The Frameworks
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Proven Tools, Made Practical
Systems Meant to Get you Unstuck
These three frameworks work together to help you build sustainable success—personally and professionally. While they’re designed to reinforce each other, you can start wherever makes the most sense for where you are right now. Most people find it natural to begin with themselves, then apply what they learn to their work. Here’s how they connect.
Steps & Stops Strategy
The Steps & Stops Framework is a three-phase system for turning ideas into reality: Dream, Define, Deliver. Whether you're launching a business, improving a process, or pursuing a personal goal, this method guides you from vision to execution.
Within each phase, you'll identify the forward momentum (Steps) that moves you ahead and the obstacles (Stops) that slow you down. By recognizing both, you build the clarity and resilience needed to follow through—without burning out or losing sight of what matters.
This approach works for any goal where action is needed and success can be defined. Learn it once with something personal. Apply it everywhere, including your marketing strategy.
Five Flames Model
The Five Flames Model is an inventory for holistic life harmony. It helps you assess five critical areas - Health, Wealth, Relationships, Beliefs, and Activities - so you can see where you're thriving and where gaps might be draining your energy.
This framework is descriptive and diagnostic. It doesn't prescribe solutions for every life challenge (as there is plenty of information out there already for that). Instead, it helps you understand where you are, where you want to be, and how any gap between the two is affecting your overall quality of life.
When you know what needs attention, you can make intentional choices that align your business with your values, building something sustainable instead of running yourself into the ground.
Marketer's Compass
The Marketer's Compass organizes marketing into five interconnected Points - Core, Character, Community, Channels, and Conversion - each with specific focus areas you can strengthen right now. This framework helps marketing professionals describe what's happening, diagnose where problems live, and remediate issues holding their organization back.
Unlike the other two frameworks, the Marketer's Compass comes with tools built specifically for small businesses and nonprofits: Wayfinders that address common, fixable challenges. Whether your messaging is scattered, your website isn't converting, or your team lacks a clear brand voice, there's a Wayfinder designed to solve it.
Why Frameworks Matter
Clarity Over Chaos
Frameworks turn “I don’t know where to start” into “Here’s exactly what needs attention.” They help you diagnose root problems, not just symptoms. When everything feels urgent, frameworks show you what actually matters most.
Here’s what makes them effective: they give you and your team a shared language. When everyone understands the system, decisions get faster, priorities get clearer, and you stop reinventing the wheel every time something changes.
The three frameworks here build on each other intentionally. Steps & Stops gives you the method for turning goals into action. Five Flames helps you assess where you are and maintain the capacity to do great work. The Marketer’s Compass applies that method specifically to marketing strategy – with practical tools you can use right now.
You can enter this system anywhere, but most people find it easiest to start with themselves first. Once you see how the frameworks work personally, applying them to your business challenges becomes natural. You’re not learning something new. You’re using what already works.
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