Podcast Summary: Courage & Clarity, Episode 172 "The 5-Minute Test That Reveals Why You're Stuck (And How to Get Unstuck)" Host: Steph Crowder
Date: December 29, 2025

Episode Overview

In this insightful year-end episode, Steph Crowder explores a common roadblock for entrepreneurs: feeling stuck or uncertain about next steps. Drawing from her experience coaching business owners, she introduces a 5-minute self-test to reveal why we get stuck, emphasizes the crucial difference between setting goals and creating direction, and shares simple yet profound exercises to bring clarity. Steph also distinguishes between the urge to plan and the importance of first making key decisions about what you actually want. The conversation is motivating, direct, and practical—perfectly balancing Steph’s signature blend of courage and clarity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Clarity Gap: Why Entrepreneurs Feel Stuck

• Pattern Observed: Steph shares she can quickly tell if a client hasn’t done her "Year on the Wall" training because of a particular kind of ambiguity in their answers about the future.

  "I can tell within five minutes when someone hasn't done my year on the wall training." (02:20)

• Symptoms of the Clarity Gap:

  • Indecision: "I could do it this way, I could do it that way…" (04:50)
  • Everything feels equally important.
  • Feeling busy but sensing no real movement or progress.
  • Mistaking strategic confusion for lack of motivation, when in fact it’s a lack of decision about what you truly want.

Key Quote

"When you feel busy, but don’t feel like you’re moving forward — this is confusion, not a sign of laziness."
— Steph Crowder (05:35)

The Real Reason for Confusion: Skipped Decisions

• Steph explains that entrepreneurs often skip the fundamental decision of “what do I actually want next year?” and jump to tactics and planning.
  • Without a clear destination, every path feels wrong; constant second-guessing arises.
  • Most people rush to strategies (content planning, launches, habits, new planners, etc.) believing these will 'fix' them, but without the underlying decision of direction, they remain stuck.

Key Quote

"You’re not confused because you’re unmotivated—you’re confused because you skipped the first decision."
— Steph Crowder (07:00)

Two Core Questions to Ask Before Anything Else

1. What result are you trying to create?
2. Who do you want to be along the way?

• Steph stresses the importance of defining not just the outcome, but the kind of person you need to become to achieve it.
• Example: Going after a big goal can be done from panic or from calm, intentional leadership—how do you want to feel/be as you move toward your goals?

Key Quote

"Who is the person, that identity, you are going to need to step into in order to create the results you actually want?"
— Steph Crowder (16:25)

The Three Types of "Forward"

Steph breaks down the idea of 'progress' into three categories. She advises listeners to decide which kind of forward movement they truly want:

| Type | Description | Example | |----------|-------------|---------| | More | More of what you have (revenue, visibility, capacity) | "Pour gasoline on the fire you’ve built." | | Different| Same quantum, new structure/method | "Same revenue, but in a new way—less hustle, more systems." | | Deeper | Fewer goals, greater mastery and consistency | "Mastery over novelty…going deeper with fewer clients." |

"Sometimes trying to do all of them at once is where people get stuck." (28:52)

The Cost of Skipped Decisions

• Overplanning: Trying to fix confusion with more (and more detailed) planning, when what’s really needed is a clear direction.
  • Overloading planners and project management tools because no core decision has been made.
  • Second-guessing and persistent feelings of being behind.
  • Burnout is often the result not of 'too much work,' but of working on things misaligned with your true direction.
• Consequences: Without clarifying what you want and who you want to be, you risk constant pivoting, feeling behind, and choosing goals that don't energize you.

Key Quote

"The clearer you are about your decisions next year, the less you have to actually plan."
— Steph Crowder (34:50)

"A lot of burnout comes not from doing too much, but from doing things that don’t match the direction you actually want."
— Steph Crowder (41:38)

The Five-Minute Exercise: Fill-in-the-Blanks for Clarity

Steph offers a simple, actionable exercise to break the fog and find direction (44:10):

Write your own answers, unedited, to these prompts:

1. In 2026, I want my business to feel more ___ than ___.
2. I want to be known for ___, not ___.
3. If this year went the way I would like, I’d be doing less ___ by December.

• Don’t open a planner until you can genuinely answer these questions.
• These are your "compass questions"—don’t start driving until you know your destination.

Key Quote

"If you can't answer these, do not touch a planner yet. What are we planning if we can't answer these questions right?"
— Steph Crowder (46:30)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On indecisiveness:
  "What that usually means is you haven’t actually chosen what kind of life this business is supposed to support." (18:20)

• On leadership & identity:
  "What kind of leader does this specific company need right now? What do they need to be doing, thinking, how do they show up?" (22:43)

• Simple road trip analogy:
  "You don’t just get in the car and start driving… What business do we have driving if we haven’t decided where we are going?" (49:20)

Timestamps of Key Segments

• Why Clients Stay Stuck & The ‘Year on the Wall’ Test (01:40 – 08:40)
• Mistaking Strategy for Direction (09:20 – 15:40)
• Who Do You Want to Be? Defining Identity in Planning (16:00 – 22:50)
• Three Types of Forward Explained (25:10 – 33:10)
• The Pitfalls of Overplanning (33:20 – 36:50)
• Burnout: The Real Cause (40:55 – 42:10)
• The Fill-in-the-Blank Clarity Test (44:10 – 47:00)
• Compass Questions vs. Planning (47:10 – 50:15)

Tone & Style

Steph is upbeat, direct, and packed with practical wisdom. She’s relatable—sharing her own challenges—and uses vivid analogies to cement the main points. The tough-love, "no BS" approach is gentle but motivating, urging listeners toward real self-inquiry before diving into tactics or planners.

In Summary

This episode is an energizing reset for anyone who feels foggy or stalled, especially approaching a new year. Steph offers both the insight (why we get stuck) and the practical (a quick exercise to loosen the blockage). She challenges listeners to define what they truly want and how they want to feel—before getting swept up in planners or tactics. For those ready to get unstuck, start by answering Steph's three clarity questions, and consider her "Year on the Wall" approach for deeper transformation.