--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's important not to base your ambition…" description: "\"It's important not to base your ambition on anybody else's history, but to figure out how best to use your own particular personality and understanding..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95c/harrison-ford-1782_ambition_it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition_1810200.jpg" --- # It's important not to base your ambition on anybody else's… ![“It's important not to base your ambition on anybody else's history, but to figure out how best to use your own particular personality and understanding of yourself to help tell other people's stories.” quote by Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95c/harrison-ford-1782_ambition_it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition_1810200.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95c/harrison-ford-1782_ambition_it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition_1810200.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95c/harrison-ford-1782_ambition_it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition_1810200.jpg) > “It's important not to base your ambition on anybody else's history, but to figure out how best to use your own particular personality and understanding of yourself to help tell other people's stories.” [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Use your unique personality and self‑knowledge to contribute to others' narratives rather than copying past successes. **In simple terms:** Leverage your own strengths to help others. Key Takeaway Align personal strengths with collaborative storytelling. Themes authenticity collaboration storytelling self‑knowledge creativity leadership Mood inspirational reflective encouraging Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - team projects - mentoring - creative writing - film production Key Concepts identity narrative theory personal branding Questions to Reflect On - How can you discover your unique contribution? - What stories can you help tell with your strengths? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on others' histories can stifle originality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) [Ambition Anybody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition-anybody-2108481/) [Figures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/figures/) [Helping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helping/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Particular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/particular/) [Particular Personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/particular-personality-460640/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality/) [Personality Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality-understanding-1758658/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Tell People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-people/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) ## Related quotes > [Insecure about my body, about my personality, sometimes even about my understanding of everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/insecure-about-my-body-about-my-personality-sometimes-even-about-my/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [I just think that, for my particular personality, feeling slightly invisible is always a help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-just-think-that-for-my-particular-personality-feeling-slightly/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [The most important thing for everyone in Gringolandia is to have ambition and become 'somebody,' and frankly, I don't have the least ambition to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frida-kahlo/the-most-important-thing-for-everyone-in-gringolandia-is-to-have/) [Frida Kahlo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frida-kahlo/) > [“I don't know what good ambition's ever done to anybody. It's the kind of thing that turns to dead sea fruit in your mouth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/i-don-t-know-what-good-ambition-s-ever-done-to-anybody-it-s-the-kind/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [All I would tell people is to hold onto what was individual about themselves, not to allow their ambition for success to cause them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/all-i-would-tell-people-is-to-hold-onto-what-was-individual-about/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [These are the men who, without virtue, labour, or hazard, are growing rich, as their country is impoverished; they rejoice, when obstinacy or ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/these-are-the-men-who-without-virtue-labour-or-hazard-are-growing/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Like I always tell people, I don't pander to any audience, but you have to play to your audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-owens/like-i-always-tell-people-i-don-t-pander-to-any-audience-but-you-have/) [Gary Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-owens/) > [What I want to tell people is that you can mix the culture a little bit and it's not always appropriation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jain/what-i-want-to-tell-people-is-that-you-can-mix-the-culture-a-little/) [Jain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jain/) > [I've made this conscious decision to tell people on the street when I think they're wearing something great. If more people did that, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-jensen/i-ve-made-this-conscious-decision-to-tell-people-on-the-street-when-i/) [Ashley Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-jensen/) > [I never like to tell people what they should take.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-kidman/i-never-like-to-tell-people-what-they-should-take/) [Nicole Kidman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-kidman/) > [I tell people all the time: one of the cool things with Brock is you never have to wonder where you stand with him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelton-benjamin/i-tell-people-all-the-time-one-of-the-cool-things-with-brock-is-you/) [Shelton Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelton-benjamin/) > [If someone means a lot to you, tell them. People come and go, and missed opportunities turn into regrets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-someone-means-a-lot-to-you-tell-them-people-come-and-go-and-missed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Tell people what specific action to take.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-abraham/tell-people-what-specific-action-to-take/) [Jay Abraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-abraham/) > [The thing I try to tell people who are just starting in the business is to listen to yourself, trust yourself, and be kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessie-mueller/the-thing-i-try-to-tell-people-who-are-just-starting-in-the-business/) [Jessie Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessie-mueller/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) ## More by Harrison Ford > [Failures are inevitable. Unfortunately, in film they live for ever and they're 40 ft wide and 20 ft high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/failures-are-inevitable-unfortunately-in-film-they-live-for-ever-and/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [The kindest word to describe my performance in school was Sloth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/the-kindest-word-to-describe-my-performance-in-school-was-sloth/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [ When we were making it \[Star Wars\], none of the effects were in. So the first time, I thought it was, you know, that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/when-we-were-making-it-star-wars-none-of-the-effects-were-in-so-the/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [A bad guy in a movie has a lot of latitude for acting. He can walk up the wall, crawl across the ceiling, go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/a-bad-guy-in-a-movie-has-a-lot-of-latitude-for-acting-he-can-walk-up/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [I wanted to live the life, a different life. I didn't want to go to the same place every day and see the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/i-wanted-to-live-the-life-a-different-life-i-didn-t-want-to-go-to-the/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [There are a lot of different paths through the jungle, but...the simplest thing you can do is make yourself useful. Be easy to work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/there-are-a-lot-of-different-paths-through-the-jungle-but-the/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [My older kids are fantastic people. It can't be the result of my influence on them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/my-older-kids-are-fantastic-people-it-can-t-be-the-result-of-my/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [I think I did have a reputation for being grumpy. I don't think I'm grumpy. I have opinions. I have an independent vision. