Ambition in our daily lives

“A man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.”

quote by Confucius.

The Cambridge dictionary defines Ambition as “a strong wish to achieve something or a

particular thing.” Ambitions is what makes everyone work hard, may it be in school or work.
They have set a particular goal for them to achieve that makes them keep going and trying to do
their best in order to achieve it. In order for someone to achieve their ambitions, they must do
baby steps just like Confucius’ quote, start with carrying small stones before moving a mountain,
not literally of course, but a person must start with the basic steps in order to achieve their
ambitions, little by little, slowly but surely. Ambition is a driving force that makes a person be
motivated in achieving their goals.

The word ambition started from ancient Rome, when candidates were campaigning for
election of the public office, they go to their town/city to urge their citizens to vote for them.
They call this effort as “ambitio”, the word came from a latin word “ambire” which is a verb and
it means “to go around” then later the word “ambitio” meant as “the desire for honor or power”.
In the middle age, the word “ambitio” came into French and English and they started calling it
“ambition”, which meant “an admirable desire for advancement or improvement.”

Ambition makes people be motivated to achieve something they want to get, however
what could be the driving force that makes them want to achieve something? There are two types
of ambition, extrinsic and intrinsic. Extrinsic ambition is the type of ambition wherein the person
is motivated by the outcomes of it, examples would be fame, awards and money, their ambitions
are motivated by their own desires. These people usually just follow role models to achieve their
ambitions. Whilst intrinsic ambition is the type of ambition wherein the person is motivated
because they are doing something they really want. Their ambitions is not based on desires of
what they will get from it, but on what they can produce with it. For example, Artists, they paint
because that’s what they want to do, and their success depends on how good they can do.

As a kid, my ambition was to paint and be an artist. I started attending classes to enhance
my ability only to realize that it was not really meant for me. Then I decided that I wanted to be a
dermatologist, since that way, I could take care of my skin better while looking young and
healthy at the same time. This ambition made me feel motivated during days that I feel empty, it
makes me want to try harder to achieve my goals.
 The impact of ambition to the daily lives of people affects what they do and how they do.
A man’s life is to fulfill their ambitions without it, they would be living in an empty shell.

References:

M.W. (n.d.). Ambition. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.merriam-

webster.com/dictionary/ambition

M. Andy (2014, August 11). Two Types of Ambition: Which One Do You Subscribe to?. Retrieved
September 21, 2020, from https://www.andymort.com/ambition/#:~:text=1.,or%20not%20they
%20acheive%20them.