These are two variations of a popular quote that I’m familiar with. The second one resonates more with me, because while the first version presupposes perfection, this version is more expansive, allowing for the inevitable missteps that come with learning anything — with life in general.

That there will be what we might term missteps in a career journey is somewhat inevitable — the road not taken; the one taken and perhaps regretted; the course or professional path we didn’t really want but our parents did; the job we thought was the moneymaker but the working conditions now seem inhumane; the job we really wanted and loved but the organization decided to take a different turn; the job we really need but that’s taking much longer than we thought. I could go on, but you get the idea. What happens in instances like these?

We’re marching toward the end of the year, and for many countries in the West, this is the twice-yearly tradition of tampering with industrial time by turning the hand of the clock backward, otherwise known as “falling back.” But what if, instead of thinking of some missteps as falling back, or as not measuring up to some ticking internal standard, we took a “falling forward” view?

Falling forward will require a bracing of our inner strength, because the concept of falling (in either direction) conjures up an image, mostly emotional, of embarrassment or shame — and dare I say some ego bruising, when we think those “how could this happen to me” thoughts. Especially when we presume that we are the only one in a cohort of sojourners who fell that badly.

We may have read, or even been told, that everyone falls sometime, somewhere, somehow. But that doesn’t always make falling back or behind feel better. To know is one thing; to embody that knowledge is yet another. As with natural seasons — some countries or places may not have four marked periods in an annual turn of the earth. Neither might they have a “spring forward” or “fall back,” but there’ll be something to denote seasonal shifts, however slight. In the tropics, we speak about the rainy season and the dry season. And if you’ve ever experienced a tropical rainstorm, you’ll recognize the truth in that proverbial “when it rains, it pours.”

Turning back to careers and seasons, taking a falling-forward perspective might include the following:

1. Recognize: that seasons are just that — seasons. Impermanent by nature or by design. They may be long and appear interminable. They may be cyclical. But no one season lasts forever. This is my top one, and I always try to keep it top of mind, because without this meta-awareness, the other points will be harder to consider and implement.

2. Prepare: There are different levels of preparation, some more pertinent than others. A person going on a difficult hike who takes sturdy hiking sticks with them will be better equipped to handle a fall than a person without. The thing about preparation is that we are doing it in other areas without perhaps realizing that we are. People who save and invest diligently for the rainy or retirement season are preparing. People who keep their profiles and résumés ready to go are preparing. If you recognize that you are on a long journey that will come with different seasons, don’t get complacent.

3. Take Stock: of your skills and abilities. This will assure you that you can always take those turns in the career path when they come. If you’re on a path that you don’t like and you want to go on another, what would it take to get there? Take stock. If you see others doing something you really want to do, what would it take to learn to do those things? If you dream of working somewhere, or of getting off the nine-to-five train, what would it take to do that? Some people pivot into other paths out of necessity. But if that’s not the case for you, then take the time to take stock of what and when — what would you love, want, or prefer to be doing for joyful work, and when would you like to be doing it?

Then make a plan, but hold it loosely. And remember to R.P.T. Because your compass might just be turning north, instead of south.

Here’s to falling forward — and intentionally making it part of your own career dance.