Stages

You won the last game. Why are you still playing it?

Do you have clarity on what you actually want? Most people don't — and they keep making moves anyway. Stages is a small, intentional community for people at or near financial independence: Deploy and Free stage operators figuring out which game they're actually playing, and whether it's still the right one.

Apply to the Founder Cohort
Read the framework

The problem

Five years from now, where will you be? Most people can't answer that with specificity. They're playing the previous stage's game into the next stage's life — Build playbooks when they're already Free, accumulation strategies when they should be Stewarding, Deploy-level advice when they're still building income.

The cost isn't financial. It's years spent climbing the wrong ladder, optimizing for outcomes that no longer match who you've become.

The vision

Imagine knowing exactly which stage you're in, which freedom is your real bottleneck, and which game you should actually be playing.

Imagine a small group of peers doing the same work — naming where they are, getting clear on what's next, holding each other to clarity instead of urgency.

That's Stages.

The Framework

Five distinct games.
Each with its own rules.

The hardest mistake to spot is playing the previous stage's playbook in the next stage's game.

01

Launch

Building earning power

Dominant question

How do I increase income and route the first dollars?

Trap

Lifestyle inflation outpaces income growth.

02

Build

Accumulating surplus

Dominant question

Am I actually deploying what I save?

Trap

Over-saving in cash; analysis paralysis on first investments.

03

Deploy

Capital working, complexity emerging

Dominant question

Am I tax-efficient and structurally sound?

Trap

Over-leverage, concentration, complexity for its own sake.

04

Free

Cash flow covers life

Dominant question

How much is enough?

Trap

Still playing the Build game after you've won it.

05

Steward

Wealth has its own gravity

Dominant question

How does this persist beyond me?

Trap

Structure-shopping; family office before warranted.

Net worth bands are loose orientation, not gates. You can be at $5M and still playing Launch. You can be at $1M and already Free. The game you're playing matters more than the bracket you're in.

The Community

Inside Stages

Capped by design — starting with 15 founder members. Small enough that you know everyone's situation. Priced to stay that way.

01

A small room, by design

Stages is capped — small enough that you recognize names, large enough that the conversation never dries up. Every member declares their current stage on entry, so when someone responds to you, you know what altitude they're answering from. No anonymous advice. No "guru" voices. Just operators naming where they actually are.

02

Open Questions: the heartbeat

The core ritual is simple. Post the real question you're sitting with — the one you'd usually only say out loud to a spouse or a therapist. Responses come back from members across stages, each calibrated to where they are. Not advice columns. Not threads that die at three replies. Specific, peer-tested, sometimes uncomfortable answers from people who've either lived your question or are living theirs.

An example of an Open Question and response

Open Question — Deploy stage

Portfolio is in good shape. Cash flow covers life with a comfortable margin. My wife has been asking me to slow down for two years and I keep saying "one more year." How do I know if I'm being prudent, or just hedging?

Response — Free stage

Two questions back at you. First: what does "one more year" actually buy that the next year wouldn't? Try to draw the math on a napkin. When I was sitting where you are, the honest answer wasn't "safety" — it was "comfort." The math was already done. Second: have you and your wife written down what enough is, in dollars, in one document you both signed? I avoided that for three years. It's the cheapest unlock I've ever bought.

Illustrative example. Real member exchanges fill this space as the community comes online.

03

Cross-stage conversation, the unfair advantage

Most communities sort by net worth or by job title. Stages sorts by the question you're wrestling with — so a Free-stage member answers a Build-stage question with the perspective of someone who already crossed that bridge, and a Launch-stage member sees the next ten years before they walk into them. Wisdom flows backward as easily as forward.

04

Live conversations, co-designed

Monthly conversations are forming with the founder cohort — not lectures, not webinars. Topic-anchored, peer-led, recorded for anyone who can't make it live. Cadence and format are co-designed with founders rather than pre-baked, because the community decides what's worth showing up for.

05

In-person gatherings, table-scaled

Real relationships happen in real rooms. We're planning small, low-pressure gatherings — dinner with friends, not a conference. Format and locations shaped by founders. The goal is a room you'd actually want to be in for three hours, with people whose questions you already know.

