What if the most powerful predictor of success isn't intelligence, talent or luck, but something far more accessible, yet frustratingly elusive? Ambition, that burning desire to achieve something extraordinary, isn't just a factor in success—it's the catalyst that turns potential into greatness. It's the relentless force that propels ideas into innovations, dreams into realities, and ordinary people into legends.
But here's the thing—ambition isn't just about wanting success; it's about craving it so intensely that you'll pursue it even when everyone else says quit. It's about finding that thing you love so deeply that you'd do it for free, and then dedicating yourself to becoming the best at it. Simple in theory; maddeningly complex in practice.
Conventional wisdom often paints ambition as something you're born with—you either have it or you don't. But what if we've got it all wrong? What if ambition is less like an inborn talent and more like a muscle that can be developed, trained, and strengthened over time?
Consider this—studies show that kids who demonstrate early signs of ambition—setting goals, showing persistence, and seeking challenges—are far more likely to achieve success later in life, regardless of their initial grades or IQ scores. This suggests that ambition isn't just a personality trait, but a skill that can be cultivated and honed.
The source of true ambition isn't external validation or material rewards. It's rooted in something far more powerful and sustainable—passion. Finding your passion is like discovering your personal North Star. It guides you, motivates you, and gives meaning to your journey. Without it, ambition is just empty striving.
So, how do we find this elusive passion? It's not as simple as following your bliss or doing what makes you happy. Instead, try this unconventional approach—pay attention to what makes you forget to eat lunch. What task or activity so completely absorbs you that time seems to stand still? That's where your passion lies, hidden in plain sight.
But let's be honest—this isn't easy. Many people never find their true passion, or worse, they stop looking altogether. It's a journey fraught with false starts, dead ends, and moments of doubt. You might think you've found it, only to realize months or years later that it was just a passing interest. Or you might feel pressured by societal expectations to pursue a "sensible" path, leaving your true passions unexplored. The search can be frustrating, even disheartening at times. But here's the thing: the difficulty of the search doesn't diminish its importance. If anything, it makes it more crucial. Because when you do find that thing that lights you up from the inside, it makes all the searching worthwhile. So keep looking, keep experimenting, and don't be afraid to pivot when something doesn't feel right. Your passion is out there, waiting to be discovered.
Once you identify your passion, ambition becomes the fuel that drives you to excel at it. It's what pushes you to practice when others have gone home, to study when others are sleeping, to persist when others have given up. It's the voice in your head that says, "Not good enough yet," even when everyone else is applauding.
But here's the paradox—while ambition is crucial for success, it can also be a double-edged sword. Unchecked ambition can lead to burnout, damaged relationships, and a sense of emptiness even when achieving goals. The key is to cultivate what I call "sustainable ambition"—a drive that's fueled by intrinsic motivation rather than external validation.
Sustainable ambition is about doing what you love, even when you don't have to. It's about continuing to push yourself, not because you need to prove something to others, but because you're driven by an insatiable curiosity and a desire for mastery. It's about finding joy in the journey, not just the destination.
How many truly successful people do you know who, upon reaching a goal, immediately set new, more challenging ones? These are the sustainably ambitious—those who understand that success is not a finish line but a continuous process of growth and improvement.
Now, you might be thinking, "What about natural talent? Surely that plays a role in success?" Of course it does, but perhaps not in the way you might think. Natural talent can give you a head start, but it is ambition that determines how far you'll go. History is full of naturally gifted individuals who never reached their full potential, while those with average abilities but extraordinary drive have changed the world.
Consider Thomas Edison. He wasn't born a genius inventor. In fact, he was kicked out of school as a child because his teachers thought he was "too stupid to learn anything”. But Edison had an insatiable curiosity and an unshakeable drive to create.
So, how can we cultivate this kind of sustainable ambition? Here are a few strategies:
Embrace discomfort: Growth happens outside your comfort zone. Regularly challenge yourself to do things that scare you.
Celebrate small wins: Ambition is sustained by progress. Acknowledge and celebrate your achievements, no matter how small.
