Melissa LaPointe [00:00:03 - 00:00:55]
Welcome to the OTs Gone Rogue podcast. I'm your host, Melissa Lapointe. Over the years, I've worked closely with thought leaders, changemakers, and OTs who are ready for something more. And now I'm inviting you behind the curtain where you'll hear stories about overcoming adversity, challenging the status quo, and finding the courage to do things differently. Let's dive in. Hey everyone, welcome back to the OTs Gone Rogue podcast. I want to bring you behind the scenes today, and I've been thinking lately about how much more intentional I want to be about doing that. So sharing the reasoning behind what I'm doing, the theory, the thinking, the why, and not just the what.
Melissa LaPointe [00:00:56 - 00:02:03]
So that's a shift I'm making deliberately, and this episode is the beginning of it. I used to think that I needed to have something fully figured out before I brought it to the podcast, that I needed to be on the other side of something before I could talk about it or share it with my listeners. And I'm really working on letting go of that. So today I want to talk about something that I've been sitting with for the last 6 months or so. It's something that has a lot of layers to it, and I want to share it now, not because I have it all wrapped up neatly, but because I'm far enough through it that I can see it clearly. And because I think that a lot of you might be in the middle of it yourselves. It's this concept of liminality. I first came across this word about 6 or 7 months ago in a conversation with a friend.
Melissa LaPointe [00:02:04 - 00:02:54]
So I was in one of those moments where I was really in my own head. I was going through, doing a lot of work on the OTs Gone Rogue website. I had a really clear vision of where we were going, but I was struggling to find the words for the in-between. So we were republishing the website. I was updating the copy. We had already updated a lot of the branding, the logo, and I was trying to write this copy for this particular page. So for this particular landing page, I think it was the homepage leading into the about section. And I was trying to solidify the messaging and connect the dots on a journey that just wasn't finished yet.
Melissa LaPointe [00:02:55 - 00:03:20]
I knew what I was building. I knew where I was going with it. I just couldn't articulate the middle of it. And I was so incredibly frustrated. I had been writing for quite some time. You know, I'd spend some time writing, I'd go for a walk, I'd come back to it. It wasn't quite what I wanted. I would share it with the team, then I would pull it back and say, no, it's not quite it.
Melissa LaPointe [00:03:20 - 00:04:09]
And I remember venting to my friend like, oh my gosh, I've been doing this for so long. I should have it all figured out by now. Like, how embarrassing is this that I still feel like I'm in the murky middle after all of these years? And I remember, and this friend, so she's also a therapist, she is so incredibly And she looked at me very matter-of-factly, and she just said, Melissa, of course you don't have it figured out yet. Look at where you are, what you're working through. You're in a period of liminality. And I just paused for a moment. And then that word, that concept, like it vaguely— like there was some familiarity to it. But I'm— I did hesitate.
Melissa LaPointe [00:04:09 - 00:05:34]
I'm like, wait a minute, I'm in a what? So I remember I pulled out my phone and I Googled it. So right away I was like, wait, what? And I went and I looked it up. And it was one of those things that I couldn't stop seeing it everywhere or hearing it referenced. So podcast conversations, you know, I'd be tuning into a podcast and the host would be talking about this period of liminality or— I would see it in journal articles. So I was reading a journal article that was assigned to us for my master's program, and sure enough, they're talking about liminality. There was even a show I was watching that they referenced this, and I just thought, okay, is this one of those things like the idea, once it clicks, you just can't unsee it? So here's the simple version. Maybe, maybe there are many of you listening that you're very familiar with this concept, but if there are some of you out there, like, me that this, like, wait a sec, what does that mean? So the simple version of this, the liminality is the in-between, the threshold. So it's this transitional space between who you were and who you're becoming, where you've stepped out of one identity, one role, one version of yourself, but you haven't fully stepped into the next one yet.
Melissa LaPointe [00:05:35 - 00:06:28]
So you're You know, you're on the threshold. So this concept, it comes from anthropology, and it was originally used to describe rites of passage. So that middle stage, the before and after are clear, and the middle is murky. When I read that, I recognized myself immediately. My career, my business, my professional identity, all of it. But honestly, it's my master's program that has been the biggest lens for this. I am over the halfway point now, and really the last few courses especially are where I've felt the layers really pulling back. I felt the dots connecting.
