The tightrope between satisfaction and ambition is tricky. Often, the promise of a better tomorrow overrides the satisfaction of today; it’s very easy to mistake ambition with an innate unhappiness with one’s current condition. What is ambition? How does it differ from complacency? Does it encourage unhappiness?
What’s ambition?
A strong desire to do or to achieve something, typically requiring determination and hard work.
- At its core, ambition is the drive to do something.
- The definition of ambition differs from person to person, but the underlying principle remains: working towards an achievement that brings you closer to your definition of success.
Does ambition encourage unhappiness with one’s current condition?
Many people believe that constantly being ambitious and striving for more takes away from the present and therefore reduces one’s happiness with their current condition
- Often ambition is confused with aspiration
- Ambition is more pervasive
- aspiration is more situational
- Ambitious people constantly find new challenges and goals to pursue
TL;DR
Ambition is not necessarily rooted in the pursuit of material things but rather the pervasive drive to pursue a goal(s)/achievement(s)
Happiness ≠ Satisfaction
Happiness is a momentary experience that can quickly appear and disappear – a state of mind
- Whereas, satisfaction is a long-term feeling that an individual must build over time through the achievement of goals
- The fundamental meaning of the quote is that happiness is essential regardless of one’s current condition, but satisfaction should be something you build up over the course of your life as you pursue goals that bring fulfillment
Central message: Striving for more doesn’t entail an unhappiness or ungratefulness for things a person may possess now, but a knowing and hope that they can accomplish and do more later down the road.
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The Wall of Catastrophic Calamitous Complacency
In many ways ambition and complacency are antonyms
- ambition being a drive to attain/achieve more
- Complagency being a feeling of contentment with one’s current conditions that in turn limits hard work and the pursuit of goals
