Everyone talks about time management.

Very few people talk about energy management.

As women, entrepreneurs, leaders, mothers, caregivers, and CEOs, we often spend our days pouring into everyone and everything else until there’s nothing left for ourselves.

Then we wonder why we’re exhausted.

It just hit me. 18 years ago today, I took a chance on myself.

I didn’t have all the answers. I didn’t have a perfect plan. I definitely didn’t know where the journey would lead.

What I did have was a belief that there had to be more—and I had the willingness to work for it.

Since then, there have been wins, losses, pivots, reinventions, celebrations, sleepless nights, lessons, and more prayers than I can count.

One of the most rewarding parts of publishing isn’t always launching a new issue.

Sometimes it’s receiving an order for an issue that sold out years ago.

As I was flipping through past editions and our latest issue today, I couldn’t help but smile knowing that readers are still discovering—and requesting—covers and stories we published years earlier.

Today, content disappears in 24 hours, but there is something incredibly special about creating a magazine people want to keep.

The last few days in the Dominican Republic were exactly what my heart needed.

Time with my best friend. Time with my mom. Time spent in our restaurants testing and implementing new dishes that I can’t wait for everyone to try. Watching ideas become reality never gets old.

Hay momentos en los que simplemente me gusta sentarme, observar y agradecer.

I’ve lost count of how many late-night messages I’ve received over the years from people who follow my work. Messages that don’t ask about business or media or success, but about survival. Strangers telling me they’re overwhelmed. Mothers exhausted beyond words. Young women questioning their worth. People quietly asking, “Am I going to be okay?”

As a smaller, independent, Latina-owned media company, we didn’t have the luxury of waiting for industry consensus. We had to anticipate how audiences were consuming content — faster, thematically, and on their own terms. We broke from the bi-monthly cycle to focus on moments and conversations that actually matter. Six print issues, six digital issues, all anchored in cultural themes amplified by live events, social, podcasts, and community. That decision wasn’t a gamble. It was foresight.

It was also intentional. Each of our issues is rooted in themes and cultural conversations that matter — from celebrating Latina entrepreneurship, to examining AI’s impact on creativity, to shining a light on wellness, beauty, and fashion in ways that inspire and empower.

Here’s the irony: when we made this move, it was labeled “necessary.” Now that Vogue makes the same call, it’s lauded as “visionary.” That double standard says a lot about how the industry assigns credibility — but it also validates what we knew years ago. The monthly print publishing model was outdated, unsustainable, and out of touch with how people live, consume, and connect.

I was born in the Dominican Republic, an island full of color, flavor, and contradictions. I grew up surrounded by family love, strong cultural traditions, and a sense of community that deeply shaped my identity. From a young age, I was drawn to stories, words, and the beauty of everyday life. But like many Dominican girls, I was taught to seek stability: a good job, a family, a “respectable” life.

We don’t need fixing. What happened to us… happened for us. There is power in the pain, purpose in the rebuilding, and beauty in the becoming.

Thank you to every brand that submitted, every winner who showed up and shined, our incredible Brand partners, and my powerhouse BELLA team. You helped create a night that reminded us all just how connected and inspiring this industry truly is.

Queen of 11:11

Taking time to reset and refuel isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity.

One of the things I love most about solo travel is the space it gives me. To breathe. To think. To just be.