How to Create an EO Super Forum

Contributed to EO by Barry Raber, an EO Portland member who is a serial entrepreneur, president of Carefree RV Storage, the founder of Business Property Trust, and an EO Portland Entrepreneur of the Year. He shares his successful business secrets at Real Simple Business.

Are you feeling a bit underwhelmed by your Forum experience? I have been there. Mine started off strong as a new member but over the years I was getting less and less out of it. And my entrepreneurial instincts told me it could be better.

I was able to turn it around and create an extraordinary EO Forum that not only provided a fire hydrant flow of inspiration, sharing, learning, and experiences but also created the closest relationships imaginable. Something you could never find anywhere but EO. In the end, that Forum created multimillionaires out of all of us and lifetime close friendships that will never die.

As I look back on it now and ask how we did it — what was it that our Forum did differently, and what were the foundational elements? — I came up with the list below. In your current Forum, you are undoubtedly practicing some of these elements already. That said, if you can add any of the core practices below, it will improve your experience, so don’t view the list as an all-or-nothing.

As background: I have been in EO for almost 25 years and in Forums for most of that time. After 10 years, a couple of us decided to try and create a more exceptional Forum experience. After two attempts of forming and disbanding Forums that lasted about 5 years, we finally got it right on the last try with what became known as Voyager Forum — and it was 10 years of amazing.

Just like the Federal Reserve has a dual mandate (maximum employment and minimum price inflation), so did our Super Forum. Our dual mandate was:

1. Maximum sharing, no stone uncovered
2. Maximum learning, experiences not seen or heard before

Focus on these mandates, and watch as your Forum experience elevates to new levels like ours did. You will find yourself profoundly inspired by your Forum once again.

What Set Us Apart: 10 Things We Did Differently to Create a Super Forum

1. Follow Forum Best Practices All the Time — No Exceptions

This is the enabler to everything else. If you don’t do this, you won’t achieve the rest.

The top 6 practices are:

• Everyone arrives early and the meeting starts on time. If you’re late, $100 fine no matter what the circumstances.
• All screens off, even during breaks. They move the mind’s focus elsewhere and shortchange the group as a result. We live in a digital world, but printed agendas and updates keep minds in the room and avoid an excuse to check messages.
• 100% Forum Mindset. Stories and experiences, not advice. Curiosity, not judgment.
• Assertive timekeeper who is not afraid to butt in and keep the agenda on track.
• A living constitution that all are committed to; one referenced frequently for policy, not stuck in a file never to be cited again after producing.
• Schedule early: Meetings and retreat dates are set a year in advance and blocked on calendars.

2. Maximum Monthly Sharing with Thorough 5% Reflections

Members fill in their 5% Reflection Sheet forms completely before the meeting, enabling them to reflect deeply on significant moments in their personal, professional, and family lives. Our Super Forum members shared that they would spend 30 to 60 minutes reviewing their calendars and life events so that they could highlight not just the events but also the insights and self-discoveries that resulted. We each showed up prepared to share 100%.

My experience is that this preparation is good for you, because you are taking a detailed stock of your life monthly. It’s also good for the group, so there is a lot of benefit. We are here to share experiences, so under-delivering your reflections shortchanges the group and reduces the power of sharing.

Pro tip: Add a rating of 0-10 below Work, Family, and Personal on the worksheet, and share it with the group so they can see where you are in each area.

3. Follow the Format

We are all entrepreneurs and want to put our own spin on things. Don’t get creative with the agenda; it works. Here is our agenda:

• Opening Rituals – Confidentiality, ice breaker, clearing. We sent a curiosity question in advance of the meeting that each member answered. (15 mins)
• 5% Reflections – No questions asked. (3-5 min each)
• Deep Dive – Planned (60 min).
• Learning (30-60 min.) or Deep Dive – Open Coached, if required.
• Housekeeping/Forum Business (10 min.)

Our meetings lasted for four hours, once a month, 10 months a year (with July and December off).

4. Elevate Retreats and Travel by Air

This is a non-negotiable for me. Retreats are a massive opportunity to learn, share, and advance relationships. That can’t be done if you don’t get far from home and into new and exciting surroundings. Super Forum Retreats last 4-5 days.

5. Special Sauce: Dedicate Time to Learning in Monthly Meetings and on Retreat

Being exposed to sights, experiences, people, and environments you did not know about or have never seen before is the key. It stimulates the human mind and opens us to new ideas. All of the highest-rated EO events and talks have that element in common.

For monthly meetings, it can mean a subject matter expert, a go-see-it at a business, a special access opportunity, or discussing a topic you have not broached before. On retreat, one-third of your time should be special access opportunities and unique, local people that you discover through your network.

