Death by 1000 No's

It's not about the one big mistake.

Despite what you have been told it's rare that the career of an artist, or the legacy of an arts organization, is crushed by one big mistake.

It's all the little mistakes that do it.

It's all the times you said "No".

No to producing that creative, but risky piece of work because you were scared of the possible financial downside.

No to hiring that younger, but less experienced person as your new Director of Development.  Sure she could have bought in new ideas and strategies but the Board wanted someone more "stable."

No to giving your staff that pay raise they deserved.

No to getting rid of that toxic staff member that is killing morale.

No to actively seeking that artistic mentor that could help guide your career.

That's how things crumble, one fear based decision at a time.

The good news is that the opposite is true.

I have seen organizations saved, careers re-ignited because of a few good, brave, timely decisions.

There are a thousand variables that pave the road to artistic success, luck, timing, skill, connections, etc.

But mostly, all of us are nothing more then the sum total of our decisions.