Ambition

“A wise youth makes hay while the sun shines, but what a shame to see a lad who sleeps away his hour of opportunity.” Proverbs 10:5

By John E. Schrock, Businessman

Underline the key concepts found in this principle.

One of the first character traits of a successful person is their endless ambition. They are usually known as hard workers, always concerned about getting things done. Because of their ambition, they see many opportunities and are always trying to make hay while the sun shines. They know that the sun will not always shine for them, so they take advantage of opportunities while they are available. Ambitious people will not sleep away their best time. They will get up in the morning and start their day with a good attitude and prayer. There are three ways to energize a person:

1. Find and press their "hot button."

2. Talk about their potential.

3. Reward their achievement.

Energy always follows vision and purpose and it seems endless when it is for personal gain or achievement. This environment creates opportunity, and opportunities are always plentiful when driven by purpose.

However, opportunity is only seen by people who have high energy. Therefore a wise youth makes hay while the sun shines, which tells us that he was already planning to make the hay. He was already an energized worker, a planner, and full of ambition. He was only waiting for the weather, sunshine or opportunity.

Opportunities don’t necessarily come our way; we create them. No one will offer an opportunity to a lazy or unproductive person because they know he won’t jump on it. Favors are usually earned. It’s hard to favor a person who we know will not take advantage of the favor. In sports, we hear players say as an excuse, "The ball didn’t bounce our way." But others will go after the ball and make sure they will be where it’s going to bounce. They create the opportunities by pursuing the ball. Some will say you were lucky, but others will say, "The more I practice and the harder I work, the luckier I will get."

So, opportunities follow the hard-working, ambitious, responsible people that have a positive attitude. They know that things don’t just happen, so they are out to make them happen. They go after the ball. They also know the value of planning and working the plan. They are wise and know time is limited and must be managed wisely. An old saying goes, "If you want to get things done, ask the person who is already too busy."

Ambitious people have a productive thought pattern and see opportunities. They discover them. Their hard-working, productive attitude creates a need within them to plan and organize. In order to seize the moment of opportunity,

1. We must plan our work.

2. We must limit or budget our time.

3. We must constantly re-evaluate ourselves and our goals.

By doing this, they find better ways, greater possibilities and bigger opportunities. And they won’t sleep away their hour of opportunity. Work, to them, is considered an opportunity and is always available - there are always things to do for those who want to do something. This spells opportunity for the ambitious ones. Productive days make us feel good, but when we waste (sleep) the time away, we feel worthless. So plan to work hard and get things done. It will pay you great dividends, which will be greater opportunities and you will have energy and ambition to achieve your goals.

This principle is part of the one year character development program: Foundations For Achievement.

Thoughts to Ponder:
The secret of getting energized is to have a goal you want to achieve..