Drink a little less. Show up a little more.
That’s a surprisingly strong strategy for getting healthier, luckier, and more connected.
IRL > URL is not anti-tech. It’s pro-human.
In the air: the rise of the local creator
Traditional media is collapsing, but the need it served hasn’t gone away.
People still want to know what’s happening nearby: what restaurant just opened, what event is worth showing up for, who is shaping the culture of their town. What’s changed is who tells those stories now.
Today’s newsroom is often one person with an iPhone, a laptop, and a point of view. Technology democratized storytelling. Now it’s decentralizing media.
At the same time, the internet made one thing painfully clear: online connection is not the same as real community. That opened the door for a new kind of builder: the local creator.
For years, creators were told the path to success was scale. But local creators have a different advantage: trust, proximity, and the ability to bring people together in real life.
That’s the idea behind The Local Newsletter Monetization Cookbook — a guide for newsletter operators who want to grow beyond ads, sponsors, and subscriptions and build a real local business rooted in community.
Inside, we break down how to turn readers into regulars, create in-person experiences people actually want, and unlock new revenue by bringing the right people together offline.
If luck likes motion, local newsletter operators are sitting on one of the best engines for creating it.
Under the skin: the decline of drinking culture
In 2012, I moved to San Francisco sight unseen determined to break into startups.
Coming from a traditional finance background in Boston, I was stunned by how much startup culture revolved around alcohol. Free beer at work. Happy hours everywhere. Drinks folded into networking, celebrations, and team bonding. Nothing especially catastrophic happened to me in that chapter. But if I’m honest, nothing especially good came from it either.
I was tired and slightly hungover. I felt older than I was. One night I got really sick. That was enough to make me stop and ask: even if this isn’t a disaster, is it actually making my life better?
When I joined Intercom (who just raised $250M🤞🏼), I made a quiet decision not to drink at work events. I didn’t feel like I had some huge rock-bottom story. I just knew alcohol wasn’t helping me become the person I wanted to be. My husband Ryan was supportive, and together we found a new baseline.
Almost immediately, I felt lighter. More energy in the mornings. Fewer awkward conversations to replay in my head. More calm, more clarity, more proud moments. I went from default drinking to default sober, with the occasional exception for a wedding toast, a wine tasting, or a slow dinner with friends.
11 years later, I was reminded of all this last week at a live podcast event. At the afterparty, a friend introduced Ryan and me to a man who was clearly drunk. Within seconds, he was rude, aggressive, and weirdly hostile — lecturing us about wealth, business, and even our used car purchase, despite knowing nothing about us. And all I could think was: this man may not fully realize tomorrow what kind of impression he made tonight.
That’s the thing about alcohol. Even when it doesn’t ruin your life, it can quietly chip away at your health, your judgment, your relationships, and the way other people experience you.
A lot of people drink because they’re socially anxious, or because they don’t want to sit with their feelings. That’s human. But it’s worth noticing. Noticing, I feel awkward right now and I want a drink, instead of letting that impulse run the show.
For me, drinking less made life better. Better for my health, better for my relationships, better for my wallet, and better for becoming the kind of person I want to be in the room.
Thoughts on being default sober or sober curious? Feel free to share in the comments.
On the table
The local newsletter monetization cookbook: 9 monetization ideas for local newsletters and case studies from real beegiiv creators to cut a clear path to $100K annual revenue
Marissa Lovell, creator of "From Boise" on Kit, has built an audience of 23k and grown her business to over $100,000 in annual revenue. Then she launched a dinner club with DNNR. Within 48 hours, she sold 96 seats and earned over $1,000. See how on LinkedIn.
DNNR.io is the #1 white-labeled dinner club platform
Have an audience you want to send to dinner? Book a demo
Know someone who could launch a dinner club? Refer them to earn 5%
Send this to the group chat.
Thanks for being here, it means the world. I’m thrilled to build the offline future with you.
P.S. Know someone who could launch a dinner club? Refer them to earn 5%
Have an audience you want to send to dinner? Book a demo