Step into Liminal Space
What are you learning about yourself in this liminal space we live in now? You and I sit, not only at an unknown present moment but also an unknown future and what will be happening out there. We as business owners and thought leaders must resist the pullback to the nostalgia of a past “great” as the answer. Sheryl Fullerton puts it, “Either way, we are not where or what we were before, nor do we know how or where we will land in our new reality.” Assessment is an essential aspect of a business, but I am less concerned with how we got here and more focused on where we go.
What’s the process for us moving through and into an unfamiliar dimension that’s now part of existence?
I remember a time when I was hunting in the mountains of Colorado. When we first arrived at our campsite, which lay underneath a large bluff. I recall staring up and thinking that would be a climb I could do in a couple of hours. This was not my first time climbing a crest in Colorado, but it had been a couple of years and my confidence factor was a wee bit off. Climbing a dune on Lake Michigan isn’t quite the same.
Have you observed an object from afar and thought it wasn’t as daunting as you first imagined? But the moment you pause before it, your opinion takes a radical turn. Optical illusions have a way of messing with you.
Though the view from the tent that evening sat in close proximity to the base of the bluff, still the further I progressed towards the face, the task I had taken on became more daunting. The confidence that I had at the start was soon replaced by wondering what had I done. There came a point along my ascent where if I would get to the top, it would draw upon something that I hadn’t planned on bringing.
Halfway up I encountered a significant jump from one rock to the next. It was doable. Shaun White wouldn’t have batted an eye, but still, I paused to calculate the risk. We are at a similar space, gap, or break in the linear path of time that you and I stand at now.
I had to decide on the mountainside. Was I committed to the mission I had set out to complete? Or was I going to waver in my resolve? What’s your commitment to the mission that lay before you? I could have reversed direction that day and meandered back down, but I wanted to ascend to the top of the rim.
I leaned backward and shoved off.
In The Heromaker’s Guide Through Difficult Times, I speak about holding on to courage and letting go of confidence. The current state of the world has been turned upside down. Remember, muscle only gets stronger “through” resistance. Grit and determination must be the characteristics you show today. It will take courage first, then confidence to go through what you are experiencing. When the world is running away from suffering, that first step in the opposite direction will always be courageous. The success of your mission depends upon you walking toward the difficulties, no matter the trepidation of that first step.
I landed safely on the other side and proceed to the peak. It was a triumphant feeling to stand there and observe what I achieved. As I considered the landscape from that vantage point, I saw other paths up that were simpler, and shared that information with others in my party. The journey doesn’t guarantee we have each step lined up at the start or the footing will be free of uncertainty. It takes courage to go into this unknown territory. Confidence will come, but first, we must drive forward with courage.
What is that first step that you must take to move you towards your mission? Believe in your mission, because I am sure that it is worth it. Then lean back and shove off and enjoy the unknown.
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