I was recently talking with a friend about what we look for in someone, what annoys us, etc. I of course had my laundry list of things that I’ve deemed fairly important over the years of having gone through both good and bad relationships, no relationships, and just life in general. On my way to work one personal quality kept popping up in my head. A quality that I didn’t realize was so important to me, in so many different levels, with both a potential mate but also with friends that I choose to keep.
Ambition.
Ambition to me doesn’t mean “I must get my $100,000/year job, own a big house, drive my Mercedes around and be on the fast track to becoming CEO”. Rather, to me it’s being ambitious enough to follow as many of my passions as possible in the professional realm, personal life, and so forth.
I find that I tend to congregate with people that are rather ambitious in life. Given my previous explanation of how I define ambition, you can see I don’t need to rubbing elbows with the rich and famous but rather spend my time with the musicians who are trying to go somewhere with their music, artists who are traveling the country showing their art hoping for recognition, people who are pursuing higher degrees in education because they want to know more and do more with their life. I’ve also realized that it’s something I not only respect but I look for this trait (sometimes subconsciously) in others, friends and mates alike. Watching this person put in the time (studying, practicing, working away) to achieve their ambitious goals makes me smile. And I’m much more willing to go out of my way to help someone that is ambitious because I want to see them succeed.
I’ve had people call me in a rather distressed state because they don’t have the big house and white picket fence yet. I ask them if that’s what they truly want in life. For some, the 9-5 job, coming home, eating dinner, watching TV, going to bed, doing it all over again is a life that’s fine with them. However, I find myself drawn to the ambitious ones that are constantly striving to better themselves, their lives, and the lives of those around them. This isn’t always the easiest path at first (I can’t tell you how many people I know eating ramen while they put in their sacrifices to make their ambitious goals come true) but I find it to be far more rewarding.
