Standing at the beginning of a new decade that will enable things most would not deem possible, we must have the courage to do the impossible and dream a new dream. Let us ask how we can achieve what was never done before. What are things that we can invent that never existed before and will improve life? To create something that will allow us to see ourselves and the world from a new light.

In a recent conversation between German Axel Springer’s Mathias Döpfner and Elon Musk, he was asked about the most important invention for mankind. What do you think was his answer? Perhaps not what you expect. He said language. Our ability to communicate enabled many inventions. Words in a way represent a source of magic. Language was foundational for everything else that followed. Writing, which followed, enabled us to transfer ideas and knowledge on a more permanent basis. The printing press and publishing in general democratized that process while digitization centuries later made it accessible and global. “Instant digital communication worldwide is really like humanity developing a nervous system,” he added, “And now with the internet we have instant access to all the world’s knowledge.”

Leading humanity into space, Elon Musk is fighting for the light of consciousness, his goal being to make life multi-planetary and establish a city on Mars. Early in his life, he came to the conclusion that if we can expand the scope and scale of consciousness, we are better equipped to ask the questions about the answer, which is the universe. If we become a seafaring civilization, we are able to dramatically expand consciousness and life as we know it. I remember a time when he was ridiculed for attempting to do the impossible. Many years later and after emerging victorious from many trials of fire, SpaceX is set to start a civilization on Mars. It is no longer a dream.

We must believe that we can achieve the unthinkable and Elon’s example of making space exploration feasible is a beacon of light to anyone attempting the impossible. Everything starts in your mind and you need to believe that you can achieve what you set out to do even if the odds are against you. As Thiel likes to remark, “if you think something hard is impossible, you’ll never even start trying to achieve it.” More than ever we need more people to take a shot at what seems unachievable. Even if the probability of success is low, if it is important and worthwhile, you must have the courage to do it.

Another invisible frontier that is emerging is the journey inwards. With the advent of brain computer interfaces, we will create a novel kind of internet bridging brains and computers by being able to read and write from the brain. According to Musk, this technology will enable conceptual and consensual telepathy and may eliminate the need for language as we know it today. It will enable us to cure all kinds of diseases and enable physical and mental mobility in ways we can only hope for at the moment. Neuroscience has already made so much progress in the last couple of decades and yet we still know so little about this mighty little organ. Brain computers will only increase our understanding of the brain and consciousness itself. And ultimately this frontier goes far beyond the brain and extends into exploring the mind itself.

When Elon Musk was asked about the meaning of life, he said, “The things that move your heart.” At another time he added: “You need to feel life. You need to feel it in the limbic system, ask yourself, what does your heart say?” Or as Steve Jobs put it, “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow know what you truly want to become”

Today I am writing about what I call virtual dreams, a novel medium to experience yourself and the world in an alternative reality of your own mind at first and connected to other minds later. It is inspired from the concept of lucid dreaming, which occurs when you are conscious while dreaming. In other words, when you awake in your dreams and explore the nature of our own mind. In the Western world, lucid dreaming has been a scientific reality for almost half a century. In Tibetan Buddhism, dream yoga is over a thousand years old. As of today, we already have virtual reality and the rate at which games progress is astounding. Since I was a kid, games have become more like reality itself. At a gaming conference, Musk remarked that at even a modest rate of improvement, games in the future will be indistinguishable from reality.

This revolution will enable us to build technology to empower others to help themselves and break free from the mind games they are playing with themselves. Throughout history, we have embarked on a journey to create more material abundance for everyone while expanding outward and that has created tremendous progress for mankind. We shall not forget the journey that awaits inward and the liberty that we must search for to be truly free from the many loops that run through our mind. There are many types of freedom and the liberty of the mind is certainly an important one to keep in mind.

When Galileo established the foundation that science was built upon, he ordered the telescope from the Netherlands. The telescope was a tool to empirically probe into the scientific principles that Galileo was investigating. Similarly, we will soon be able to build tools that will enable us to investigate the nature of reality at a deeper level than was previously thought possible. Every now and then we create something that allows us to perceive and understand reality differently. And when the way we view reality changes, we change and so does our world.

I hope you will see the adventure of this journey, despite the odds and obstacles, and explore unknown frontiers. Illuminate a path for others to step into liberty and increase the light of consciousness.