The Retreat Leaders Podcast

This week's Throwback Thursday episode is one that will challenge your thinking. And that's exactly why I'm bringing it back. In this powerful conversation, Shannon Jamail sits down with  Kyera Kacey , a bold entrepreneur, speaker, and retreat leader known for helping people break through limitations around money, confidence, and self-worth. Love her approach or disagree with parts of it, one thin...

The Retreat Industry Forum is over... And I'm still getting messages. Every week, retreat leaders, venue owners, and wellness entrepreneurs are reaching out asking: "When is the next one?" "How do I get on the waitlist?" "I heard it was incredible. Are you doing it again?" But here's what's interesting: Most people aren't asking about the presentations. They're talking about the conversations. The...

What if your next retreat venue was a walkable, luxury beach community on the Texas Coast — fully furnished, photographer-ready, and designed to make your attendees feel like they're living in a neighborhood instead of checking into a hotel? In this episode, Shannon sits down with Lee Ann Peters, the powerhouse behind Cinnamon Shore — a New Urbanist luxury beach community on the Texas Coast that h...

If you're building a retreat business , this episode is required listening. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail sits down with Catherine Kontos , founder of RetreatBoss, RetreatMatch, and RetreatBoss Magazine, to talk about what it actually takes to build a sustainable and profitable retreat business . With over 14 years in the industry-and a background acquiring and se...

If you're posting every day and your retreat still isn't filling…You're not alone. But you are likely focusing on the wrong thing. In this episode of  The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail breaks down the real reasons your retreat isn't filling-even when you feel like you're "doing all the things" on social media. Posting is not a strategy Visibility takes time to build And most retreat lea...

If you've ever felt like hosting a retreat is way more complicated than it should be… You're not wrong. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail sits down with returning guest Anna VanAgtmael to talk about what's broken in the retreat industry-and what she's building to fix it. Because right now: 👉 Retreat leaders have the audience but not the logistics 👉 Venues have the s...

If you've ever felt like: your dreams are "too big" you're "too much" or you know you're capable of more… but you're not living it yet This episode is for you. In this in-studio episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail sits down with Dr. Kim Dang , a mathematician, reinvention strategist, and founder who has rebuilt her life and career multiple times-from Yale professor to entrepren...

What if one focused day could completely change how you market your retreat business? In this episode, Shannon sits down with Jaymie Tarshis - aka The Ad Expert - a digital marketing strategist with over a decade of experience helping businesses scale using Facebook and Meta ads. Jaymie flew from San Diego to Retreat Ranch for a VIP day with Shannon's team, and the results were jaw-dropping: over...

What does it actually take to build a retreat center from scratch? The land, the structures, the permits, the parking, the storage, the vision - and the marriage that has to survive all of it? In this episode, Shannon sits down with her husband Nathan Jamail - world-renowned leadership and sales keynote speaker, and co-owner of Retreat Ranch - to pull back the curtain on the real journey of buildi...

Let's talk about something most retreat leaders avoid… until they absolutely can't. Insurance. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail sits down with Myles Anderson from Event Helper , an insurance provider specializing in events and retreats, to break down why insurance is not optional in the retreat industry - it's essential. Because here's the reality: You are responsibl...

The retreat industry is evolving - and one of the biggest opportunities right now sits at the intersection of glamping and retreats. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail sits down with Sarah Riley , a UK-based glamping industry expert and co-organizer of The Glamping Show America , to explore how glamping and retreats are becoming one of the most powerful combinations in...

There is a powerful shift happening - and it's centered around midlife women. Women who have spent years building careers, raising families, and showing up for everyone else are now asking a different question: What do I want? In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail sits down in person in Austin with the founders of SOL Women to talk about the rise of retreats designed spec...

There's what your guests see at a retreat… And then there's everything happening behind the scenes. In this special edition of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail is joined by Alison and Erin (co-hosts of the Retreat Industry Forum ) along with two of the Forum's featured panel presenters - Matt Quinones and Daesha Donze - to talk about the operational side of running successful retreats....

