Karim H. Ismail ’78 ARIM Ismail is a person who radiates positive energy: confident, sincere and wise are words to describe this Crescent alumnus. Karim has many personal and professional accomplishments of which to be proud; however, it was only after he reached a low point in 2002 that Karim was truly challenged and discovered his
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inner strengths. This personal journey to find his ‘best self ’ is outlined in his first published book, Keep Any Promise: a Blueprint for Designing your Future (www.keepanypromise.com). Born in Tanzania, Karim grew up in Kenya and moved to Toronto in 1977 at which time he enrolled at Crescent. Most of the curriculum was new and Crescent’s academic expectations were high. In order to grasp the new material and meet expectations, Karim learned to become intensely focused. Years later, Karim still draws on the strengths he acquired while at Crescent. “All along the Crescent lesson was ingrained – set high expectations, visualize a triumphant end, persevere, and stay extremely focused!” Karim recalls failing his first English literature test. He was devastated, but also puzzled, as he thought he had memorized the material perfectly. Karim’s teacher, Bill Pedoe, gently explained that the purpose of the test was to evaluate his ability to analyze the material, not his ability to memorize it. The lesson was learned: Karim graduated second in his English class, and went on to major in French literature at Trinity College at the University of Toronto.
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Karim then received his MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. The next six years would see this Crescent Old Boy working in the Ontario government, including three years at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in various management roles. Karim moved down the street to join
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centres in the late 1980s as administrative director for the Extended Care facility, overseeing 670 beds dedicated to caring for Canada’s war veterans. He soon took over the facility planning portfolio, and in a short time in his new role as Vice President of Facilities oversaw the development of a complex healthcare facilitiy worth over $500 million. In 1994, Karim and his spouse, Narmin, established Eighty20, a web consulting business which they have transformed into the leading provider of e-communication services to independent Canadian and U.S. schools. Although Karim’s hard work had brought him much professional success, he found himself unhappy in his personal life; facing financial challenges, health challenges, strained family relationships and a lost sense of spirituality. Karim couldn’t understand why he was so successful in one aspect of his life, but not in the other. It was at this moment that Karim developed the idea of applying the principles that he had developed over 20 years of professional success to his personal life. Karim set these principles into practice and experienced a complete personal transformation. By applying a “blueprint” to his personal life, Karim was able to achieve his goals.
The process involved a close examination of his life, dreams, and goals. Turning his life around involved discipline and patience, but resulted in improved health, a renewed sense of spirituality, closer bonds with his wife and children and achievements he once thought impossible (including climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro). Since climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro with his daughter Aliya in 2005, Karim has led many independent school student groups through the Climb for Leaders organization (www.climbforleaders.com). Climb for Leaders combines a demanding physical challenge with community service and fundraising goals to support educational projects in the developing world. Keep Any Promise: a Blueprint for Designing your Future guides the reader though the process of designing a written plan for one’s life: setting goals, implementing strategies, and keeping promises. The techniques worked for Karim and are proving to work for his readers. The Crescent lesson persists, and Karim continues to set high expectations for himself: he has promised to help five million people reach their goals over twenty years. Karim was recently back on campus to speak at the inaugural CSOBA Professional Development Seminar where he shared his stories, wisdom, and insights with a group of Crescent alumni and current students. The feedback from this event and Karim’s talk was overwhelmingly positive; not only did his message resonate throughout the audience, but Karim successfully moved one step closer to his goal. Q
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