YPO Gold Forum Retreat Impact Brief
This impact brief summarizes insights and outcomes from a two-day pilot engagement with a YPO Gold Forum, centered around a one-day CoreSelf Positioning™ workshop. The retreat brought together five members of YPO Gold-an organization comprised of former founders, CEOs, and business owners, typically between the ages of 45 and 55, who have led companies generating $15-20 million or more in annual revenue before transitioning into new chapters of leadership, investment, philanthropy, family, or personal growth.
Representing a diverse group of seasoned professionals in different seasons of life, participants engaged in a structured process designed to create greater clarity, alignment, and shared understanding. The experience helped the forum strengthen communication, redefine expectations, and establish a framework for preserving what has made the group valuable while evolving to meet the needs of current and future members.
1) Situation
A long-standing YPO Gold forum entered retreat with questions around participation, communication, expectations, and process-while still valuing trust, friendship, diverse perspectives, and support.
2) Where We Were (1-10)
Value: 7 Expectations: 6 Process: 5
Overall situation check-in was at: 6
3) What We Did
We paused to orient:
- where we were
- where we wanted to be
- and what the forum wanted to preserve and evolve
4) The Question (The Turning Point)
“How do we preserve what makes this forum valuable while evolving for current and future members?”
5) Where We Moved To (1-10)
Final check-out average was at: 8
Participants words: Inspired • Energetic • Recommitted • Encouraged • Enlightened
6) Outcome
As a result:
- shifted from solving assumptions to defining the situation
- created shared strategies around communication, engagement, and forum process
- committed to a living framework that works for this forum and future members
7) Insight
The forum did not need more trust, intelligence, or effort. It needed a shared way to observe, organize, and discuss what was already there.
Frequently Asked Questions
About the Authors
Tim Preston is co-founder of Simple. Not Easy., co‑creator of CoreSelf Framework, and co‑author of CoreSelf Positioning (2025). A former architect, entrepreneur, and business leader, he explores how individuals, teams, and organizations regain clarity, agency, and direction amid complexity and uncertainty.
Jonathan Thomas, MSW is a Bowen Family Systems practitioner, educator, co-creator of CoreSelf Framework, and co-author of CoreSelf Positioning (2025). Across five decades of work with children, parents, and families, he explored how people develop awareness, navigate relationships, and orient themselves during periods of challenge, change, and uncertainty.
Learn more about Jonathan, Tim & CoreSelf Positioning.