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/i-think-i-did-have-a-reputation-for-being-grumpy-i-don-t-think-i-m/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [ That \[film What's My Line\] was very useful to me because it had Branch Rickey in a social situation. Every other bit of film… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/that-film-what-s-my-line-was-very-useful-to-me-because-it-had-branch/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [Because the character is a fiction, he's a composite of other contributors to the science that brought this enzyme therapy through the process. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/because-the-character-is-a-fiction-he-s-a-composite-of-other/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [Henry: Well I'm sorry about your head though, but I thought you were one of them. Indiana: Dad, they come in through the doors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/henry-well-i-m-sorry-about-your-head-though-but-i-thought-you-were/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [ It's the primordial characters \[of the Star Wars\]. It's the beautiful princess and the callow youth and the smartass that I played and the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/it-s-the-primordial-characters-of-the-star-wars-it-s-the-beautiful/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [I love the comic opportunities that come up in the context of a father-son relationship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/i-love-the-comic-opportunities-that-come-up-in-the-context-of-a/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [I don't think I have something that's pronounceable as a philosophy. ... When it was fashionable to say, "May the Force be with you,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/i-don-t-think-i-have-something-that-s-pronounceable-as-a-philosophy/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) > [I prefer to be part of a positive statement. I'm not interested in the psyche of a serial killer. What I'm interested in is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/i-prefer-to-be-part-of-a-positive-statement-i-m-not-interested-in-the/) [Harrison Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) [Explore all 208 Harrison Ford quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/) ## More Ambition quotes > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [One needs more than ambition and talent to make a success of anything, really. There must be love and a vocation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessye-norman/one-needs-more-than-ambition-and-talent-to-make-a-success-of-anything/) [Jessye Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessye-norman/) > [I just think my own ambition would not allow me to sit on the gifts that my creator had given me. And so that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-just-think-my-own-ambition-would-not-allow-me-to-sit-on-the-gifts/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [A man's worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-s-worth-is-no-greater-than-the-worth-of-his-ambitions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [“I was ambitious and desperate to direct my first film, so I capitulated and blew it. Never again. Never fucking again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/i-was-ambitious-and-desperate-to-direct-my-first-film-so-i/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [I was always attracted most to joining City, and I am pleased to be at such a good club with such a big ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edin-dzeko/i-was-always-attracted-most-to-joining-city-and-i-am-pleased-to-be-at/) [Edin Dzeko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edin-dzeko/) > [Work towards your goal and dont watch the post size,its either they hate,or like you.there is no room for both sides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-buabeng/work-towards-your-goal-and-dont-watch-the-post-size-its-either-they/) [Isaac Buabeng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-buabeng/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [I play for high stakes and given an audience - there is no act too daring or too noble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/i-play-for-high-stakes-and-given-an-audience-there-is-no-act-too/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [There's nothing worse than a leader who lacks ambition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-nothing-worse-than-a-leader-who-lacks-ambition/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If i can't even protect my captain's dream, then whatever ambition i have is nothing but talk..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoro/if-i-can-t-even-protect-my-captain-s-dream-then-whatever-ambition-i/) [Zoro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoro/) > [It may seem unattainable but if you put actions, your heart and your mind into it, you will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/london-mond/it-may-seem-unattainable-but-if-you-put-actions-your-heart-and-your/) [London Mond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/london-mond/) > [Obligation is what's leading us to toward successful, and what keeps us moving towards the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wazim-shaw/obligation-is-what-s-leading-us-to-toward-successful-and-what-keeps/) [Wazim Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wazim-shaw/) [Browse all 4,601 Ambition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's important not to base your ambition on anybody else's history, but to figure out how best to use your own particular personality and understanding of yourself to help tell other people's stories.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Harrison Ford" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition-on-anybody-else-s-history/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ambition" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition-on-anybody-else-s-history/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95c/harrison-ford-1782_ambition_it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition_1810200.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95c/harrison-ford-1782_ambition_it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition_1810200.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/95c/harrison-ford-1782_ambition_it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition_1810200.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's important not to base your ambition on anybody else's history, but to figure out how best to use your…” — Harrison Ford", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Harrison Ford", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harrison-ford/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's important not to base your...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition-on-anybody-else-s-history/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harrison-ford/it-s-important-not-to-base-your-ambition-on-anybody-else-s-history/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```