Standing on the bleeding edge sounds painful. I imagine cut feet, broken glass, screams, laughter, and a few telling me what an idiot I am and how I deserve everything that happened to me.
In Jonah Lehrer’s book Imagine, he has this to say about what happens on the bleeding edge, specifically as it relates to the website InnoCentive:
“Solvers were actually bridging knowledge fields–taking solutions and approaches from one area and applying them to other different areas. We have often heard that innovation occurs at the boundary of disciplines and now we have systematic evidence that this indeed is the case.”
How do you stand at the boundary of your discipline while simultaneously seeking depth and mastery?
An interesting question which leads me to this quote from Guillermo Del Toro as seen at the Experience Music Project exhibit on horror films:
“I love monsters. If I go to church, I’m more interested in the gargoyles than the saints. They represent a side of us we should actually embrace and celebrate.”
Simultaneously embracing and celebrating the monster within in, while seeking sanctification? A paradox indeed, but highly necessary for a life of purpose, depth, and intrigue.