What’s In a Year? Anything and Everything.

No battle plan survives contact with the enemy.

Helmuth von Moltke

As new-year’s right around the corner, you will start seeing everyone going on about the “New Year / New Me” rants, how to the new year will bring new things, how this is the year they will make it work, how this time you mean it, and how nobody will stop them this time…till February when they basically revert to the same old habits because, well, change is hard…

Me? I prefer to look back and see what worked and what didn’t; instead of looking forward with the best intentions. I like to see what I’ve done and where I’ve been and what I have actually accomplished and why I. I like to figure out the why something failed or something succeeded, and only then move forward in a general direction, with no predetermined plan or expectation. I’d rather be surprised at what I accomplish than at what I failed.

This year was a surprise to me, as it opened my eyes as to how easy it’s to actually make a difference and to reinvent myself. Sure, I have always strived to be a Gentleman, was always interested in the arts, and always had a streak of social activists. Yet I never really took it past that.  Except by the end of December of 2013 I had my first article published online. I kept going, if for anything else to have a place to vent, to share some of my thoughts. And to my absolute surprise, people began reading my articles, some even liked them. That’s when a friend told me that I should expand into a blog. At first I was completely against it. Who has time to do something like that? But after a couple of days I thought to myself what the hell. So I began writing about LIFE and about all the lesson’s I have learned and how Being a Caballero has helped me survive…

Long story, short? In one year Being Caballero turned from a simple idea to an actual brand of an interconnected social network, a couple of interviews, worked with other social advocates, and actually did help keep the traditions of a gentleman alive. But more importantly I learned one really important thing, especially when I take into account that I am nothing out of the ordinary, just another man.

Anyone can grow and refine themselves into a better person in one year.

Am I looking forward to next year? Yes, as I have several ideas already in the works. But you know when we can have that conversation?

Next December.