John F. Kennedy's Ambition Essay

A promise was made in 1961 by president John F. Kennedy that before the decade was over the United States would put a man on the Moon. At the time such a thought would be deemed ludicrous. It had never been done before and the United States was far from accomplishing it. His claim was wildly ambitious but through his determination and that of NASA, a man was put on the Moon. His ambition forever etched his name in the annals of history. It is ambition that allows man to stand among titans. It is the never-ending roller coaster of “I can do more” that drives greatness. The ambitious are commonly viewed as “dreamers”, typically by those without any dreams themselves. While ambition may encompass many elements, one thing is for certain, it is the instinct required to unlock one’s full potential. While the word ambition has taken on new qualities over the centuries, it stays true to its origin. Ambition stems from the Latin word “ambitio, literally, act of soliciting for votes” (Merriam-Webster.com). Seeing as votes are an avenue to power, it is easy to assume that ambition would largely relate to power or success. Unsurprisingly and quite blandly, ambition came to be defined as: “an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as honor, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment”

An athlete may have the God-given talent to be an Olympian but without the ambition to do so, he or she will never reach the Olympic stage. According Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, “A man’s worth is no greater than his ambitions”. The core of ambition is a dream. One may have the ability to accomplish great feats, making him or her valuable; but without the dream of those great feats, they will never be achieved. Thus rendering the person worthless. As blunt and unforgiving as this is, from a purely objective point of view lack of ambition equals lack of