Erwin Benedict Valencia

New York is loud.

It’s traffic that tests your patience.

Coffee that somehow tastes better because you’re walking while drinking it.

Buildings that make you feel impossibly small.

Rain that changes your plans.

Friends who somehow make the entire city feel like home.

This trip reminded me that New York isn’t just a place. It’s an emotion.

One moment you’re sitting in traffic wondering why anyone chooses this life.

The next you’re laughing with people you love.

Then you’re walking into a hidden speakeasy, surrounded by vinyl records, unexpectedly reconnecting with the part of yourself that once spent nights behind the DJ booth.

That’s New York.

It overwhelms you.

It inspires you.

It exhausts you.

It wakes something up inside you.

Love it or hate it, there’s nowhere quite like it.

Maybe that’s why we keep coming back.

What’s the first word that comes to mind when you think of New York? 🗽

Back on the 🚌 to NYC & BOS….

Back to two cities that helped me grow professionally and personally.

Back at a different point in my life, my career.

Excited for the memories to come flooding back.🥹

What’s one place I need to check out in each city for a super quick catch up? Drop in the comment below ⬇️

Almost 40 years of friendship in one photo.🙏🏽

Life moves.

We move.

Across cities. Across countries. Across careers. Across marriages, families, losses, wins, and entirely different versions of ourselves.

But somehow, the real ones remain.

Forever grateful that life gave me the chance to spend my high school years in the Philippines—and even more grateful for the incredible humans I met there who, nearly four decades later, are still among my closest friends, my confidants, and the people who knew me long before the world did.

And there are others who aren’t in this photo but remain just as close to our hearts—kept connected through random, ridiculous group texts, inside jokes that somehow survived decades, and meetups whenever life and geography allow.

We may not talk every day.

We may not see each other every year.

But real friendship has never been measured by proximity.

It’s measured by the feeling that no matter how much time has passed… you can pick up exactly where you left off.

Almost 40 years later, still here. Still laughing. Still us.

Some friendships aren’t for a season.

They’re for a lifetime.🇵🇭

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Tag the friend you may not see enough, may not talk to every day—but when you reconnect, it feels like no time has passed.

The real ones deserve to know they’re still the real ones.💪🏽

For once, I don’t feel the need to make any noise about it.

Today, from a treehouse in the middle of a Virginia forest, I sit in silence.

Headphones on.
Hand on heart.
Sunlight kissing my face.
Light breeze touching my body.

And I am GRATEFUL.

Grateful for every birthday message that found its way to me from all over the world.

And especially grateful for the surprise video Kika Kralikova somehow put together in the sneakiest of ways. She reached people I’ve known forever. People she has never even met. People from different chapters, countries and versions of my life.

I CRIED.

What a gift to be reminded of just how many lives have touched mine. And how many I’ve been blessed to touch along the way.

Half a century.

Filled with Food, Friendships, Family, Love, Phenomenal experiences. And perhaps the greatest gift of all, the physical and mental ability to enjoy it all fully.

For so much of my life, my energy has moved outward.

Serving. Supporting. Creating experiences. Helping others find joy, success and transformation.

Even on my birthdays, I often found a way to make the day about everyone else.

But something feels different now.

This next trip around the sun feels quieter. More internal than external.

I want to write more. More essays on Substack . Maybe finally finish the book I’ve been meaning to complete since 2016.

And I will finish my PhD dissertation by the end of this year. I said what I said. 😂

Maybe this is my writing era.

Maybe this chapter is about listening more closely to what wants to come from within.

Not less service.

Just a different kind.

Today, I’m simply here.

In a treehouse.
In the forest.
Listening to the birds.
Breathing.

Grateful for half a century.

And deeply curious about the man I’m becoming next.

Thank you for loving me from every corner of the world.

I felt it, FULLY.❤️🙏🏽

Take a breath. You’ve arrived. Welcome to the Now.

🚨DON’T CHEAT.🚨

How old do you think I am?

Drop your guess in the comments BEFORE you read the rest. 👇🏽

Seriously.

No checking LinkedIn .
No asking mutual friends.
No detective work.

Just your honest guess.

Because for years, people have asked me the same question.

Some assume I’ve had plastic surgery.

Others ask if I’ve been on peptides.

The answer?

NEITHER.

My “anti-aging routine” isn’t found in a clinic.

It’s gratitude.

It’s movement.

It’s purpose.

It’s meaningful relationships.

It’s laughter.

It’s learning to let go of the things that make us old long before our birthdays do.

This birthday feels different, too.

For the first time in years, I don’t feel the need to throw a huge party or make the day about everyone else.

I’m actually looking forward to something much simpler.

