I Have a free community and I would like the ability to have an option where I have an inner circle discussion that can only be accessed by me giving access to the discussion.

That way it creates a natural upsell inside the community itself. I have a various amount of free courses I offer, and then some paid. If they buy the paid courses they get access to the inner circle - as an example.

Very similar to how Circle does it. The only thing missing in circle is the gamification of the discussions. What Circle gets right is the ability to have access to what they've opted into but also be able to see what else is in your arsenal.

This way it builds up a community faster, because its free to opt into, but also gives a sense of togetherness for those who have the higher courses.

And those with the higher courses can help out in the discussions with those you are only in the free community.