“Liminal” is one of those words that I didn’t learn until I was an adult, like eudaimonia, and dongle. Once liminal was in my craw, though, it stuck. It’s one of those words you can really chew on. Liminal. Liminally. Liminality. It’s more than a snack, though. It’s part of an essential vocabulary of being. That’s because any kind of mastery begins with vocabulary; the clearer you can describe and communicate something, the better you’re able to discuss, understand, and innovate. Clarity is powerful.
The kind of liminality I’m talking about revolves around the in-betweens. All of the places that we haven’t yet defined or assigned purpose to within our days and lives. These are the kinds of places we rush through en route to somewhere else… Somewhere that means something and makes sense. We rush, in part, because we’re so often in a hurry. But also because liminal spaces make us uneasy. It’s an itch can only be scratched by getting the hell out.
The prevailing wisdom is to be in the present. It’s hard to argue with it because… Well, when else are you going to be? But my experience is that I am quite frequently anywhere but these liminal spaces. I mean… Just look at them.
In all seriousness, yuck
What I have noticed, however, is that liminal spaces take up quite a bit of real estate within the ole pie chart of life. That’s a lot of time to not be anywhere in particular. It makes you wonder what might change if you slowed down mentally — if not physically — within them. What would you notice about them? And how they connect to the places you’re really trying to go?
In other words, what are some of the corridors that lead to success — but that you haven’t yet built the words to describe? The vocabulary is out there but you can't rush it.
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