Good food.

Close friends.

Family.

Reflection.

Peace.

Maybe that’s what growing older is really about.

Not chasing youth…

But becoming more fully yourself.

I wrote about all of this in my newest Substack, “How Old Do You Think I Am?”

I’d love for you to read it.

But first…

👇🏽 How old do you think I am? One guess only.

(And no… I’m still not telling you today. 😏)

🔗 Full article in LINK below.⬇️

Honored to share that I’ll be returning to the Mindvalley stage this summer at Mindvalley University in Tallinn, Estonia. 💜

Every time I step onto a Mindvalley.events stage, I remind myself of one thing:

It’s a privilege. Never a right.

I’ve had the honor of speaking at Mindvalley events since A-Fest Croatia in 2014, and every invitation feels just as meaningful as the first.

Not because it’s another speaking engagement.

But because it’s another opportunity to serve.

This year’s talk is one I’m especially excited to share:

“The Women’s Team: What 20 Years in Pro Sports Never Taught Me Until Now.”

After spending nearly two decades in elite men’s professional sport, I took a sabbatical and found myself in a completely different world—elite women’s football.

In just six months, I’ve learned lessons that 20 years in men’s sport never could have taught me.

Lessons about leadership.
About communication.
About culture.
About empathy.
About what it truly means to help people perform at their highest level.

Those lessons changed me—not just as a sports performance clinician, but as a leader and as a human being.

I’m grateful for every athlete, coach, colleague, mentor, and friend who has shaped this journey.

Growth isn’t about collecting achievements.

It’s about collecting lessons… and passing them on.

See you in Tallinn. 🙏💜

I flew across the world for a parade I couldn’t even see.

Turns out, I wasn’t chasing a view.

I was chasing a feeling.

I bought a plane ticket to NY on a layover in Istanbul.

Crossed continents.

Landed in Miami in the morning, flew to New York that night, slept a few hours in Brooklyn, and stood shoulder to shoulder with nearly 2 million people at the Knicks parade.

And I still couldn’t make it to the front.

Funny enough…

That wasn’t the point.

The point was witnessing joy.

Grandmas who had waited decades.
Kids on shoulders.
Strangers hugging strangers.
Fake trophies.
Phones everywhere.

People yelling at cops… then disappearing into the crowd when the cops actually started walking over.

Pure New York chaos.
Pure New York magic.

I spent almost a decade with the New York Knicks 🏀 organization, but this day wasn’t about credentials or access.

It was about belonging.

Because some places leave fingerprints on your soul.

And no matter how far you travel…

A part of you never leaves.

🧡💙

I came all this way just to stand in the back.
And somehow, that was exactly where I needed to be.

Full story now on Substack Link in comments below ⬇️

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Earl Martin Valencia 🎂 THIS is going to be an EPIC APPRECIATION POST‼️

Who knew that a shy and quiet boy would one day be one of the “Forefathers” of the Philippine Start-Up Ecosystem.🇵🇭

Although you were our “baby” you sure were ahead of your sister Aileen Valencia-Matute and I with so many things…

…and still are. YOU are an AMAZING 👸🏻

YOU are also an AMAZING:
Father
Husband
Son
Brother
Friend

Forever thankful for the many awards and recognition I’ve incurred that you showed up for, even if it meant leaving your family for a little bit.🙏🏽

And although I haven’t made it to many of yours (also because they were all over the planet!), know I’m super PROUD of you!👏🏽

MY FAVORITE MEMORY: our “Brothers Trip” to Sardinia, ITALY for Mindvalley A-FEST. Seeing you play full on out of your comfort zone was truly a CORE MEMORY for me.💜

Forever GRATEFUL to be your brother and your confidante. Thank you for being one of the biggest INSPIRATIONS in my life.🏆

…and the parade hasn’t even started yet. 🏆

I left the Knicks in 2023.

The Knicks never really left me.

Years later, I’m still finding myself in the footnotes of stories about this team—getting tagged in articles, revisiting old memories, and being reminded that once you’re part of a family like this, a piece of you stays forever.

I wasn’t the one hitting game winners. My name won’t hang in the rafters.

But I had the privilege of showing up every day to serve—to help athletes stay healthy, perform at their best, and contribute to something bigger than myself.

That’s the beauty of sports.

Not everyone is remembered for the spotlight.
Some of us are remembered for being part of the story.

So seeing my name tucked away in an article celebrating a championship? That’s more than enough for me.

Because championships belong to teams.

But gratitude belongs forever. 🧡💙🗽

Once a Knick.
Always family.

Full article on the comments.
Drop a “🇵🇭” below and I’ll send you the article directly.