Hi Reader,

Aside from some letters to the editor in the 80s and 90s, I didn’t write publicly until I started blogging in 2003. My unmet desire for perfect spelling and punctuation held me back at first, especially under the scrutiny of the internet. There was no shortage of critics pointing out simple typos. Like Easter eggs, you could easily find one in every post. But I persevered because beyond those pockets of unkindness were beacons of support—compliments and thanks for putting what others struggled to articulate into words. Repetition built confidence, and confidence allowed me to find my voice, though I still played it safe.

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I focused my writing on leadership and personal development, weaving these topics into personal stories. These posts led to articles, speeches, and new opportunities. I seldom looked at the metrics, partly because I didn’t know how to and partly because the only measure that mattered was whether my writing reached and touched a reader in some way.

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Then, I entered a creative era, experimenting with new blogs on different topics, from politics to poetry. There were critics in that arena, too, but they were different—they made me better. For a time, I posted a new poem each day, and readers could tell which were heartfelt and which were phoned in. Their feedback drove me to improve and added joy to the process.

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Starting my consultancy meant my creative writing took a backseat, though I still managed to publish three novels. “Business writing” took center stage in the form of personal essays and musings on teamwork, communication, and other such things. This led to new business, more leadership books and products, and awakened the creativity I’d been missing.

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Things were going well, but in the last eighteen months, I slowly realized what many business owners come to: we forget to dance with the one who brought us. My creative writing had brought me the right kind of business—people and companies I wanted to work with. Oh, I’ve been writing all along. I just checked, and for my Reflections on Leadership newsletters alone, I’ve penned 203 articles since 2022.

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If I’m being honest, while those articles are good, valuable, and have helped make a positive difference for some, they lack… let’s call it pizzazz. To meet the market’s needs, bullet points have replaced paragraphs, and paragraphs have been reduced to scannable nuggets for the reader’s eye. This isn’t necessarily bad, but it’s like a once-colorful McDonald's replaced by a bleak gray box or the influx of matte car paint that screams, “I’ve given up on fun.” Much like everything else, my writing has become more efficient but less pleasurable—perhaps for my audience, definitely for me. Another example of the “shitification of things.” As the author of Leaders Don’t Shrug, I can’t let this continue unaddressed. That’s why I’ve started Karl Bimshas Writes, a space for my creative writing, opinions, and musings—unvarnished yet aligned with my values.

Like many, I can segment parts of my life pretty well. We have different friends for different reasons: some for the party, some to ask probing questions, some to hype us up, and others to humble us. Some foster envy; some bring gratitude. Then, some are best friends. No topic is off-limits; every idea has potential, and mostly, you just want to hang out with no hidden agenda. I need a place to write, warts and all. My professional blog or newsletters could suffice. They’re great—I love them to pieces—but I don’t think they’d pick up if I called at 3 a.m.

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So, to make it easy for me, the place to find the lightly edited, mostly unfiltered, more creative me is Karl Bimshas Writes. I’ll post regularly—not necessarily daily, but enough to get my reps in. It’s where I’ll test ideas, share creative work, and maybe shill a product or two. If that interests you, I hope you’ll subscribe.

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Thank you for your support, and I hope to see a few of you at Karl Bimshas Writes.

In the meantime, keep advancing confidently in the direction of your dreams and help others along the way.

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-Karl

Karl Bimshas

Leadership Advisor | Writer

KARL BIMSHAS CONSULTING

Manage Better. Lead Well.

1-858-583-2302

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