Most research is incremental, but that doesn't mean it's not important; the gradual accumulation of knowledge through collective effort is how society progresses.But every now and then, someone does something that blows the field apart; fundamentally changing the way the field thinks about and carries out research.Often, this comes about from questioning, testing or abandoning a long-held assumption.This is not an easy path. In order to publish your work, you have to get it past your peers. Any paradigm-changing ideas will always, rightly, be held to a higher level of scrutiny, but it's also worth noting that these are, potentially, people who have built their career and reputation on the status quo.In principle, reviewers should be impartial, focusing on the ideas and the quality of the research above all else. But this just isn't the way humans work. In general, we're very good at rationalising emotional reactions. An academic with a position to protect is even better at it (even if they don't realise what they're doing).But there are always a few. A few who are open and secure enough to be interested, then convinced. It's those first, brave few who will spread your idea.So it's not enough to do the work. It's not enough to be brilliantly insightful and meticulous in your analysis. You have to sell your idea before it can change the world. You have to fight through the rejection and find the few who'll listen.