Unchecked Ambition is Like Adultery for Business
Updated: Jan 6, 2021
Ambition had a good and a bad side.
The good part is that it’s a strong desire to do or to achieve success in something, typically requiring determination and hard work.
The bad part comes when the desire is unmarried to my main mission, my born to do identity.
Let me explain.
My mission in life is to help 10,000 Entrepreneurs uncover and bring to life what they were born to do, the Business God created them to start. That’s a mission God gave me, so he supplies the ambition I need to go out and get it done.
But then a distraction comes along the way, usually at a time where I really need the money. My ambition, unchecked by God, begins to shift because something “sexier” came along, caught my eyes, and now something shinier is the object of my ambition.
This is adultery, for business. I’m cheating on my mission for something that is actually taking me away from my mission.
The book of Proverbs in the bible references illicit sex and loose women more than any other single subject. The writer certainly thinks this is an important topic for us to consider. But for entrepreneurs, the message goes far deeper than one might think.
The bible says
"Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” and to insight, “You are my relative.” They will keep you from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words. At the window of my house I looked down through the lattice. I saw among the simple, I noticed among the young men, a youth who had no sense. He was going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house at twilight, as the day was fading, as the dark of night set in. Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent." Proverbs 7:4-10 NIV
Anything in business that ignites your desires and passions to the detriment of your good judgment and common sense could be considered a harlot who would potentially steal your heart and fracture your business.
Who or what in your company is the harlot that wants to steal your life? What is it that has the potential to bring you to ruin if you give in to its unhealthy attraction? It might be some form of addiction, sex, the lust for power or influence—maybe, like me, it is ambition. It is seen time and again in the lives of famous entrepreneurs consumed by some uncontrolled appetite.
If we Godpreneurs have a clear mission in life, we will not be easily distracted by the sideshows along the way.
Godpreneur Rule: Focus your business on a meaningful mission that inspires your personal discipline and single-mindedness. Don’t give in to your unseemly passions.