At one time or another, or maybe rather from moment to moment, perhaps late at night or when you have separated yourself from the “noise” of the world – I’m sure you have felt within yourself a feeling that said to you “I want more than this, I can achieve more than this, life has more to offer me than this, my life is worth more than this, I will not stop until I have accomplished this”.
This feeling or “voice” deep inside was calling you – calling you to do more, become more and give more than you ever have. I don’t mind whatever religion/beliefs you have, and I respect whatever it may be, but you were created and put on this earth to be extraordinary!
This feeling is what we call AMBITION.
Google describes ambition as:
- A strong desire to do or achieve something
- Desire and determination to achieve success
Ambition is what gets you up in the morning, it spurs you on in the darkest moments of life and trials, it helps you do the things that aren’t easy but essential and imperative for success, it’s what motivates you to keep on pushing, working and persevering even when others don’t.
Either you have ambition or you don’t – either way that is ok…if that is what you really want. You may not want anything more in life, you may have ZERO desire to get up and work and change things in your life – that is ok and I wish you happiness for your life, but I wouldn’t recommend reading any further as this article may just encourage you and motivate you to get up and do something.
If you do have ambition, if you do want your life to change, for things to be different, to reach your goals then carry on reading, take notes, and then make the necessary changes…remember:
“There is no growth in the comfort zone, and no comfort in the growth zone”. I don’t know who said this, but it’s a great quote – so true!
I want to focus on 3 points in this article:
- How to find ambition
- How to maintain ambition
- How to use ambition to achieve your dreams
Enough intro chit-chat about ambition, let’s get into the meat of this topic.
1. HOW TO FIND AMBITION
This requires two very easy steps…asking and then opening your eyes.
What I mean is that ambition can be found all around you – the places we go, the people we meet, the things we see on tv, social media, etc.
Ask yourself:
- What do I want to achieve?
- What lifestyle would I like to live?
- Who would I like to be?
- What difference would I like to make in this world?
It may be that perfect home, nice car, travelling the world, a fit and healthy body, dream career, etc. or it may be helping others, contributing to a church or organisation, being an exceptional role model to family and friends, etc.
It doesn’t matter what it is, it is your life and you need to make the decisions on how you want to live your life.
If you are not sure then open your eyes and look! Look at the lifestyles of people that you admire and see who they are and what they have achieved. This may help give you ideas and inspiration for your own life.
2. HOW TO MAINTAIN AMBITION
It is easy to be full of ambition today and then to feel overwhelmed, unsure and demotivated in the coming days.
To hold on to your ambition I would recommend the following:
- Create a vision board. Grab an A3 size black cardboard. Cut out pictures of the things that you want in your life, or pictures that represent the things you want in life (e.g. a picture of a two happy people getting married could represent your own marriage). Stick this board up in a place that you will see it every day. Spend 5 minutes daily reviewing it.
- Visualize the things that are on your vision board and then feel what it would feel like HAVING that thing right now in this very moment. Feel the wind blowing through your hair as you drive your dream car (dad, if you are reading this I’m sorry this wasn’t aimed at you. but maybe you could put that on your vision board – it’s never too late right to grow hair on your head right – just teasing, I still love you), feel the happiness of having kids, the joy of serving others, the fulfillment of reaching that goal.
- Listen, read and watch motivational talks, books and videos. This will help keep you fueled, I recommend doing this daily…in fact it is an imperative!
- Record yourself talking about your goals, why you want them and what sort of feelings they will bring to you. Listen to your recording daily.
Remember that ambition is something that you need to continue to fuel daily or else it will be easy to give up when times get tough.
3. HOW TO USE AMBITION TO ACHIEVE YOUR DREAMS
Firstly, you need to realise that who you are and what you have achieved so far in your life – is the sum total of the choices YOU have made. Yes, there may have been unforeseen tragedies & trials, but they were placed in your path to help you grow, learn, improve and overcome.
To get to the next level of your life is going to take a better effort on your part. I’m not talking about working harder (which you may have to do) but I’m focusing more and working smarter, improving and readjusting aspects of your life.
It may be very hard to improve upon what you are already doing, but ambition will be your fuel.
When things get tough – when you loose a sale, you get denied for promotion, you fail at your first business, when your online campaign flops – remember that it is only one step closer to success if you keep on pushing. Find the strength again from your ambition.
Listen to your recordings of your goals, ponder on your vision board, think about the pain you have experienced of not having what you desire and then choose not to experience it anymore. Let your ambition for that new house, a family, holiday, the dream career, the accolades, the sense of inner security, etc. whatever it is that is important to you…
FOCUS ON IT!
SEEK TO IMPROVE!
GET BACK TO WORK!
“On the other side of everything you don’t want to do, is everything you ever wanted”.
Let’s recap:
- You were put on this earth to be and do extraordinary
- Find your ambition
- Hold on to your ambition through vision boards, etc.
- Focus on your ambition when things get tough
Only you st and in the way of your success, so get out the way and you will be and do extraordinary!
-Grant