Melissa LaPointe [00:06:28 - 00:07:32]
So things that I've been doing intuitively for years are finally connecting to frameworks works, to language, to research. So the dots are connecting in a way that they haven't been before. And that process of integrating what I'm learning academically with what I've been building practically, that is its own kind of liminality, a really rich one. Here's the thing I want to be honest about. When I first came across this concept, It didn't feel murky. I was frustrated in that I didn't quite have the words and I could, I knew the vision, I knew where I was going, but I felt like I still wasn't doing a good job of explaining the present moment and bringing, bringing everyone into that picture with me. So I could see it, but I didn't quite have the words for it. But again, it didn't feel like I was lost in a fog.
Melissa LaPointe [00:07:32 - 00:08:15]
It didn't feel murky. When I came across this concept, it wasn't like this, you know, metamorphosis of the butterfly to the cocoon where like, yes, I'm in the ick. That wasn't how it resonated for me. When I first came across this concept, it felt light. It was like this aha moment of acknowledgement. Like, okay, I'm not the only one that's going through this. There's this— many, many people have gone through this rite of passage before me. And it was less like being lost in a fog and more like— so I live in a valley.
Melissa LaPointe [00:08:15 - 00:08:48]
I live just— I'm not at the bottom of the valley. I can see the valley from my house. And when I'm— so minutes away. So anytime I'm driving into town, I go down into the valley. And there are many, many days where It's a beautiful blue sky at my house, and as I'm driving my son down to school, there's mist in the valley. And I know it's going to be a beautiful day. I am confident that this mist is temporary. It happens all the time, especially on the beautiful days, actually, the mist seems to roll in.
Melissa LaPointe [00:08:48 - 00:09:27]
So I'm not panicking. I'm not like, ugh, it's foggy. I'm lost. I don't know what's going on. And with this, like, I, you know, it's— you're not trying to push through it or figure your way out of it. Like, again, when this mist is there, you know it's temporary, and you're okay with that. And then that's what understanding this concept of liminality gave me, a word for where I was. And with that word came kind of a settling, a permission to stop treating the in-between Like a problem I had to solve, like something I had to figure out, something I had to push through.
Melissa LaPointe [00:09:28 - 00:10:19]
Now, what I didn't know and what I had to make peace with was the exact sequence, the exact structure, the final form for how this next chapter would emerge. That used to feel like a problem, like clarity was the prerequisite for action. And now it feels more like possibility. Or opportunity, where in order to get clarity, I need to trust my gut and take action, even when it's imperfect. Now, I actually wrote the original notes for this episode on liminality about 5 months ago. So I was really inspired by what I was going through. So I was journaling on it, and then I'd scripted out a podcast episode about it. And I sat on those notes for a while.
Melissa LaPointe [00:10:20 - 00:10:49]
I took some time away. I then came back and I scripted the full episode, the intro, the outro. I had it all ready to go. And I just couldn't seem to sit down and record it. And I'm coming back to it now. So a couple months later, and a lot has shifted in that time. So I'm now past the halfway point of my master's program. In that time, so the last couple of months, I took some time away.
Melissa LaPointe [00:10:50 - 00:11:44]
I traveled internationally. So I went on a solo trip internationally for 3 weeks and came home with clarity that I did not have before I left. I had a lot of time to myself and a lot of time to think and reflect and just be in the moment. And a lot of things are falling into place, and not all of it, and not perfectly, but I know without a doubt where I am going. My compass is working. And yeah, I can't see the endpoint. It's not super clear quite yet, but I know with confidence that I'm moving in the right direction towards my destination. And I know that I am also 100% here for the journey and the ride.
Melissa LaPointe [00:11:45 - 00:12:20]
Around 6 months ago, my professor gave our class an exercise. It was around the time I was introduced to this concept of liminality. So my professor gave our class an exercise. We had, I think, 20 minutes to sit down to write this, and then we had to read it out to the class. And I wanted to share it with you. Because this exercise became one of the most grounding things that I think I could have done last year. It was really empowering. She asked us to write a letter from our future selves.
Melissa LaPointe [00:12:20 - 00:13:26]
So more specifically, she asked us to jump ahead into the future and embody this version of ourselves at 65 on the brink of retirement. And from that place, she wanted us to write a letter to our present selves. So to write a letter to who we are right now, reflecting on what we've accomplished, the legacy that we've left, our work. And I'll be honest, I found it challenging at first. I raised my hand and I remember saying to the professor, like, I'm not even sure where to start with this. In part, one of the things that I found challenging about it, it was the retirement frame itself. I don't see 65 as the finish line. I'm not in a traditional employment situation where I'm counting down to the day I hand in my badge, I get a pension, and I walk out.
