“In our legal careers, we buy into the notion that there is only one path. We imagine a well-marked, perfectly manicured, tranquil path that will lead us to success, if we only stay the course. Then we live in fear of being forced off that path due to some mistake. We imagine that anything outside of that path is a raging river of hot lava and certain doom. But what if straying from that path led you to something better?

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Most of us imagine a linear path where we start our careers as associ-ates and eventually become partners in a law firm. We expect that we will work long hours, do “good work,” serve on a few firm and bar association committees, write a couple of articles, and then we’ll get there. What if you could release yourself from the fear and expectation that you must follow this singular narrow path to succeed? What if you could do something different?”