The Shadow Side of Ambition: Why You Must Master It or Be Ruled By It

Jul 30

Ambition is something that people generally aim for, whether they want to achieve their personal goals or grow a business. While ambition is generally something associated with positive thoughts, there’s a shadow side to it. This is why it’s important for people to learn how to master ambition and ensure they are not ruled by it. In this article, we take a closer look at this shadow side of ambition and consider how people can go about mastering it instead.

Table of Contents

What Is the Shadow Side of Ambition?
How to Master the Shadow Side and Take Advantage of Ambition
Conclusion
References

What Is the Shadow Side of Ambition?

The shadow side of ambition refers to those unspoken factors. People usually only focus on the positive elements that come with having ambition for things that we want to achieve in life. However, when we are not careful, ambition can become overwhelming and lead to a number of negative effects, often causing problems with our mental health that can eventually contribute to physical issues as well.

To master this shadow side of ambition, we first need to understand it and see how it can cause us problems in our everyday lives. This is why we should start by taking a look at what the dark side of ambition does and why it can become a significant challenge and obstacle in our lives.

● Chronic stress: When ambition starts to make a person focus too much on their goals, it can cause them to constantly experience a sense that they have to push forward. This can make a person experience chronic stress. With chronic stress comes a consistent release of cortisol, a stress hormone that the human body naturally makes. It puts the body into a fight-or-flight mode, and while this is beneficial in an acute response, chronic exposure leads to low-grade inflammation, mental health problems, and other complications.
● Burnout: As the stress continues to accumulate in a person who experiences the shadow side of ambition, it drives them closer to a state of burnout. When a person experiences burnout, it causes emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion. The person begins to feel overwhelmed, and this can make them experience a significant decline in motivation.
● Dissatisfaction: If ambition begins to rule a person, it makes them feel like they can never truly achieve their goals. When they set out goals and milestones, every time they reach one of those milestones, they feel like it’s not the best they can do. Ambition causes the person to feel that they have to push even further. This can make it difficult for a person to truly feel satisfied when they are able to reach both short- and long-term goals. It causes this chronic feeling of dissatisfaction, which further adds to stress and the risk of burnout.
● Relationship problems: Another thing that often comes into play when people allow ambition to take over is problems with their relationships. This accounts for relationships with friends, family members, and partners. These individuals begin to prioritize their career and aspirations for success over building and maintaining strong social relationships. This can cause them to start experiencing loneliness, depression, anxiety, and contribute to the already high levels of stress.

How to Master the Shadow Side and Take Advantage of Ambition
Now that we’ve established what the shadow side of ambition looks like and how it can affect a person, it’s time to look at how to master this. By mastering this darker and untold side of ambition, people can still hold onto their ambition without experiencing the negative effects that we talked about.

Here, we will take a closer look at the most essential steps that people need to take to master this side of their ambition and ensure they are in control.

● Understand success: The first thing a person needs to do is understand that professional achievements are important, but not the only aspect that contributes to what success means. While they should focus on advancing their careers, people need to take note that their personal health, mental well-being, relationships, and several other factors come into play when defining success. Every person should take a closer look at what success currently means to them and whether there is a proper balance.
● Mindfulness: Being able to reach a state of groundedness is really important when mastering this shadow side of ambition. This is where mindfulness comes into play. It is a technique that allows people to become more aware of themselves and focus on the present moment. By practicing mindfulness, people can get a better view of their own emotions, what motivates them, and know when their own ambition is starting to get out of hand. This would allow them to make the necessary changes to their own life in order to avoid falling victim to ambition and rather focus on the positive elements.
● Guidance: Many people find that seeking out guidance is a great way to not only stay grounded, but also to implement strategies that create balance in their own lives. A person who finds that their ambition is causing them to feel overwhelmed and get close to burnout should seek out support or guidance from someone with experience. This would allow them to redirect their attention, take a break, and focus on the present moment. It can also help to equip the person with the techniques they require to create a healthier balance between their personal and work lives.

Apart from these strategies, a person can also focus on building supportive relationships and determining how they can set ethical guidelines for themselves. These are techniques that would further benefit the individual and ensure they are able to master ambition instead of falling victim to it. When it comes to utilizing the benefits of ambition, it all comes down to balancing life. This is the key to success without becoming overwhelmed by unrealistic expectations and constantly experiencing dissatisfaction.

Conclusion

We think of ambition as a positive thing, but sometimes, the shadow side makes an appearance. This can lead to burnout, stress, problematic relationships, and even compromises when it comes to ethics. Redefining success and practicing mindfulness are excellent strategies to effectively master this dark side of ambition that people often don’t talk about.