Melissa LaPointe [00:13:28 - 00:14:03]
What I'm building is something different, and I know it's meant to evolve with me. And it's not something that I want to do for a set amount of time and then pull away from. Yes, I know that this work, it's going to change shape. It's going to deepen. It's going to shift. But I don't see myself fully stepping away from it, not in that traditional sense of retirement. So sitting down to write from that place, it took a little back and forth with my professor, and it took some reframing. So what I ended up writing from, it wasn't retirement exactly, it was a repositioning.
Melissa LaPointe [00:14:04 - 00:14:54]
So a version of me who had stepped back from the front lines, who was guiding more from the sidelines, watching others carry the work forward, where there was more flexibility in how I worked and when I worked and where I worked. And that image I could fully step into. What I got from the exercise, so it was 3 things. Perspective, a reminder that this season is a chapter in the story. It's not the whole story. Self-compassion, so permission to not have it all figured out yet. And direction, a reconnection to the long game, to what I'm building and why. I've come back to this letter a few times since.
Melissa LaPointe [00:14:55 - 00:16:06]
So I have it on my laptop, and I also have a version of it now written in my journal. I'm a big fan of getting out pen and paper, writing it in my journal. And on the days when maybe the mist feels a little bit thicker than usual, or I'm feeling a little bit more scattered, coming back to this letter grounds me every time. So I'm not going to read the whole letter. Today, but I want to share a few lines from it because if you're standing at your own threshold right now, I think there might be something in it for you. From my 65-year-old self back to now. I see you navigating this in-between season, deep in the work, building something before you can fully see what it will become. And I want you to know, standing in the middle of it all, choosing curiosity over convention, following the work that feels meaningful, even when it doesn't look traditional, I'm proud of you for that.
Melissa LaPointe [00:16:08 - 00:17:08]
Legacy isn't something that's built at the end of your career. It's built in the decisions you make, While you're still in the messy middle, one decision at a time. You don't have to know the final form. You don't have to have it all figured out. You only have to stay anchored in integrity, courage, and the direction you feel in your gut. I'm sharing parts of that letter with you guys because it grounds me. And because I think it might do the same for some of you. Again, on the days where things just feel a little bit murkier than usual, I come back to those words and they remind me again and again that I don't have to have the finished version of this all figured out to still be moving in the right direction.
Melissa LaPointe [00:17:09 - 00:17:42]
Clarity is not the prerequisite for momentum. It's by taking action that we gain clarity. And that's been the biggest lesson for me over the last few years. And here's what I want to say to you if you're in your own season of liminality right now. You're not unclear. You're not stuck. You're emergent, and there's a difference. So unclear means you're guessing.
Melissa LaPointe [00:17:43 - 00:18:52]
It may mean you're directionless. Emergent means you're integrating. Your direction is forming in real time. And that's not a problem to solve. That's actually the work. So instead of asking, why is this taking so long? Why don't I have it figured out yet? Why am I so behind? Try asking, who around me actually understands what I'm building? And what would it feel like to stop figuring this out alone? Those 2 questions will serve you better than trying to force a clarity that isn't ready yet. Now, what's next for me and for OTs Gone Rogue? I've said this before, and I am not building something new. I am going deeper into what I've already built, coming back to it as a wiser, more knowledgeable version of myself with better language, stronger frameworks, and a clearer understanding of who I'm serving and why it matters.
Melissa LaPointe [00:18:54 - 00:19:44]
If you want to see how this is taking shape, and if you want to see what's available to you right now, and maybe a little sneak peek of what's coming, head over to the Work With Us page. So you can go to www.otsgonerogue.com/workwithus, or just follow the link in the show notes. Because that's the thing about standing at a threshold. It is a lot more interesting when you're not standing there alone. Okay, that is it for today. Thank you for listening, and I'll talk to you soon. As always, thanks for listening to the OTs Gone Rogue podcast. If today's episode resonated with you, the best thing you can do is share it with another OT who needs to hear it.
Melissa LaPointe [00:19:45 - 00:20:06]
And if you haven't left a review yet, I would genuinely love one. It takes 2 minutes, and it means more than you know in terms of supporting this podcast. Links for everything we mentioned today are in the show notes. Take care of yourself, and I'll see you in the next episode. Bye.
