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About this quote

What does it mean?
True ambition involves helping others succeed rather than just seeking personal status.
In plain terms
Be ambitious about lifting others up, not just standing high yourself.
What can you take from it?
Aim to help others rise instead of just rising yourself.

Where it applies

  • leadership
  • mentorship
  • community building

Putting it to work

  • mentoring
  • lifting others
  • serving community

Questions to consider

  • How do you lift others?
  • What is your true ambition?

Another view

Personal success can also benefit others indirectly.

More from Henry van Dyke

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  2. There is no personal charm so great as the charm of a cheerful temperament.

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  3. Some people are so afraid to die that they never begin to live.

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