Intentional ambition: A new way to think about career growth
May 7, 2025
Post by PowerToFly
“The old story is begging to be retired, and a new story wants to be born that will enable professionals to exponentially increase the kind of positive impact they can have in the workplace.”
It’s a story most of us know by heart: work hard, keep your head down, climb the career ladder. But somewhere along the way, that story stopped working. Burnout rates are up, professional fulfillment is down, and many of us are left wondering, “is this really it?”
We recently sat down with Rha Goddess, author of Intentional Ambition: Redefining Your Work for Greater Joy, Freedom, and Fulfillment, to talk about what it looks like to step out of this narrative and into something more meaningful. Rha’s take? Redefining success starts with reclaiming your power and rewriting your story on your terms.
In this post, we’re pulling together the biggest lightbulb moments from that conversation, plus some simple, powerful ways you can start realigning your work and life without burning out.
Want the full conversation that sparked this post? Watch the talk here. It’s honest, warm, and just might give you permission to rethink your relationship with work.
The renegotiation we’re all in
After the Great Resignation — a time when millions of professionals left their jobs in search of better opportunities — the power dynamic has shifted again. Many employers are now tightening their grip. With return-to-office mandates and harsher workplace expectations, professionals are being forced to take a harder look at how their jobs fit into their lives.
Rha Goddess calls this moment “the renegotiation.”
We’re not just updating our résumés — we’re reevaluating everything. The old rules that told us to hustle harder and not complain, simply aren’t cutting it anymore. According to Rha, many of us are standing at a crossroads. We’re asking bigger questions about why we work, how we work, and what we’re willing to sacrifice for a paycheck. To help people answer these questions, Rha offers a three-part framework:
- Reclaim: Start by taking a hard look at your definition of success. Where did it come from? Who shaped it? Keep the parts that still serve you, and let go of the rest. This is about clearing the slate so you can define success on your own terms.
- Realign: Once you’ve reclaimed your definition of success, the next step is to match it up with your values. What matters most to you? What kind of impact do you want to have? Realignment is about taking responsibility for what you want and committing to living it out — even if that means making some tough changes.
- Reimagine: Here’s where you get to dream big. Picture the version of work and life you’d choose — not the one you feel stuck with. What drives you? What brings you joy? This stage is about envisioning a future that feels true to who you are,are and then starting to build toward it.
Each step builds on the last, and none of them can be skipped. This isn’t a checklist. It’s a process that requires honesty, a good dose of courage, and some quiet time.
Three small things you can start today
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the idea of redefining success or overhauling your life, you’re not alone. The good news is you don’t have to do it all at once. Rha shared a few bitesize, doable shifts that can help you start realigning your work and life.
1. Take five minutes: You don’t need a whole meditation weekend in the woods. Just five quiet minutes in the morning, five mid-day, and five before bed. No phone, no to-do list, no productivity hacks. Maybe you sit with your coffee before the day kicks off. Maybe you take a quick walk or just look out the window. The point is to pause and ask yourself: How am I doing? That’s it. That’s the practice.
2. Eat a real lunch: This one hits harder than it should. When’s the last time you ate lunch without also typing, scrolling, or hopping on a Zoom call? Try stepping away from your screen—even just for 20 minutes—and actually enjoying your meal. Taste your food. Chew slowly. Let your brain rest. Your inbox will be there when you get back.
3. Set a stop time: Work will expand to fill every inch of your day if you let it. Rha suggests drawing a line. Choose a time — say, 6:00 p.m. — and commit to shutting things down. No emails. No “real quick” tasks. No sneaking back into Slack at 9 p.m. And give yourself at least an hour before bed to wind down. It might feel strange or uncomfortable at first, but over time, your mind (and your sleep) will thank you.
These aren’t grand gestures. But done consistently, they create space — space to think, to breathe, to reconnect with what matters. And that’s where real change begins.
This isn’t about perfection
This isn’t about chasing some flawless version of life where every meeting is meaningful, every workday ends at 5, and your inbox stays at zero. That’s not the goal. What is the goal? Having the courage to imagine something better and then taking small, steady steps toward it.
Rha said it best: “Generosity and courage are what’s going to be required to move us into a new paradigm where more people can thrive.”
The next chapter of work isn’t going to be written by grinding harder or pretending we’ve got it all figured out. It’ll come from care. From honesty. From being willing to say, “This isn’t working for me” — and trusting that’s not a failure, it’s a starting point.
In this version of success, asking for help is a strength. Rest is respected. Community is key. And showing up as your whole self isn’t something to apologize for — it’s the goal.
Ready to rethink work on your terms?
If any part of this resonated, take it as a sign—you’re not the only one rethinking the way you work. And you don’t have to do it alone.
Intentional Ambition isn’t just a book. It’s a guide, a gut check, and maybe even the nudge you didn’t know you needed. Rha’s words offer more than insight—they offer a way forward, grounded in values that matter: joy, freedom, and fulfillment.
And the conversation doesn’t end on the last page. Through workshops, tools, and community spaces, Rha’s creating room for folks to reflect, reset, and reconnect with what matters most.
Ready to rewrite your story?