6. Best Moderators Only

You may not have thought of this one. My experience is that only three of your Forum members have the natural ability to be good moderators. Moderators must be organized planners who will spend the time to do it right for your group. A majority of entrepreneurs do not have this innate strength. Choosing a moderator without those natural tendencies can have a serious dampening effect on the group.

The most impactful moderators are those who complete Moderator Training before stepping in, gaining the tools and confidence to lead with clarity, structure, and vision. This not only strengthens the Forum experience but also allows the moderator to grow personally through intentional leadership.

7. Varied and Timely Deep Dives

There is a little art to this one. The moderator needs to keep a parking lot list on a confidential Forum notepad at all times while listening during 5% Reflections for possible Deep Dive topics and, in particular, the ratings and feelings around the things people share.

When I was moderator, I kept around five possible Deep Dives on my mind at all times, waiting for the right timing. In addition, the moderator or designated Parking Lot manager asks every member every month for an EQ topic and, if needed, an IQ topic for the confidential list. Some items dropped off before they got presented, others heated up and got fast-tracked to the top.

EOers are intellectually curious, so keeping everyone stimulated means exploring a wide variety of Deep Dive subjects. If topics are too similar — say, several business financial issues or personal relationship issues back-to-back — people lose interest. It is critical to serve all areas of members’ lives equally.

8. Meticulously Planned Retreats

Like with moderators, not all members are excellent retreat planners. The same strong organizational and forward-planning strengths serve to produce an unforgettable retreat. Only ask the three who possess this expertise to do so.

A third of your retreat should be experiencing fun local stuff as a group (the things that most people do in that city) and a third should be Forum exercises that the group would benefit from at that time, realizing that your Forum needs different things at different times.

A third of the retreat should be seeing things that most people don’t have access to. That means pooling resources and networking to gain opportunities like visiting the CIA, getting an insider look at Facebook, or meeting with a billionaire.

Our Voyager Forum did all of these things and many more. Yes, it is a ton of work, but the payoff? Massive!

When I organized retreats, I would often call on others to help. We asked a foodie member to arrange all of our meals and restaurants, we had someone who liked to find one-of-a-kind lodging for us, and even one member who loved to select and finetune the exercises or facilitators (if required for the Forum content part).

Pro tip: We completed personal and business Vivid Vision exercises prior to the retreat every three years, which helped us better understand and know what priorities each member is looking to achieve for better context and support for each other’s aims in life.

Pro tip: Complete a Forum Health Survey the month before your retreat like clockwork, and identify exercises/facilitators that can boost the low-rated areas.

We had some absolutely once-in-a lifetime experiences on the 10 on-plane retreats we took. The ones I remember are Iceland, Tokyo, Mexico City, Washington D.C., San Diego, Nashville, Phoenix, Silicon Valley, and Cuba.

9. No Business Together

This one is hard, especially when you get close and build strong trust in each other. It is just not worth it. Doing business together can lead to conflict — but worse, it leads to less sharing for sure because the two members involved absolutely won’t share openly about what is truly going on in their businesses with each other in the room.

10. Either Lean Toward Lifestyle or Growth

One of the biggest secrets to Voyager Forum’s success was that we selected members who were over US$3 million in revenue, had a growth mindset for the business and themselves, and wanted a bigger life. We all shared that, and in the end, all sold our businesses for life-changing money because we had that goal in common.

With that said, many EOers are more lifestyle-focused, and that level of growth does not strongly interest them. My prior Forums all had more lifestyle-focused members in them, and your Forum is probably a mix. In my experience, over time, the growth-focused members often get a little frustrated with the lifestyle-focused members, and vice versa. If you have an opportunity to form a Forum that leans strongly one way or the other, I recommend it.

Maximize Your EO Forum Opportunity

As an EO member, you gain access to a golden opportunity most people do not have: To create something very special with your Forum. Yes, completing these extra steps will require an investment of time to make it a reality. It is important to view your Super Forum as an investment in yourself that will absolutely pay off big. Add value all the time that people cannot find elsewhere with the group.

Remember: Once that value bottoms out, everyone reconsiders. It is ok to be a little demanding with each other regarding allocating priority to the Forum. You all get what you expect. High expectations = exceptional experience.

At the end of your life, all you really have is a collection of friends, family, experiences, and the influence you had on others along the way. Your EO Forum gets right to the heart of that most meaningful core stuff in life. Forum is a gift from EO. It is an honor to be a part of it, and steward an experience that can be so life-nourishing and exceptional.

Additional posts and insights by Barry Raber:

The One Question That Saved My Business

3 Gratitude Habits for Business Leaders to Motivate Your Team

How To Master the Art of Saying ‘No’: A Key Skill for Entrepreneurial Success

How To Tap Into Your Unique Ability To Make Twice The Money In Half The Time