In this episode Sam Ovens & Andrew Kirby share: - New features: Sticky notification filter + more filters - How Ron Smith makes $5,300/month with a Japanese tattoo community - Q&A from the community - Happy St. Patrick's Day ☘️ Watch it on YouTube @skool-news channel

... And I burst out laughing 😂 I've been doing scattered 🧑‍💻 web work since the 90s... (Oh the fun domains I once owned) We were talking about saving money by switching some backend systems and stuff... ChatGPT said ... "Since you’ve been in domains since the OpenSRS era (which is practically Jurassic Park for internet years 🦖)" Yup, I'm a cat with more than 9 lives now loving living in the Skooliverse 😺

Skool News broadcast notes February 3rd 2026 ✈️ Skool Games Q4 Winners Event The episode opens by explaining this was a Skool Games event for people who won Q4 last year. Everyone was flown to LA, with flights and hotels covered. 👖 Hormozi Sam said, “Then Hormozi adds a little bit of value.” Kirby said, “Hormozi was wearing jeans.” 📐 Golden Ratio Community One of the winners runs a group about the golden ratio. It is pointed out that he is even postured in a perfect golden ratio. There is discussion about whether Skool might use the golden ratio and whether that could be part of Skool’s growth. 🤝 Hanging Out Together People spend time together talking. The speaker mentions talking with Hormozi about things that are relevant. 🍽️ Lunch and Photos Everyone has lunch together. Chefs catered the meal. Professional photos were taken. 💸 Winner Examples and Revenue Callouts A tennis community run by a player ranked around 20th in France earns about $7,000 per month. An AI community earns $121,000 per month. A collaboration-focused community earns $2,700 per month. (Hooray! @Éva Raposa ) A community is run by a growth operator partnered with an NBA player. PM Mastermind earns $59,000 per month teaching project management. Dave’s Guitar World earns $7,600 per month teaching guitar solos. A financial freedom and home-buying community earns $14,000 per month. Pickleball and basketball Skools have won Skool Games multiple times. Artist Academy earns almost $10,000 per month. Crusade Games earns $13,000 per month as a fitness habit community. 🏆 Award Polishing Joke Daniel is introduced as the person who polishes the awards. His role is jokingly compared to a ball boy, but for trophies. 🚌 Trip to Skool HQ Everyone gets on a bus and goes to Skool HQ. They receive a tour of the building. 💬 Open Access Environment Most of the day is left open for hanging out. People are surprised they can walk up and ask questions. There is more conversation than stage talking.

Jump into this incredible community by @Justin Yip Aligned Entrepreneur Network 🌐 Hurry and you can be lucky number 300 👀

Do you see yourself as a leader? If you run a Skool community, or a household, you are already leading whether you use that word or not. That’s why Leadership Is an Art by Max De Pree remains one of the most useful leadership books I’ve ever read, even decades later, and especially for online communities. The at of leadership is "liberating people to do what is required of them in the most effective and humane way possible." De Pree doesn’t treat leadership as a role or a strategy. He treats it as stewardship... a temporary responsibility for people, culture, and direction. That framing changes everything. Community is not content. It’s a human system. Most people approach communities like products. Making more posts, prompts, or activity isn't leading. The work of a leader is not to generate output. It’s to create the conditions where people want to contribute. That includes: - Psychological safety - Clear expectations - Mutual respect - A sense that presence matters When those conditions exist, participation follows naturally. When they don’t, no amount of “engagement hacks” will fix it. 💫 Covenant beats contract One of De Pree’s strongest ideas is the difference between contracts and covenants. Contracts are transactional. Covenants are relational. Most online communities are built on unspoken contracts: - I post, you respond - I pay, you deliver - I show up, I get value WISE communities work better when they function as covenants: - We care how people experience this space - We protect dignity, diversity, equality, inclusion - We value contribution beyond metrics That means being intentional about how people are treated, especially when they are new, uncertain or quietly lurking. 💫 The leader defines reality This is one of De Pree’s most quoted ideas for a reason. In a community, defining reality looks like: - Being authentic about sharing rather than posting filler De Pree rejects performative leadership. Filler is false reality. Authentic sharing is reality.