When you hear the word “Ambition”, what comes to mind? For some people, it could be something negative and for others, it could just as well be something positive. It’s all a matter of perspective.
As a matter of fact, ambition is a very strong word. Stronger than even determination which is strong on its own. When you bring a man with limitless determination and a man with limitless ambition together, then compare their achievements, you’ll notice a difference in how they go after what they want.
We all as humans need to be ambitious because it is the only characteristic that will propel us to become better tomorrow than we are today. But then, ambition is something that should be taken in moderation, because it is very possible for someone to be too ambitious. Therein we get in over our heads and try to bite off more than we can chew. It is fairly easy to guess what comes from such encounters.
Ambition gives us a goal in sight, and determination pushes us through all the hurdles. From a young age, a person can wish to become the president of his country, this means he basically wants to become the number one citizen, and everyone knows it’s no easy feat. He’s ambitious, you have to give him that. But then, there are ways to go ahead to achieve that goal.
He can go the right way without selling his soul, it’s hard to see politicians that are actually good and have things they believe in. I’m not saying it’s impossible, I’m just saying it’s hard. He can be one of them, be an upright person who really has the interest of the people at heart. He will climb the ladder of society the right way and not go through any crooked routes. It might take longer, but if his determination is strong enough, he will eventually get there. On the other hand, he might want to get there as soon as possible. Seeking only to claim power and pack as much money as possible for himself. He wouldn’t mind stepping on the backs of friends and families, just to get higher in society, he would burn bridges so quickly and would be so quick to tell a lie that would further his course. And most importantly, he would be willing to get into bed with the devil himself, if it would clinch him the office of the president. So, you see these two scenarios, they both want the same thing but how they go about it is what differs. And what determines that is ambition. It takes a toxic level of ambition to be willing to destroy valuable relationships just for you to get ahead on something. Like, in real life, we’ve seen people lose their marriages and families just because they were focused on working and getting a promotion. These guys didn’t do anything wrong per se, but their ambition affected their lives in a negative way. But then, is there a solution to this? I don’t really know for sure. Because this will be an individual problem. It won’t make sense if during your climb to the CEO position, you lose your family and marriage, then you get there and realize that you lost the very people you were fighting to get there for in the first place. The struggle to the top can be a lonely one, ambition can narrow our focus and make us see only that particular goal. We would never realize the impact it’s having on other areas of our lives until it’s too late and there is nothing we can do about it. So, my dear friends, am I saying we shouldn’t be ambitious? Hell no! I’ve already mentioned how important it is to everyone. But I am saying that we have to be careful. We all want to make it in life, we all want to be the best. We all want to be number one! But then, we have to make sure that we don’t lose the beautiful things that make life worth living along the way. It will be a shame to finally achieve our life-long dream but we are the only ones that get to enjoy it. One person alone can never have a party, this is because there is no fun in life. So, try to step on the breaks a little. Nurture your relationships and as you keep climbing, take your loved ones along with you on the journey so that when you finally win, it won’t just be your win. Everyone will be the winner. And that, my dear friend, is where all the fun is!
Helena Lopes
Andrea Piacquadio
Ketut Subiyanto
