ambition, attempt ?

wie wäre es mit strive???

Can you think of anything better?

"aspirations" (i.e. plur. not sing.)

Aspiration/aspirations klingt sowieso nicht dynamisch genug. strive oder quest finde ich besser (oder zu viel?)

agree aspirations is better than the singular - "strive" to me always sound a bit like finding whatever is hard work - how about

endeavors or objectives ?

Agree with Phillipp, nothing wrong with 'aspiration' here but
plural is better.

'quest' conjures up Lord of the Rings or Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Doesn't aspirations always imply that someone WANTS something, but it's not sure if they can go through with it, e.g. aspiring actress???