Digital is Dead, IRL is the future!

Hello,

Over the past two years, I’ve had a consistent observation that has less to do with trends and more to do with how business actually functions beneath the surface.

The highest-value opportunities whether in partnerships, hiring decisions, or early-stage projects are still created in person.

For five years, digital was the default. The pandemic pushed every relationship, deal, and decision onto a screen. Since then, there’s been a boom in IRL experiences, live events, and in-person connection.

Turns out, people don’t actually want to do business through a camera.

Digital is dead, IRL is the future.

Meaningful decisions are made on trust, familiarity, and perceived alignment. Those variables are not built efficiently through digital channels.

They are built through proximity.

How Opportunity Actually Works

Repeated exposure: People need multiple interactions to understand how you think, communicate and operate. A single call or message rarely provides enough signal for someone to make a meaningful decision.
Shared context: Being in the same environment creates a layer of understanding that goes beyond what is explicitly said. People observe how you interact, how you respond in real time, and how consistent you are across settings.
Timing: Many of the most valuable conversations don’t happen during structured moments, but around them—in unplanned, low-pressure interactions.

From a business standpoint, these factors reduce perceived risk. And when that happens, decisions tend to happen faster and with more conviction.

Why This Is Increasing in Importance

As more of business move online, the baseline level of access has increased, but the baseline level of trust has not.

People are exposed to more inbound messages and content than ever before. As a result, filtering becomes more aggressive, and unfamiliar names are often ignored by default.

At the same time, in-person interaction has become less frequent. You can see the shift clearly:

Access is now expected
Attention is fragmented
Trust is selective

Being physically present is no longer normal. It’s a differentiator.

BDX 🤝 New Trend Society

This is the context in which I started building New Trend Society. The objective isn’t to create events in the traditional sense. It’s to design environments where the conditions for opportunity formation are more likely to exist.

That comes down to a few deliberate choices:

Curation: Because the value of a room is directly tied to the relevance and quality of the people in it. We are selecting and vetting every person that shows interest in our events.
Structure: Or more accurately, avoiding over-structure, since overly programmed environments tend to limit genuine interaction.
Consistency: Because familiarity compounds when the same people intersect over time.

When those elements are in place, conversations shift. They become more direct, more honest, and ultimately more actionable.

Maximizing Proximity

I’m thinking about this from a practical standpoint: the goal is not to maximize reach, but to maximize proximity.

That means choosing environments where repeated interaction is likely (rooftops, run clubs, coffee meets etc.) and being patient with outcomes.

A useful way to think about it is this:

Digital creates awareness
Proximity creates trust
Trust creates opportunity

Most people focus heavily on the first step and underestimate the second. That’s the reason I’m building this new idea!

If proximity drives trust, and trust drives opportunity, then creating better environments with the right people should produce real relationships and opportunities. We’re creating the right environments, bringing the right people together, and letting everything else follow.

Better conversations, faster decisions, and opportunities that don’t need to be forced.

I’ll see you at our next event. 😊
– Benni