Ambition seems, by definition, a bad word. It's not used to define a good behavior, because ambitious people usually put the others to an inferior level (or, at least, they attempt to). I don't want to do that, because I'm a modest person (feel free to say whatever you want about my behavior on the internet, but Real Life is what it is), so I'd like to know what you guys think about having particular ambitions in terms of jobs, games, and so on.
The way I see it, aspiring to do the best that you can in whatever you do shouldn't impinge on the aspirations of others, or be perceived as putting them down. That said, in RL it's easy to compare yourself to others, and see things as a competition. I don't think I'm ambitious really, and I would hate to think that I give the impression of being arrogant or big-headed just because I reach (or am intending to reach) a goal that others have not.
Seeing things as a challenge, trying to outdo yourself and stretch your abilities....is that ambition? If it's kept to oneself and a person doesn't become snobbish about it, and is modest, then I don't think it's bad (IMO). Just don't let it get out of hand.
At school I tried to be a high achiever in most subjects that I didn't have learning issues with, but I didn't consider myself a "super-student." There were a fair few people that disliked me just because I actually tried to study, so maybe they didn't like ambitious people. But I didn't see myself as one.
Do ambitions and dreams (=hopes for the future, not night-time dreams) help? Do they give the boost anyone needs to study, work, and - why not? - mod games?
When I'm studying I tend to have a negative mindset, usually when I'm revising for exams, because I force myself into thinking that I'll fail if I don't really try hard, or that getting a grade B wouldn't be doing myself justice, because I dislike being complacent about my ability. So I tend to doubt myself in order that I'll force myself to try harder to reach the grade I want. So perhaps I do have ambition, but not in the bad sense that you describe. It's good for people to have goals in life as long as they meet those goals without harming anyone.
Does hoping to achieve a lot help, or it's just one of the several ways to illude ourselves?
Hope is the first step on the road to dissapointment (<----WH40K creed for ya.
)
To be serious, I think that a person can dream but he/she has to think realistically too. There're lots of things that I'd like to do/achieve in the future. I have.....a bit of hope that I'll get around to doing
some of them, but I'm not sure I have the willpower (there's my self-doubt creeping in again). Constantly hoping or wishing for things and not taking the necessary steps to get those things isn't going to help me.
Erm, I think I'm rambling a bit.... Just stating a few things that might help this discussion.
