"The way to succeed is by increasing your failure rate." Karl Dempwolf

      Despite the odds and Peyton Manning, the New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl. Usually all my blog posts are art-related but the Saints' win over the favored Indianapolis Colts is noteworthy for several reasons.

      The smart money was on the Colts. The key factor the smart money didn't take into account was the determination of the Saints. In mid-season, when the Saints were losing, I predicted a win by the Saints in the Super Bowl. I told a fellow sports fan that I thought the Saints were the real deal; they had a tough defense, their offense could run and pass and their ability to force turnovers was high. But ultimately what kept the Saints in the game was the willingness of the coach and the team to take a chance, to risk it all with determination and guts. If they had not tried the onside kick at the start of the second half, the outcome of the game may have been very different. The team knew it was risking great field position for the Colts, but I believe that even if the onside kick hadn't worked in the Saints' favor, they would not have given up and would have tried something else. The point is, they took a chance, they tried, and it worked.

      So how does this relate to art and you? I am encouraging all the artists out there to take a chance and try something different. Whether it is risking rejection by entering that national contest, painting something completely out of your comfort zone or trying to paint outside on location. You must accept the possibility of failure in order to have the option of success.