The Future is Private.

Article #99

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I love private communities.

I love them as a participating member.

I love them as a community creator.

My Community History

I started my first online course in 2021. It contained 20+ hours of lessons in the self-paced course. It taught my students everything they needed to know. Yet, knowing isn't the same as doing. They didn't only need knowledge. They needed a connection with others in the same boat. They also needed accountability to put into practice what they've learned.

So, within a few months of launching the course, it became clear that we needed a community too. So, I tacked a private community on as a bonus.

It turns out that private community wasn't a bonus. It was the best, most popular part of the program.

This showed me very clearly that I had it all backwards. Courses aren't the most effective form of education. Communities (when done well) are.

Why Are Communities So Dang Effective?

Lack of knowledge isn't a problem anymore.

• There are an endless supply of online courses. Anything you want to learn has an online course

• YouTube. Need I say more?

• ChatGPT

People don't have a problem knowing how to do something.

They've got a problem putting that knowledge into practice.

Less than 5% of people finish online courses. I'm super guilty of this. I have 3 I've bought this year and I'm only 20% of the way through each of them.

Online courses leave it up to you to do all the work. All the motivation. All the gumption. They feel lonely and easily forgotten.

Right? You feel this. How many online courses have you bought? How many have you actually finished?

Exactly.....

Communities bring people together in a private setting. We humans crave close knit relationships and the privacy to share how it is really going. You can't do that on general social media feeds. People are so tired of just scrolling social media. They want like-minded people who know them and share their interests to surround them.

I'm in a few private communities myself (on parenting, business growth, and a hobby). I find myself drawn to scrolling that private group far more than general posts by people.

A Meh Community Vs. A Powerful Community

"No one wants another community to "hang out" in. People join a community to solve a problem." - Jordan Godbey 🚀

People want transformation, and they want it quickly.

Powerful communities can deliver transformation. Meh communities just bug people with alerts.

A meh community has:

• A stupid platform

• No background course/teaching

• Engagement is up to the members

• No accountability

• No single, clear objective

A powerful community has:

• A clean, simple platform

• Backbone course to get everyone on the same page

• Engagement is modeled by the founder, and focused on the target outcome

• Accountability from day 1

• A single, clear objective for the group

You've all been in meh communities. I know I have. Members like each other. But, topics are all over the place. They range from lame platitudes to cluttery, unrelated posts. Also, from whining complainers to MLM pitches junking up the group. Meh communities are also usually on a platform not meant for achieving a clear outcomes. FB groups, I'm looking at you.

Powerful communities let you into a space that feels made for you. They're the kind of people who help you be your best self. They provide education in an easy way. And, they offer accountability and communication that feels right.

Your attention is your most valuable asset. When you're in a group that feels built for you, it feels like the best use of your time rather than scrolling.

--Join a private community for your own development or for fun.

--Create a private community to help your breed of people in your own, unique way.

Ok. I'm In. Soo....How Do You Build One?

I'll share my exact strategy for how I'm building my private community in this newsletter next week. I'll give you my template, how I'm using a waitlist, where I'll host the community, and when it'll launch.

Steal it! Copy it. Use it for yourself.

Start planning now to make your own private community.

Jamie 👋🏻

PS-Whenever you're ready, there are 3 more ways Jamie can help you:

• If you like this newsletter, then treat yo' self. Get future issues delivered to your inbox so you never miss a thing. Subscribe here 📫

• [NEW] I'm building a waitlist for my private community. It turns your expertise into influence and your silence into success. Join here

• [NEW] Pharmacists interested in creating your own profitable precision medicine practice? Learn more here