Surround yourself with ambitious people: Ambition is contagious. Spend time with people who inspire and challenge you.
Practice deliberate learning: Don't just do things; reflect on what you're doing and how you can improve.
Reframe failure: See setbacks not as defeats, but as valuable learning experiences.
Remember, ambition isn't about being the best; it's about being your best. It's about waking up every day with a burning desire to grow, to learn, to create, to contribute. It's about doing work that matters to you, even when no one else is watching.
So, let me ask you this: What would you do if you knew you couldn't fail? What mountain would you climb, what problem would you solve, what dream would you pursue? That's your ambition calling. Are you ready to answer?
The path of ambition isn't easy. It demands grit, sacrifice, and unwavering commitment. But for those brave enough to embrace it, it offers the promise of a life lived in full color, rich with purpose and alive with the thrill of continuous growth and achievement. So dare to dream big, but more importantly, dare to act on those dreams with relentless determination. Because in the forge of ambition, ordinary individuals become the architects of tomorrow.
Artificial Imagination 🇨🇭
Check out this digital postcard from our family trip to Zurich I whipped up using MidJourney. While I'm soaking in the real Swiss sunsets, I couldn't resist crafting my own AI version. Twinkling lights, golden hour glow, cobblestone streets—it's almost as charming as the real thing! Who knew artificial intelligence could capture that "Züri" magic so well? Don't worry though, I'm still getting plenty of the authentic experience—just with less pixel-perfect sunsets!
This is not an actual photo, but one that was totally A.I. generated using a prompt that I created with MidJourney 🤯
Vibe Hack 🧭
Travel wizards, listen up! Crack the code to effortless city navigation with Google Maps' Live View. Here's the magic trick: open Maps, tap the camera icon, and watch your screen transform into a real-world GPS. Floating arrows and virtual signs pop up, guiding you through charming European streets like a local. From finding hidden cafes to locating that elusive museum entrance, it's been a game-changer. Just point your phone and follow the digital breadcrumbs. No more spinning maps or awkward "tourist lost" faces. Whether you're in NYC or Zagreb, Live View turns your phone into a pocket-sized city guide. Give it a try—your inner explorer will thank you!
My Weekly Vibe
Artist: Rachel and I had the pleasure of meeting Alexandra Grounds at an event a few months back, and let me tell you, her talent is absolutely mind-blowing. This young artist is taking the art world by storm with her vibrant, larger-than-life portraits. Her use of color is nothing short of extraordinary—each painting seems to pulse with energy and life. What really struck me was how she captures the essence of her subjects, whether it's an iconic female figure or a contemporary peer. If you get a chance to see her work in person, don't miss it. Alexandra Grounds is definitely an artist to watch—I have a feeling we'll be seeing a lot more of her in the years to come.
Book: I know, I know, Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss has been making the rounds for a few years now, but hear me out; it's "that good" for a reason. This isn't just another run-of-the-mill negotiation book. It's a masterclass in human psychology and communication. Voss, a former FBI hostage negotiator, breaks down high-stakes techniques into actionable strategies you can use in everyday life. From salary negotiations to settling disputes with your significant other, this book equips you with tools to navigate any conversation. If you haven't picked it up yet, do yourself a favor and grab a copy. Your future self will thank you.
AI: If you haven't jumped on the Claude 3.5 Sonnet bandwagon yet, what are you waiting for? This latest iteration from Anthropic is an absolute game-changer, leaving even the mighty GPT-4 in its dust. With lightning-fast responses, unparalleled reasoning capabilities, and a knack for understanding nuance and context, it's hands down the best language model out there right now. Whether you're coding, writing, or tackling complex problems, Claude 3.5 Sonnet is your new secret weapon. Trust me, once you experience its power, you'll wonder how you ever managed without it.
