This year, my favorite Christmas card did not come from any client or any golf course. It came from CEIP Gloria Fuertes in Guadiaro, San Roque (Cádiz), and it was drawn by my daughter Manuela.

She won the school contest where the annual Christmas card is chosen and distributed to all the families at the school. When they told me, I felt something I had not felt in a long time in my professional life: pure pride, without filters.

I have spent more than 20 years in the golf and hospitality industry. I have managed projects in several countries, worked with major brands, designed marketing strategies that looked fantastic in PowerPoint. I have attended conferences, learned techniques, and applied methodologies with complicated names.

But today, looking at these three Wise Men drawn in pencil, a camel that seems to come from another era, and a shooting star lighting everything up, I realize something.

Manuela has done on a single sheet of paper what we often forget to do in our businesses: tell a real story, without complications, that connects with people.

There are no gimmicks. No overcomplicated strategy. There is a star guiding the way, three characters working together toward a common goal, and a camel that, although not the protagonist, makes everything possible.

Does that sound familiar?

What this card teaches me

When you dedicate yourself to selling golf destinations, managing resorts, and creating experiences, sometimes you get lost in metrics, revenue management, and occupancy rates. We look at dashboards, analyze competitors, optimize conversions. And that is fine, it is necessary. But it is not enough.

I have seen spectacular golf courses fail because they forgot the basics: making visitors feel something. I have seen brilliant strategies on paper fail because they lacked authenticity. I have seen highly skilled teams that could not connect because everyone was pulling in different directions.

What truly remains, what people remember, is authenticity. It is feeling that there is something special, something human behind it all. That sense that someone genuinely cared, that there is a story worth telling, that you are not just another number in a database.

My daughter did not win because she had the best technique. In fact, there were probably drawings that were technically more perfect. She won because her drawing communicates something genuine. There is excitement in every stroke. There is a story anyone can understand. There is heart.

And in a world where all golf courses and hotels seem the same and every message sounds identical, that is worth gold.

The lesson of the star

In the card there is a shooting star showing the direction. It is not the most elaborate element, but it serves its purpose: pointing the way.

How many times do we get lost in our daily routine without really knowing where we are heading? We have business plans, budgets, monthly goals. But if we ask every team member, “what is our star?”, would everyone give the same answer?

I have worked in places where the vision was clear and everyone rowed in the same direction. And I have worked in places where every department had its own star. The results, obviously, were very different.

Manuela made it clear in her drawing: there is one star, and everyone follows it.

The team of the Three Wise Men

Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthazar. Three different characters, each with their own personality, but with a shared goal. None stands above the others. All three are necessary.

The same happens in our teams. We need the person who analyzes data, the one who creates emotional content, the one who executes without excuses, the one who stays calm during crises. We need diversity of talent, perspectives, and skills.

But above all, we need them to work together. I have seen too many teams where sales blames operations, operations does not understand marketing, and marketing does its own thing. It is exhausting and, honestly, unproductive.

The best projects I have participated in all had something in common: teams that functioned like these Wise Men. Different, but united by something greater than themselves.

The camel nobody talks about

There it is, in Manuela’s card, the camel. Not the protagonist. Not shining. But without it, the Wise Men never reach their destination.

In our industry, “the camel,” and yes, we are talking about the animal, represents the fundamentals: a booking system that works, an updated CRM, clear communication processes, flawless customer follow-up. These are the things that do not generate LinkedIn headlines but make the difference between a successful resort and one that merely survives.

Too often we become obsessed with the latest digital tool, the most sophisticated strategy, the influencer of the moment. And we neglect the camel. Then high season arrives, when it truly matters, and we discover the camel cannot walk because nobody took care of it.

I love that Manuela included the camel. Because she understands it is important, even if it is not the prettiest part of the drawing.

My wish for 2026

That we all recover a little of Manuela’s ability to create without fear, to feel excited about what we do, to not lose our freshness. That we remember why we started doing this in the first place.

That our teams work like those three Wise Men: each with their own role, but all moving toward the same direction. That we talk more, listen better, and leave our egos at the door.

That we take care of “the camel,” those basic things that are not glamorous but without which nothing works. That we do not forget the fundamentals while chasing shiny new things.

And above all, that we are capable of transmitting something real to those who visit us and trust us. That our clients feel there are people behind the business, that there is history, that there is heart. Not just rates and availability.

Thank you, Manuela

This card will stay on my desk all year. Not as decoration, but as a reminder.

A reminder that sometimes the best lessons come from where you least expect them. That success is not always about perfect technique, but authenticity. That simplicity, done well and with heart, always wins.

Thank you for teaching me, once again, that what matters is not making things more complicated, but connecting with people. Thank you for reminding me that enthusiasm, the same enthusiasm you put into every drawing, is what should drive any professional project.

And thank you for making me feel like “the proudest father in the world.”

The faculty of CEIP Gloria Fuertes in Guadiaro wishes everyone a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year 2026.

I join in that wish. And I would add one more thing: may we all have the courage next year to create the way Manuela does. With heart. Without fear. With excitement.

Because in the end, that is what everything is about.

Merry Christmas.