If you are not living on the edge, you are taking up too much room.
Jayne Howard

Chances are when you read that quote you had one of two reactions. Living on the edge is a risky, precarious, unpredictable proposition. Or you might have thought living on the edge is exciting, spontaneous, rewarding. And the truth is both are right.

Most people spend the majority of their lives in a personal comfort zone that's bounded by fear. A place where mediocre is the status quo. Sure there's lots of company there but at the end of your life you just might realize that those edge dwellers had a distinct advantage.

Living on the edge is where intelligent risks bring great rewards.

Not haphazard risks like jaywalking through rush hour traffic. Intelligent risks are ones where you might have something to lose but a whole lot more to gain. The edge is the place where possibility lives, opportunities abound and deep satisfaction reigns. It's your acknowledgement that time is precious and you don't want to waste any of it "what ifs".

Your edge doesn't necessarily look like someone else's.

Don't get hooked into thinking that it has to be the same. That's when you're likely to feel as if you are plummeting over the cliff. Your edge is the place where you have to require a little bit more of yourself. Not necessarily doing more, but perhaps making a harder choice, staying true to your values, pushing the envelope just a bit.

So how do you take up a little less space and venture out onto the edge? Here's a couple of ideas:

• Remember that you've already had lots of firsts in your life….the first time you drove a car, the first time you had sex, the first time you got a job, traveled, fell in love or rode a bike. Every time you do something for the first time, you're living on the edge. There's always some measure of risk in the first time. While you might not choose to do something for the second time, giving it a whirl once is an opportunity to push out of your comfort zone - even if it's just to try anchovy pizza.

• Give up worrying about what someone else will think. Sometimes you stay in your comfort zone because you're convinced that people will think you're crazy to try something different. Unless you are planning to quit your job and move to an ashram in India, most of the little edgy things you want to try will fly way under the radar of everyone else. It's when you ring your hands and ruminate about whether you should or you shouldn't that gets people's attention. So quietly stretch yourself - unless making a little noise about it helps to put you on the edge.

Settling for mediocre is such an easy path. No edgy part to that. Move away from the crowd and discover what becomes possible when you decide that living life to the fullest is worth the risk.