Music: If you're in the mood for a fun yet chill vibe, Duke Dumont's 2020 album Duality is where it's at. While Ocean Drive might be the track you've heard most, the entire record is a journey through smooth, electronic soundscapes. Dumont's ability to blend deep house with pop sensibilities shines throughout the album. It's perfect for those lazy summer afternoons or as the soundtrack to your next dinner party. Put it on, and watch as the mood in the room instantly elevates. Trust me, Duality is one of those albums that just gets better with each listen.
The Ceremony | 📸 cred: Alexandra Grounds
Weekly Muse
"Art is the lie that enables us to realize the truth." —Pablo Picasso
Real Estate
The American housing market is a perfect storm of good intentions gone awry. Our policies, aimed at ensuring affordable housing for all, have paradoxically fueled a crisis of availability and skyrocketing costs. It's time we take a hard look at how our well-meaning interventions are actually making the problem worse.
Take San Francisco, a city that's become a cautionary tale in housing policy. Decades of strict rent control, intended to keep housing affordable, have instead led to a severe shortage. A Stanford study dropped a truth bomb: rent control reduced the city's rental housing supply by 15% between 1994 and 2010. Landlords, feeling the squeeze, either converted rentals to condos or or redeveloped entirely.
But it's not just about rent control. San Francisco's labyrinthine building codes and approval processes have turned new construction into a Herculean task. The average time to green-light a new development? A staggering 3.8 years. That's far longer than it takes to build the actual building!
New York City's story reads like a parallel universe. Rent stabilization has created a bizarre two-tier market: those lucky enough to snag a rent-controlled apartment versus everyone else facing an increasingly unaffordable market. Pair this with zoning laws more complex than a Rubik's Cube, and you've got a recipe for disaster. The result? There are over 80,000 left homeless in one of the wealthiest cities in the world.
The federal Section 8 voucher program, while well-intentioned, has its own set of unintended consequences. It's been criticized for concentrating poverty in certain neighborhoods, often due to local zoning laws that prohibit multi-family housing in more affluent areas. Even worse, it's been shown to inflate rents in some places as landlords raise prices to capture those guaranteed government payments.
Now, contrast this with Tokyo, a city that's managed to keep housing relatively affordable despite being one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world. How? They've done something radical: they've gotten government out of the way.
In Tokyo, zoning laws are set nationally, not locally, eliminating the NIMBY problem that plagues American cities. Building permits are much less expensive and far easier to navigate. The result? A housing market that actually functions, with supply able to meet demand.
The lesson here is clear: our current approach of heavy-handed regulation and market intervention isn't working. We need to seriously reconsider our housing policies and the regulatory environment that shapes them. Rent control and subsidies, while born from good intentions, are band-aids on a bullet wound. What we really need is to unleash the power of the market to increase supply.
This doesn't mean abandoning all regulation or neglecting the needs of low-income families. But it does mean streamlining our Byzantine building codes, relaxing zoning restrictions, and creating incentives for development rather than obstacles. It means recognizing that every regulation, no matter how well-intentioned, comes with a cost. It’s a cost that's ultimately paid by renters and buyers in the form of higher prices.
The American Dream of homeownership is being smothered by a pillow of misguided policies and overregulation. It's time to let it breathe. By embracing market solutions and cutting the red tape, we can turn our housing horror story into a tale of opportunity and affordability. The choice is ours—continue down this path of well-intentioned failure, or embrace proven strategies that can create prosperity for all.
In reimagining our approach to housing, we have the opportunity to build not just homes, but a more dynamic, inclusive and prosperous market for all Americans. It's time to build a housing market that works for everyone, not just the lucky few.
In the voice of the late Norm Macdonald… “Hey, you ever hear about that time George Washington chopped down a cherry tree? Well, now you can buy the whole damn orchard. It's got a fancy house with more rooms than my last rehab stint, and a view of the Potomac that'll make you say, "Hey, that's a river alright." But the real kicker? It's eco-friendly. Yeah, 'cause nothing says "saving the planet" like a 16-acre private estate with its own backup generators. You know, for when the revolution comes.” (courtesy of TTR Sotheby's International Realty Disclaimer: this is a lovely listing and clearly just a bit of satire, so loosen up and enjoy.
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