06

A framework that deepens over time

The 5-stage framework is the shared language of the room — short on the page, deep inside Circle. Members get the full printable Stages book and the 150-cell framework library, which expand as the community grows. The framework is the lens; the conversation is the value.

Who's behind this

I'm Jake.

Jake Myre

Stages comes out of my own path through these games — including the years I spent running the previous stage's playbook well after it had stopped being the right one. Nobody told me the game had changed. That's the problem this community exists to solve.

The framework started as notes for myself: a way to name which game I was actually in, what the dominant question really was, and what to stop doing. I'm sharing it as a working draft, not a doctrine — the founder cohort pressure-tests and sharpens it with me.

For the record: I'm in the Free stage, working on finishing it well, with Steward on the horizon — not under my feet. That's the point of this room: nobody here claims the summit, including me. I'm in the conversation every week, and I review every application personally.

Membership

Founder Cohort

This is a small room with a hard cap — not a course, not a feed. 15 people, direct access, cross-stage conversation. First 15 members lock their rate for life.

First 15 only

Founder

Locked for life

$83 / mo

Billed annually — $999 / yr

2 months free vs. monthly

Or $99 / mo billed monthly

Apply to the Founder Cohort
Coming soon

Standard

After Founder closes

$124 / mo

Billed annually — $1,490 / yr

2 months free vs. monthly

Or $149 / mo billed monthly

Available when Founder fills

Founder rate is locked for life with continuous active membership. Annual is the recommended path — monthly is available if you want to try first, then switch anytime. Seats close when 15 are filled. Joining is by application — short form, quick decision.

Questions

Things you might be wondering

01

How do I know which stage I'm in?

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When you join, you pick the stage that best matches your current dominant question — not your net worth bracket. The framework includes specific signals for each stage to help you place yourself. If you're between two, pick the one closest to the question you're actually wrestling with. You can update your stage anytime as you move.
02

What is Circle? I haven't used it before.

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Circle is the platform Stages lives on — think of it like a private community space, somewhere between a forum and a group chat, without the noise of social media. You get a profile, a feed of conversations organized by topic, and a direct line to every other member. Most people find it immediately intuitive; the learning curve is about 10 minutes. There's a mobile app if you want it, but most members use it in a browser. You don't need a Circle account before you apply — if you're accepted, you'll get a direct invite and it takes about two minutes to set up.
03

What does the community actually do?

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Asynchronous conversation across stages, with monthly live conversations forming as the community takes shape. You post your open question; others respond from their own stage and experience. The framework is the lens; the conversation is the value.
04

How much time does it take?

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As much or as little as you want. Most members spend 20–60 minutes a week reading and responding. Live conversations are optional and recorded for those who can't attend.
05

Are there live calls?

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Monthly conversations are forming as the community takes shape. We'll co-design the cadence with founder members rather than promising a fixed schedule before we know what works. In-person gatherings are also being planned — details TBD with input from members.
06

How do I join?

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Stages is application-based. A short form (9 questions) takes about 10 minutes. I review every application personally, usually within 24–48 hours. You'll hear from me directly either way.
07

When do I pay?

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Nothing is due when you apply. If you're accepted, your welcome email includes your Circle invite and a checkout link — you pay then, choosing monthly or annual. No card on file until you've decided to take your seat.
08

When does it start?

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Stages is open now, and founder seats close permanently at 15. Applications are reviewed in the order they arrive — accepted members get a welcome email and Circle invite the same day.
09

Can I cancel?

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Anytime — your founder pricing only sticks while you're an active member. If you cancel and come back later, you'll be at the standard rate. Not sure if you'll stay? Join monthly first. You can switch to annual at the founder rate anytime you decide you're in.
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Who is this for?

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People who are willing to name where they actually are and stop optimizing for the wrong outcome. If you want clarity on the game you're playing and peers doing the same work, you're in the right place.

Join Stages

Stop guessing your stage.
Start playing your game.

Founder seats close when 15 are filled.

Apply to the Founder Cohort