Introduction

Our society's understanding of ambition is that it never stops burning, that it rules your life and every decision you make, and that it somehow lands people in some mystical land of perfect contentment. But how much ambition is too much? Or what if, after decades of striving, your ambition is just... gone? Rainesford Stauffer, author of the forthcoming All the Gold Stars: Reimagining Ambition and the Ways We Strive, joins host Anne Helen Petersen to hear from listeners about the vagaries of ambition when it comes to work — and how to conceive of ambition as a potentially positive force outside of work.

Questions from listeners are how we plan future episodes-- so if you've got a workplace quandary you want help figuring out, let us know! Head to www.workappropriate.com and fill out the form, or send a voice memo to workappropriate@crooked.com.