)
Analyzed what content resonated most (local market updates)
Improved by adding neighborhood spotlights
Refocused on growing her list to 200 subscribers
Within 9 months, Sarah’s newsletter became a primary source of referrals, which she attributed to generating over $50,000 in earnings. Not bad for climbing one stair at a time!
Your Thoughts Are Your Foundation
Here’s what I’ve learned: Your thoughts reflect your past experiences, your mentors, and what you consume daily. Your beliefs? They’re shaped by the inputs you value most and your self-talk. But without action, all of this means nothing.
The Power of Today
There will be stumbles along the way—that’s guaranteed. But here’s the secret:
- Learn from yesterday, then be done with it
- Have hope and vision for the future, then attach action to it
- Focus on today—on that next step
Even if you can’t see the entire staircase, at least you’re moving upward.
Your Next Step
Remember coach Dan Devine’s words in Rudy: “You already know this, but this is the most important game of your lives. No excuses—do the work.”
So here’s my challenge to you: Don’t just read this and move on. Whether you want to start the business, play the music, hit the fitness goal, meet your person, learn the sport, make the sale, get the promotion. Pick one thing—just one—and take the first step today. Start small. Track your progress. Analyze what works. Improve your approach. Refocus for the next step.
Take steps consistently, and you’ll achieve at a level beyond your expectations.