Ambition

Were you ambitious when you first started working?
To be very honest I was never an ambitious person, the only ambition I had was to finish my seven year apprenticeship and get married and as long as I could make a decent living for my Family and myself I was quite content with my lot.
I refused an offer when I was in my twenties, an offer that would have made me a lot of money and a secure position for life, I turned it down, everyone I knew told me I was completely daft not to take the offer up but it involved leaving my Country with my young Family, I was not prepared to do this, and now at the tail end of life I'm so very glad I made the right decision.
I've also had a lot of good luck throughout my life and have always been happy with my way of life, when I kick the bucket I will have no regrets, even the daisies on my grave will have a smile for passers by.

Re: Ambition

I started in a Tiny Self Service (early supermarket) when I was 14 after school and all Day Saturday. Then went full Time when I left School. When the Place moved and became a lot bigger I was the Checkout Manager with 10 Cashiers under me, I then worked torwards Personal Officer, I became one when I was 21 but left when I was 22 to have my Son.
It wasn't my Chosen Career....I wanted to be a Hairdresser and Travel. I decided to Combine the 2 and wrote to the Cunard Shipping Line hoping to get a Trainee Position on one of their Cruise Ships. I had a Letter Back telling me to Travel down for an Interview but my Mother went Totally Nuts and refused to let her Youngest Travel all over the World....so that was that.

Re: Ambition

Ambition can be a dangerous thing - well, too much of it anyway, as Macbeth discovered.

What I dislike most is highly ambitious people whose ambition exceeds their capabilities but who learn to play the promotion game and end up in positions of power over those who are actually more capable than they are. This happens in teaching all the time, often resulting in incompetent Heads leading schools on a downward path. No doubt in other careers as well.

Re: Ambition

Jem,
Your topic has started me thinking about my life and how I encountered many crossroads in my life. Some times I took the right path & sometimes I didn’t, even though looking back now & before , I had guidance from on high.
I would describe myself as introverted & non-competitive, but others who are close to me maintain that these impressions I give out are superficial. Deep down I am fiercely competitive & highly extroverted.

As for ambitions & choice of career I knew I was heading for retailing, having an entrepreneur since my early days when I pulled water weeds out of streams & sold it for 100% profit , still dripping to loads of local pet shops. I bought goods at mail order warehouse prices before doubling the cost price & selling to all & sundry. Unfortunately aged 14 I discovered girls & wasted a few years & spent my hard earned gains on them.

Aged 19 & I regained my first love, shop keeping & quickly climbed up the management ladder, only to be booted out by a snake, who I had wrong footed (deliberately) years before.

To shorten a long story, I worked my way to the top again only to be struck down again this time by Parkinson’s disease.

More later

Re: Ambition

Jaywalker,
what you describe is known as the "Peter Principle" which states that people generally get promoted until they reach their own level of incompetence
It was prevalent in retail & unfortunately some were "kicked upstairs" (promoted some more) to lose them.

Re: Ambition

My only ambition was to get away from my Step Mother who if she had her way would have made me stay at home as an unpaid housekeeper .
I outwitted her and aged 15 found myself a live in job as a kennel maid and escaped her clutches

Re: Ambition

Like you Jem I've never been ambitious. To be frank I've only ever wanted to enjoy my life and get through it as stress-free as possible, while at the same time doing whatever my duties asked me to do.

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I have only worked for eighteen months when I left school, then I married and devoted myself to raising the family. My husband earned enough to keep us, without me having to go out to work again. I never had any ambitions where a career was concerned.

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My Mum made me go to a Comptometer college to start with when I left school. I hated it and added everything up in my head much quicker than the comptometer I left at the end of the first week. Mum dragged me back but the teacher told her that I wasn't interested!

Went with Mum to the Junior Labour Exchange in Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, and got an interview at Wyllie & Lochhead's as an Office Junior. Got the job and before I left there 8 years later, I was office supervisor!

What I really wanted to do was be a stewardess on the liners, as my Dad had been - he had been a Chief Steward on the American liners - but he said it wasn't for me, so I never applied!

I also wanted to be a policewoman but our friends in the force also said it wasn't a job for me!!

I ended up as an office manager in the Civil Service union

I only had 4 jobs in my working life!!

Re: Ambition

To shorten a long story, I worked my way to the top again only to be struck down again this time by Parkinson’s disease.

More later [[QUOTE/]]


Bobbyboy you know I like stories and it's later now.