Ambition

This document contains stories of people being ambitious and of failing to be ambitious. (The titles next to people’s names are their titles at the time the story occurred and may not be their title currently.) Discussing diverse situations in which people failed or succeeded to live up to their values often helps people to recognize and act on other opportunities when they arise. By discussing these stories in meetings, on teams, over internet or intranet forums, or in classrooms, groups can come up with ideas for leading with exceptional ambition, learn each other’s perspectives, work through disagreements, and generate ideas.  The teaching note is included.

These slides enable a person to lead people through a discussion on how to think in terms of purpose rather than problems, as defined by Robert Fritz in his classic book, The Path of Least Resistance, as well as in chapters 3 and 4 of Lift: The Fundamental State of Leadership. They provide a number of vignettes for discussion.  If you would like to receive the accompanying teaching note, please contact us at CPL@louisville.edu.

Competing ambitions among team members can create a significant obstacle to group success. While we do not have to convince individuals to drop their unique ambitions, we must ensure they are aligned with the group’s ultimate aims. This tool can help you understand individual ambitions (yours and theirs) and create alignment within the team for the greater good.