When I started writing my blog at the beginning of this year, I did not know where it would lead me. All I knew was that I wanted to have a public place where I can put my thoughts in writing. That is, the thoughts that I want to be seen, discussed, supported or challenged.

The result is pleasantly positive. While I am not a professional writer and did not have a clear plan for the content I would post, I have come to understand that none of it is necessary. Professionalism is only a matter of practice. And any plan can change with new experiences and knowledge acquired. Thus, I have learned to embrace uncertainty and allow the Universe to guide me where it wants me to be.

"Art is a kind of innate drive that seizes a human being and makes him its instrument. The artist is not a person endowed with free will who seeks his own ends, but one who allows art to realize its purpose through him."—Carl Jung

Outwardly, I can barely call myself an artist. But art can be also understood as the process of expression of your inner world in the outer reality. As you master physical tools, including your body, and learn to navigate the rules of the material world, it becomes easier to pull the ideas from within and manifest them without. Like a sculptor who "removes everything that is not David", a businessman or even a politician is an artist in his metier. Lucky are those who find their domain early on. As for me, having spent the first thirty years of my life in ignorance, I am only starting.

Some of the positive effects that public writing has brought are:

  • A better organization of knowledge by connecting the dots
  • A refinement of knowledge by further research
  • New ideas
  • A public discourse on certain topics
  • Generation of new acquaintances, both personal and professional

The bottom line is that writing has been extremely beneficial. Needless to say, I will continue producing new material, no matter how good or bad it is, just for the sake of personal refinement.

I am an explorer, however, and feel like I want to have another platform that allows me to be more intimate with the audience. While reading is an activity of a more intellectual than emotional character due to a limited amount of senses involved, modern technology allows us to deeply connect with other people by expanding the sensual input. Simply put, hearing my voice and seeing my face will make the experience more personal and engaging.

A few friends of mine have seen great success over the years by hosting video and audio shows. No wonder—videos and podcasts are getting extremely popular. Besides the personal feeling of these media, the reasons for such popularity can be explained in practicals terms, too. Today, many individuals spend a lot of time stuck in traffic, working out in gyms or simply enjoying a long coffee in a coffee shop. The randomness of radio in a world of custom on-demand experience does not make much sense any more. Why not tune into your favourite podcast instead? These days, even treadmills have screens so that you can watch Joe Rogan smoke weed while interviewing his guests. In general, the zeitgeist has been producing more listeners and viewers than readers. Whether bad or good, it is still a fact. And fighting reality, as known, is a fool's errand. Embracing it is the way.

As I consider myself a content creator at this stage, I will not swim against the current of time, but rather raft along it. My format of choice is primarily video. But as it will mostly involve talking, these clips can be easily converted into audio shows, too. So it is fair to call it both a video show and a podcast. Similar to what Joe Rogan does. This will allow me to cover multiple media and channels of distribution at the same time. Indeed, some people like to watch YouTube videos on their couch while others prefer listening to podcasts in the gym. I will cater to both audiences.

There is already a name that encapsulates most of the topics that I want to cover, so I decided not to invent a new one but adapt what I have to the new format. Citadelium will now be both the name of my show and an article category in the blog. I have no clear plan on what exactly is more suitable for the show and what is better published in written word. Like most things, this will come with practice and experience. What is certain, though, is that the material will cover a broad base—from philosophy to building actual citadels. Here is a short description of it:

Yuri de Gaia presents Citadelium, a show on rebuilding our civilization by nurturing culture, tradition and morals while taking advantage of modern technologies, such as Bitcoin and the Internet. Together, we will build the citadels of the future.

At the end of the day, my vision is a personal platform upon which I will express my ideas and findings that can be consumed in your preferred format: written word, video or audio. Exciting to see where it will lead me!

Right now, I am starting off with the following platforms:

  • YouTube: because it has the largest user-base and is still the biggest video distribution channel.
  • BitChute: because YouTube censors, and it is good to have a peer-to-peer alternative.
  • Anchor.fm: because it has great podcasting tools and distributes content across all the major avenues like Spotify, Google Podcasts and Apple Podcasts.

Needless to say, I will keep local copies of all the content so that I can re-publish it, should anything happen to any of the platforms mentioned. Eventually, I hope to transition to self-hosting but the current set up provides for a quick and efficient start.

I am looking forward to recording the first episodes soon. Meanwhile, you can follow the show progress in the Citadelium Telegram group.

Onwards!