“I want to be the CEO of a company within ten years!”
“I just want to work on the big deals!”
“I want to make a lot of money!”
“I want to own my own business!”
“I want to be somebody!”
Every week, whether I’m conducting sales or management seminars or interviewing candidates in my professional capacity as an executive recruiter, someone expresses those or similar ambitions. It seems that everyone has ambitions that have yet to be realized.
I usually follow up such statements with this question, “What have you done about making your ambition a reality.” Unfortunately, the response to that question usually reveals that the individual has no clear sense of how to begin making their ambition more than a dream. Many of these people have had their ambition for many years and frankly, while they give lip service to it, they have grown frustrated because “it just isn’t happening for me.”
Speaking from my own experience, I can assure you that “it doesn’t just happen
for us” because we’ve got an itch to “use our degree,” be the CEO of a company,” “just work on the big deals,” “make a lot of money,” “own our own business,” and “be somebody.” We have to be focused like a laser beam on how we want to use our degree, what kind of company we want to head, the type of “big deals” we want to do, etc. Once we have an understanding of those issues, we can begin building ladders (sorry, there are no elevators) toward realizing our ambitions.This ladder, which is really our master plan, provides us with the internal leadership, proper attitudes, direction, desire, enthusiasm and resoluteness needed to empower us to achievement. Without this ladder (master plan), we are like a little boy whose kite is caught in the branches of a tall tree—all we can do is gaze at our goal (getting the kite down) while lacking the means to reach it.
Ambition, without focus leads to frustration. Frustration turns to apathy which translates into inertia (just going through the motions at work and in our relationships). Inertia takes the “fire out of our bellies” that is necessary to demonstrate to upper management and/or our clients that we can be trusted with greater responsibilities and bigger projects.
Arnold Toynbee, the world renowned nineteenth century economic historian died at age 30, but his analytical mind and his prolific writings are still influencing business and political leaders today. I mention Toynbee because of something he wrote containing profound truths that are so simple, we tend to overlook them.
“Apathy,” he wrote “can be overcome by enthusiasm, and enthusiasm can only be aroused by two things: first, an ideal (ambition), which takes the imagination by storm, and second, a definite intelligible plan for carrying that ideal into practice.”
Dust off your ambition, clearly define it and let it “take the imagination by storm” (get excited about it). Then develop a workable plan that will ultimately lead to you to the outcome you passionately desire.
Have a GREAT and profitable week!
Robert Hidde
bob@confidentliving.com
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