The Ones Who Show Up, Win

Charles Bukowski wasn’t born a writer. Hell, for most of his life, he wasn’t even close.

Just another guy clocking in at the post office, numbing himself, hiding from the world.

He wrote in secret, but he didn’t send the words out.

Didn’t push them into the world.

Told himself it wasn’t the right time, the right audience, the right opportunity.

That no one wanted to hear what he had to say.

That he wasn’t good enough yet.

Sound familiar?

The longer he waited, the heavier it got. The words. The self-doubt.

The goddamn life he wasn’t living.

Then, at 49, after decades of obscurity, he got an offer—

just enough money to quit his job and write for a year.

Most people would have played it safe. Bukowski didn’t.

He walked into the post office, looked around,

and said, “I have one of two choices—stay in the post office and go crazy…

or stay outside and play at writer and starve. I have decided to starve.”

He bet on himself. And he didn’t just write—he showed up.

Sent out his poems. Read in dingy bars.

Put himself in the room, over and over,

until the world had no choice but to turn its head.

Not because he was perfect. Not because he played by the rules.

But because he was too damn real to ignore.

That’s the game. You don’t wait to be noticed. You make them see you.

Most creatives are told to fit in. Follow the rules. Make their work easy to sell.

You Want Demand? Stop Waiting.

Better clients?

Bigger budgets??

Let your presence create that demand.

Not your portfolio. Not your pitch. Just you.

If Bukowski had waited until he was ready,

until it was safe—he’d be just another dead man with a pile of wasted words.

But he showed up. And now, his words outlive him.

So if you’re still waiting, ask yourself—what for?

Because the only difference between those who get noticed and those who don’t?

They show up.

NOT on sale is for those who need guidance to step out of their own shadows into the light.

For the ones who want create on their own terms.

Who know their work is more than a transaction.

Who refuse to be commodified.

If you’re done waiting in the shadows and ready to attract the clients who actually get it—let’s talk.

P.S. Want to learn more about Charles Bukowski? Read his poems.