One of the biggest challenges in the retreat industry isn't marketing, pricing, or programming. It's the gap between retreat leaders and retreat venues. Retreat leaders struggle to find the right venues. Venue owners struggle to fill their calendars with the right retreats. And somewhere in the middle, opportunities are missed. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast, Shannon Jamail sits do...

Success in business isn't just about strategy. It's also about proximity - who you're around, the conversations you're exposed to, and the standards of the rooms you choose to enter. In this solo episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast, Shannon Jamail shares why being in the right rooms can dramatically accelerate your growth as a retreat leader and entrepreneur. For many years Shannon's business w...

Running ads to fill your retreat sounds like the obvious next step… But for most retreat leaders, it's actually where they start losing money. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail is joined by Alison, Erin, and Jenn Possick (The Ads Maven) to break down what retreat leaders really need to know before investing in Facebook and Instagram ads. Jenn specializes in helping co...

Retreat leaders spend months planning the location, the schedule, the experiences, and the transformations they want their guests to have. But there is one skill that quietly determines whether your retreat truly lands with your audience. Your ability to communicate. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast, Shannon sits down with Hall of Fame speaker Joel Weldon to talk about the powerful r...

The retreat industry is growing so fast.   Especially in the last 6 years.   But here's the problem: There has never been a central place for retreat leaders, venues, and professionals to connect, collaborate, and operate at a higher standard. Until now. In this episode of The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail is joined by Alison, Erin, and Holly Porter , founder of the International Retrea...

One of the hardest moments in the retreat business is the quiet period after you launch something. You announce your retreat. You post about it. You send emails. And then… crickets. In this solo episode, Shannon Jamail talks about why slow results are not a sign that something is wrong. In fact, momentum in the retreat industry is rarely sudden — it's usually the result of consistent, focused acti...

Trust is the currency of the retreat industry. Guests invest their time, money, and emotional energy into retreat experiences expecting transformation, connection, and professionalism. But often, trust doesn't break in big dramatic moments - it slowly leaks through small gaps in leadership, communication, and delivery. In this episode, Shannon sits down with Debbie Simmons to discuss the five most...

Most retreat leaders focus on the itinerary. But what makes guests come back year after year isn't the schedule - it's the culture. In this episode, Shannon is joined by leadership expert and culture strategist Nathan Jamail (whom she is biased to say is amazing) to break down how retreat leaders can intentionally build culture instead of just planning programming. They discuss: How culture impact...

Confidence isn't just mindset crap. It affects your pricing, your messaging, your sales conversations and your boundaries. And ultimately - whether your retreat fills or flops. In this episode, Shannon is joined by leadership expert, sales strategist, and bestselling author Nathan Jamail (she is biased, but he is pretty damn amazing) to unpack the real reason many retreat leaders struggle to sell...

Running a retreat business requires more than just creating transformational experiences. Behind every successful retreat is a system that manages payments, bookings, logistics, guest communication, and operations. In this special episode of  The Retreat Leaders Podcast , Shannon Jamail is joined by  Erin and Alison , co-hosts of the  Retreat Industry Forum , along with Mariana from  WeTravel , to...

In today's entrepreneurial world, there is no shortage of conferences, summits, masterminds, and learning forums. But here's the real question: How do you know which ones are actually worth your time, energy, and money? In this episode, Shannon sits down with Dora Rankin to talk about discernment in business spaces - especially in a post-COVID world where the coaching and event industry has explod...

Partnerships can be powerful… and they can also quietly wreck your retreat business.   In this episode, Shannon Jamail breaks down one of the most common questions retreat leaders ask:  Should you have a co-host?  After being asked this question during a keynote in LA, Shannon's immediate answer-"Don't."-got a laugh… and opened the door to a real conversation retreat leaders need to hear.   Shanno...