“if the focus is on a long-term goal subscription models tend to work pretty well but if it's a community not of continuous practice but of reaching a particular goal then a sizable onetime fee with unlimited access to certain content and features can work because eventually people will reach that goal either by themselves or with the help of the community”

Match the community's pricing model to its goal type

Default to subscription for communities of continuous practice (small bets, indie hacking, ongoing skill development) — the loop is forever. Default to a sizable one-time fee for communities of finite goal-reaching (course completion, ship-a-thing programs) — once members hit the goal they stop paying anyway, so capture the value upfront. Mixing these wrong (subscription for a one-and-done outcome) produces churn cliffs; one-time pricing for a continuous practice leaves money on the table.