Is Ambition Good or Bad?

Sorry, I’ve been gone for a while.

New job. New pace.

And for a minute there it felt like someone turned on that fire hose and pointed it straight at my face.

But things are finally settling. My brain has stopped sprinting. My days feel calmer.

Well, calmer-ish. Let’s not pretend I’m not still catching up.

Today I want to talk about something that has been sitting on my chest for months:

Ambition. And the question women quietly ask themselves: “Is it bad to want more?”

I’ve coached enough high-achieving women to know this is a wound. A deep one. We answer 'bad' to the question of Is Ambition good or bad - almost every time. Maybe we don't say it out loud, but we do through action (or inaction!).

Where This Starts

We’re raised to be grateful.

Grateful for affection. Grateful for the opportunities we get. Grateful for the chance to contribute.

And gratitude is beautiful in its place. But it can be a leash when over done.

When these thoughts surface:

“If you want more, you’re ungrateful.”

“If you ask for more, you don’t deserve what you already have.”

And as women, we internalize this early. By the time we step into the workplace, we’re already conditioned to play small.

We take the high-volume tasks, not the high-visibility ones.

We provide the analysis, not the strategy. We give the ideas, but hesitate to lead the room.

We call it “helping.” We call it “being a team player.” But reallly it's fear!

The Lie We Were Sold

A lot of us think like this:

“Women didn’t have these opportunities before. So just getting a chance to contribute should be enough.”

But the truth is: Value creation and ambition are not opposites. They are partners.

Ambition is what allows your value to be SEEN. Ambition is what ensures your value is PAID FOR.

The Moment I Had to Choose

A few years ago, after a major acquisition, I had spent weeks doing the deep, behind-the-scenes work to get the business ready. Late nights. Stress. The whole thing.

The day we presented to the investment board, I was vibrating with nerves. Heart racing.

That familiar “maybe I don’t deserve to be here” voice got loud.

A peer looked at me and said, “If you want, I can give the presentation for you.”

He was being helpful.

Was I tempted? Of course, yes.

It would’ve been so easy to hand it off, sit quietly, and breathe again.

But I knew what would happen.

He’d deliver the presentation. He’d own the narrative...not because he stole my work, but because I gave away the mic.

And I made my decision: I’d rather shake and stumble through my own hard-won work than let someone else become the face of it.

So I stood up terrified and presented.

My insides were shaking. My palms were sweaty. But I did it anyway.

Was it perfect - of course not. But the deal happened. Life went on.

And the most important thing is that I have never regretted it.

When you think about it from that lens, Ambition is responsibility. Ambition is saying: “I did this. And I’m willing to stand behind it.”

So — Is Ambition good or Bad?

It's not bad at all. What’s bad is a world that taught women to fear it.

Ambition is how you build value. Ambition is how you protect value. Ambition is how you multiply value - for yourself, your company, your community, your family.

We deserve to want more. We deserve to pursue more.

And not because we’re ungrateful but because we have more to give.

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