top of page
Search

16. How to Combine an Online Community with In-Person Retreats (feat. Eric Plantenberg)

Updated: Jun 4




In this episode, we’re hearing from Ready to Retreat. Our letter today deals with how to deepen the connection in a thriving online community through an in-person retreat.


To better help Ready to Retreat, I invited Eric Plantenberg as my guest expert. He is a client, friend, and mentor. He is the founder and curator of the very special Abundant Living Retreat. I have been to a lot of retreats, but I have never experienced one as deeply transformative as this one.


So, tune in to discover how Eric has created such a powerful container for his in-person retreats, what you can do to become a great facilitator, and a different and liberating way to look at goals and what truly matters in a retreat or a community.

Yellow banner with a photo of Bri smilling to the camera on the far left. Next to her, you can read "Dear Bri," in bold black letters. To the right, you can see a white button with a cursor on it, the Heartbeat logo in the center, and a notification symbol on its top left corner.
Click to learn more about Heartbeat, Bri's favorite all-in-one community platform!

In this episode:


(04:36) The communitea: Ready to Retreat’s letter

(07:43) It's critical to have both an online and an offline experience

(10:02) What makes a great facilitator of in-person experiences

(12:10) The seemingly contradictory way to having the best experience

(16:11) How to effectively draw people into a retreat

(18:06) The gap between aspirational and actual values

(20:45) Matching retreat leadership to real-life leadership

(23:54) Eric's journey of founding Abundant Living and Humm Kombucha

(28:37) The commitments behind such a transformative container

(32:36) Holding the tension is critical for a valuable community

(34:15) It's your job to provide value, not make people comfortable or not

(39:24) It's better to have fewer but truly engaged members

(42:39) Goal setting, releasing the outcome, and becoming who you want to be


Watch on YouTube:



Resources Mentioned:


👥 Join the Izozi Membership.

🌄 Get Your Ticket to Abundant Living (and join Bri there!)

📕 Check out the Way of the Peaceful Warrior.

📺 Watch Eric's TEDxTalk, The Anatomy of Results.

❤️ Sign up for Heartbeat. Bri’s recommended all-in-one community platform.

💛 Join Ember. The place for go-getter community creators building community-powered businesses.


Noteworthy quotes


“To be able to connect with [people] on social platforms is nice, but the ability to have authentic connection online inside of a community is only and deeply enhanced when it becomes offline as well, because I think our innate nature is to not be digital.“ - Eric Plantenberg


“ [People] might leave because they're uncomfortable, but they will 100% leave when they do not find value from your experience and from in the community. And they will only find value when they're experiencing transformation and something different.“ - Bri Leever


The Metaphor That Changed How I Think About Community


This is the extended conversation of Episode 16 of Dear Bri, featuring Eric Plantenberg — founder of the Abundant Living Retreat and the Izozi Membership.

In this bonus episode, Eric reflects on:

  • The very first community he ever belonged to

  • What he believes every leader must stand for

  • The thing he created “just for fun” that exploded

  • The one question he wishes people would ask

  • His favorite metaphor for community (and it's a good one)

ree

Eric Plantenberg

Eric is an entrepreneur, executive, and advisor. He has started and scaled 2 multi-million dollar companies, he has summited Everest, he has been sentenced to federal prison, he has coached Olympic athletes, he has had to completely start over several times, and he has facilitated professional development for thousands of people (at a time!).

🖥️ Website


Bri Leever

Bri got her start building a community and growing it to a multi-million dollar revenue stream for a social enterprise in Portland, OR. Now, she supports folks used to running their business on content, coaching, and consulting to create their community offer. She's a Community Strategist by day and a Campervan host by night on the Big Island of Hawaii and you'll usually find her on, in, or under the water.


📹 Youtube


Yellow banner with big bold black letters to the left that say "Want expert community strategy and advice?" To the right, a mockup of an iphone displaying the Dear Bri Podcast cover and player. The words "community startegy" community fiascos" and "drama" appear in colorful bubbles over the phone.
Click on the image to submit your community conundrum!

Your community could be next!


→ Submit an anonymous letter about your community conundrum, fiasco, drama, or other dilemma here.


And before you go…


💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts

💚 Leave a review on Spotify

❤️ Subscribe on YouTube


That helps the podcast more than you know and I deeply appreciate it. 🙏


*Dear Bri is produced by Ideablossoms.


Comments

bottom of page