Lessons From the First Annual Sun Valley Retreat
(Plus a special invitation for you at the end)
Last week, I hosted the first annual Sun Valley Founder’s Retreat in my hometown of Sun Valley, Idaho.
It started like many founder retreats do—breathtaking scenery, conversations about startup life, and a packed agenda designed to challenge and expand us.
We dove into powerful group sessions, confronting the unseen patterns holding us back.
We examined our Inner Voice and learned to see through it.
We allowed our blocked feelings to flow, learned to listen consciously and speak unarguably, and envisioned our ideal futures.
We let go of attachment and connected with our true selves.
We skied together, pushing past our edges on the slopes.
We shared, we laughed, we let go.
And yet, despite all the breakthroughs, the most powerful moment was still to come.
It wasn’t until the final night—when the room quieted, when everyone’s guard was lowered, when the rawest, deepest healing and connection finally happened.
An activity that lasted five hours.
Five hours that cracked people open, dissolving years of tension and mistaken identity
Five hours that transformed not just how these founders lead, but how they see themselves, their teams, and what’s truly possible.
The activity?
Appreciation.
The Power of Appreciation
The final night of the retreat, we did something simple—yet profoundly rare.
We spent five hours appreciating one another
At first, it felt awkward. Even uncomfortable. People were squirming in their seats, recognizing how challenging it would be to experience that depth of intimacy, appreciation and love.
What most people don’t realize is that we are generally scared to receive and therefore close ourselves off.
How many times have you deflected a compliment - either outwardly or by telling yourself in your mind that you really aren’t that great or could have done better?
We are more scared of love, joy and intimacy than we are of fear, sadness, anger and disconnection.
But as people started sharing what they truly saw and valued in one another, something shifted.
You could see it in their faces—the tension melting, the self-protection softening.
People felt seen, maybe for the first time in years.
They received love and acknowledgment in a way that most of us rarely allow ourselves to.
They knew that what they heard from others was more true than all the criticism and judgment they hear every day from their inner voice.
They felt truly seen and loved, at the same time.
Here’s why this matters as a leader:
What you appreciate, appreciates.
This isn’t just a feel-good sentiment—it’s a leadership principle.
Research shows the most effective teams maintain a 5:1 ratio of positive to negative interactions.
And yet, most leaders—most people—are stingy with appreciation.
We might think it. We might feel it. But we rarely say it.
Meanwhile, our teams, our loved ones—even we ourselves—are starving for it.
Appreciation is more valuable to people than thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars in compensation and perks.
I’ve had clients tell me about a single moment of appreciation they received from a manager—years, even a decade ago—that they still remember vividly. That’s how rare and powerful genuine appreciation is.
Team members that feel appreciated are more positive, more resilient, more likely to assume good intent. A culture of appreciation is meaningful, more positive and less drama-filled.
Moreover, appreciation improves performance. When you catch your team members in the act of being awesome or doing amazing things, appreciating them will leave them motivated to do more of the same!
Because our minds are biased toward the negative, we tend to notice all the things we and others are doing wrong more readily than what others are doing right. It takes intentionality to overcome that negativity bias in ourselves and our team members.
So ask yourself:
- Who in your life deserves to hear your appreciation?
- What impact could you have if you regularly let people feel truly appreciated?
Make this a regular practice:
- Make a list of each of your team members
- Each week, look for something to appreciate them for and write it down next to their name. Either some way that they are (being) or something that they did (doing)
- Find time to deliver the appreciations. Look them in the eyes and tell them “I appreciate you for… “ (or if you won’t have a chance, at least shoot them a text or email)
Because what you appreciate, appreciates.
While the power of appreciation was probably the most profound takeaway from the retreat...
I was also struck by:
- The freedom the founders came to in being vulnerable
- The importance of connection and camaraderie
- The extraordinary impact of letting love flow
The Freedom of Vulnerability
One founder shared a challenge he’d been carrying for years—the kind of thing most leaders never talk about because they feel it’s too shameful.
When he finally spoke it out loud, the room shifted.
Others shared that they, too, had been carrying similar burdens. The simple act of naming it—of being seen—was enough to begin healing.
It reminded me of a truth I’ve seen over and over again:
Shame can’t survive the light of day.
When we lead with vulnerability, we invite others to do the same. And in that space, the deepest connections and most profound growth happen.
We tend to walk through the world with armor, shield and sword in hand; ready to defend ourselves from one another. We all want to drop that armor and allow our true, undefended selves to be seen and loved. But most people are too scared to go first.
True leadership is having the courage to be vulnerable, and show the way.
What are you holding onto that might be healed if shared with the right group of people?
The Myth of “Going It Alone”
Many founders learn early on to rely on themselves and keep their struggles private.
It’s an adaptive strategy in childhood but becomes a limitation when scaling a business.
At the retreat, we saw the opposite.
By leaning into the support of a group, people unlocked clarity, healing, and breakthroughs they couldn’t have reached alone.
This is why community is essential.
Your growth doesn’t have to be a solo journey. We need each other. We heal in connection.
When you surround yourself with people who understand your challenges, who see you for who you are, and who hold you accountable to your highest potential, everything shifts.
Love Is the Ultimate Multiplier
Most people think there’s no place for love in business. That it might make us too squishy, too soft, unable to drive the team to extraordinary outcomes.
But the retreat reinforced for me that love is the most powerful force we can bring into our work.
When you lead with love:
- You feel alive, energized, and like your best self.
- Your team feels seen, valued, and inspired to bring their best.
- Your customers experience your deepest creativity and care.
Love isn’t soft. It’s the ultimate multiplier.
An Invitation to Lead in a New Way
What I witnessed at the retreat wasn’t just a moment—it was a shift.
A shift in how these founders lead.
A shift in how they connect.
A shift in what’s possible when we show up fully.
And it reinforced something I’ve been building toward for years:
Founders don’t need more tactics. They need a space to do the deep work that transforms everything. They need to be able to be their true selves and feel loved.
And while not everyone can attend an in-person retreat, the real transformation wasn’t about the location—it was about the work we did together. It was about the space we created for each other, the deep shifts in how we lead, and the support that made it all possible.
That’s why I’m creating The Inner Game of Entrepreneurship Community
A way to access this level of clarity, connection, and growth—not just once a year, but every single day…
My vision is to create the most authentic, loving, supportive community of founders on the planet doing their deep, inner work together.
This isn’t just another startup accelerator or leadership development program. It’s a space to:
- Reveal the deepest truths about yourself and your journey
- Connect deeply with other founders who are facing the exact same challenges as you
- Build a company that scales with less friction and more flow.
- Strengthen relationships across your life and work—starting with yourself.
- Lead your team with authenticity, inspiring them to operate at their highest potential.
It’s the kind of transformation that doesn’t just change your business—it changes your life.
And most importantly—you won’t be doing it alone.
The greatest transformations don’t happen in isolation. They happen in community—when you’re surrounded by people who see you, who challenge you, and who support you at the highest level.
If you’re feeling the pull, here’s your invitation to click the button below to learn more.
The founders who joined me in Sun Valley left with more than just insights.
They left with a new way of being—one that will ripple through their companies, their teams, and their lives long after the retreat ended.
And that’s what I want for you, too.
Because when you commit to mastering your Inner Game, everything else becomes possible.
With love,
- Dave Kashen
P.S. If this resonated with you, consider forwarding it to a friend/fellow founder who might benefit from this community. You never know how one message can change someone’s trajectory.
