When you fall, make sure you're wearing the right pants

Recently I asked the Hero how one can improve one's ability to initiate ideas, particularly in the workplace. I asked because the Hero is good at this sort of thing, and I wanted to know his secret.

"He thought for a minute. "You pick a direction," he said, "and you jump in, and when you fall--"

I did not particularly care for the "when you fall" part.

"Wait," I interrupted. "This is not Mr. Fancy Pants."

"This IS Mr. Fancy Pants," he insisted. "When you fall, you try to hit several things on the way, and maybe they'll turn into ideas."

Mr. Fancy Pants, the star of an online game, is a stick figure who sports bright yellow-orange pants and a hairdo resembling the outline of a small fire.  Mr. Fancy Pants's time is mainly spent sliding about various surfaces, running through doors, and trying to eliminate giant spiders and other threats to his well-being, which is accomplished by jumping on them.

The Hero, needing an escape from his myriad duties as student, employee, spider killer, etc., has bonded with Mr. Fancy Pants and helps him in his quest. 

"But when Mr. Fancy Pants falls and goes splat, he can just start over," I said, still unhappy with the part about falling.

The Hero said that this is what everyone has to do.

So Mr. Fancy Pants has become a helpful metaphor for much of life, particularly the idea that to be successful, all you really need is a willingness to learn from your falls. And a great pair of pants.