Beware of no man more than of yourself; we carry our worst enemies within us.
-Charles Spurgeon

Life is a delicate dance between right and wrong, enough and less, yin and yang, and every other aspect. It’s like a wine glass that can take you on the ride to pleasure, holding just the right amount of liquid at a time. If you keep pouring more, the liquid will overflow – and the same is with your life. You need to know how much you need to pour before it starts to spill over.
Humans are essentially born as competitive and ambitious beings. There has been no substantial change in human nature during their evolution. They are still driven toward goals with passion and great enthusiasm, and this is precisely what makes them ambitious. Humans are still motivated by unbridled ambition, in which they continue to explore. They are excited about the execution of their plans and the achievement of their endeavors. This hunger for ambition grows, so life is no longer a struggle for survival. Instead, it is just an indulgence of their whims and fancies. Too much ambition might give rise to sinful fruits such as pride and envy in pursuing personal gains.
But what is ambition? According to Webster’s:
A) It is an ardent desire for rank, fame, or power;
B) It is the desire to achieve a particular end.
Here is how my mentor Jim Rohn describes it: Ambition is a powerful force. The power of ambition turns hopeful wishes into reality. It leads you on the right course to a good life.
Legitimate ambition says: I only want something at the service of others, not at the expense of others. If your ambition is to be great, you must first find a way to do so by serving others. If your aim is to be wealthy, you must first learn to give. If your ambition is to be healthy, you must first learn to stop doing the things that can make you and others sick. You’ve heard people say they wish they could afford to have money left at the end of the month or take a nice vacation to recharge and experience the pleasures of life. Before their lifestyles can change, their wishes need to become a burning desire. You see, if they really desired change, they would do more than sit at home, watching TV every evening rather than wishing they were doing or had more.
The backbone of an eager desire to change is discipline. It’s that little part within us that says, ‘If I want to be ready for that meeting tomorrow, I need to finish preparing for it today. If I want to make sure I can pay for my kid’s college tuition, I better start saving for it today. If I want a better life tomorrow, I better start working on it today.’
Ambitions are a minute-by-minute, day-by-day mentality to feel the need to work for a better life, a bigger house, a newer car, a vacation home, a financially secure future, and so on.
If you’re anything like I am, sometimes having too much ambition and being too driven can become problematic. Most people would agree that there’s no such thing as being too ambitious or too driven. But I beg to differ.
One of my problems is that I still feel the need to accomplish the things that will get me to my goals even when it is time for me to relax. I struggle to find a way to unwind and pull myself away so that I can recharge. There is always so much waiting for me to get done!
Take, for instance, this past weekend. I had the entire weekend to myself for 8 hours each day roughly, but I struggled in my head, trying to decide what work to get done and what was of the highest priority. In the end, I was successful in throwing all that to the side and taking a beautiful light day where I did some shopping, came home, and did some food prep for the week.
I really enjoy cooking and, of course, eating. So I found myself becoming fully relaxed and recharged. On day two of that weekend, I woke up fully rejuvenated and ready to go. I didn’t have to contemplate much about what I would accomplish that day; I just got right to it.
Being ambitious and having a strong drive are essential qualities for getting where you want to be in life. Without ambition, you wouldn’t start your own business or position yourself for that promotion, or get very far in life. An excess of ambition could have the opposite effect, however. It can cause stubbornness, burnout, or even take years off your life.