Zander Sprague on Turning Loss Into Legacy: How to Take One Step Toward Your Own Epic

When I sat down with author, speaker, and licensed counselor Zander Sprague, I knew we were in for something special. Zander has this rare gift of blending humor, honesty, and heart that makes big life lessons feel both deeply human and instantly relatable.

He's the author of Epic Begins with One Step Forward: How to Plan, Achieve, and Enjoy the Journey, a book born from an unexpected moment during the pandemic. Fresh from completing thousands of hours of clinical internship, Zander suddenly found himself stuck at home, wondering what came next.

"I remember sitting on my couch," he told me, "and I realized that everything epic I've ever done in life, every marathon, every big goal, started with one simple step forward."

That realization became the foundation of his book and a message he now shares with audiences worldwide: you don't need to know every step of your journey, you just need to start walking.

Finding Meaning Through the Unthinkable

Zander's path to this mindset wasn't easy. Nearly three decades ago, his older sister Lucy was murdered, an unimaginable loss that forever changed his life's trajectory.

"There were a lot of things I thought I'd face in life," he said, his voice softening, "but homicide wasn't one of them."

That grief could have consumed him. Instead, it became the catalyst for his first book, Making Lemonade: Choosing a Positive Pathway After Losing Your Sibling.

When he went looking for resources to help him through his loss, he found almost nothing for people who'd lost a brother or sister, only materials for grieving parents or spouses.

"It's such a lonely experience," he explained. "I wanted to help people find a way through."

The book became more than therapy; it was his way of honoring Lucy's memory by helping others navigate the same devastating pain.

"It gives me energy to do good things in Lucy's name," he said. "It feels better to help people than to sit in the darkness of loss."

That choice to transform pain into purpose became what Zander calls his "epic unexpected," the things life throws at you that you never saw coming but that ultimately shape who you become.

The Inner Critic We All Know Too Well

One of the most powerful moments in our conversation came when Zander opened up about imposter syndrome.

"I sat on that first book for five years," he admitted. "I told people I was writing a book, but I wasn't actually finishing it. I was terrified. Even when people finally read it and said it helped them, the voice in my head said, 'Really? Are you sure?'"

He calls that voice "the committee," the inner critic that lives in all of us.

"The meanest person in your life," he said plainly, "is often you."

His advice? Fire your inner bully and hire a booster instead.

"You've got to be your number one cheerleader," he continued. "If you don't believe in you, how can anyone else?"

It's a truth that applies to everything: writing, healing, starting over. Whether you're beginning a book, launching a business, or stepping into a new chapter of life, the first voice you have to change is your own.

When Failure Is Actually Winning

Zander's take on failure is refreshingly liberating.

"Failure is part of the epic journey," he said. "If you're batting .300 in baseball, you're going to the Hall of Fame, which means you failed 70% of the time."

He laughed. "So if 30% of your day goes right, you're already crushing it!"

This perspective led him to what he calls the 97-3 rule.

"Ninety-seven percent of your day is actually going well. The problem is, we focus all our energy on the 3% that's not."

This philosophy emerged from years of counseling students and adults through moments of crushing self-doubt. "We're all creatures of habit," he observed, "and most of us are just in the habit of being hard on ourselves."

For Zander, changing that pattern starts with noticing what's going right. "If you got a 97 on a test, you wouldn't obsess over the 3 points you missed. You'd celebrate the 97. So why not do that with life?"

The Day Everything Changed

When I asked about a defining moment in his grief journey, Zander described driving on the Massachusetts Turnpike months after his sister's death.

"I was wrestling with the question of 'why,'" he said. "And then it hit me: I'll never know. Not in this lifetime. I could either chase that question forever, or I could let it go."

Letting go didn't mean forgetting; it meant freeing himself to truly live again.

"That day, I decided to keep Lucy's memory alive by doing good things," he said quietly. "I realized it feels better to celebrate her life than to stay stuck in her death."

His family now runs a foundation in her honor, a legacy that continues transforming tragedy into light.

Finding His Voice (Literally)

Here's something you might not expect: writing doesn't come naturally to Zander.

"I'm a talker, not a typer," he laughed. "So I dictated my first book."

Long before tools like Descript or Otter.ai existed, he recorded his words and paid someone to transcribe them. That process, speaking his book aloud, not only unlocked his creativity, it became a form of therapy.

"I tell people all the time: if typing feels impossible, talk it out," he said. "You can always edit later. You can't edit a blank page."

He's absolutely right. Progress beats perfection every time. And publishing that first book gave him the courage to write two more.

"I'm still blown away that I've written three books," he said. "It taught me I'm capable of things that once felt completely impossible."

The Two Most Powerful Words

Before we wrapped, I asked Zander what message he hopes stays with listeners long after our conversation ends. His answer was both simple and profound.

"The two most powerful words in the English language are not yet," he said. "Those words keep the door open for growth. They remind us that we're still on the journey."

Maybe your book isn't finished yet. Maybe your healing isn't complete yet. Maybe your next big step hasn't happened yet.

And that's okay.

As Zander put it, "Our epic journeys take time. The only way to fail is to stop walking."

One Step at a Time

Zander Sprague's story is more than motivational; it's profoundly human.

He reminds us that grief doesn't have to define us, that failure doesn't mean we're finished, and that even the biggest dreams begin with something as small as a single step forward.

Whether you're writing a book, healing from loss, or searching for your next calling, his words echo loud and clear:

Take one step. Then take another. You might just find your own epic waiting on the other side.

Learn More About Zander Sprague

If Zander’s story resonated with you, you can learn more about his work, books, and speaking engagements at EpicBegins.com.

His message is simple but powerful: every epic begins with one step forward.