This guy Maslow ova heeeeeya (said in strong NY accent)

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Chart

Source: http://www.envisionsoftware.com/articles/Maslows_Needs_Hierarchy.html#Physiological_Needs

BEWARE: LONG POST. But it's worth it.

Anyone hear of this guy? If you have, this is going to be an overview, so sit back and remember!!

for the "have-nots," sit down and shut up!! no but really, listen up, this could change your life...

sidenote: i remember learning about this guy back in my earlier years of college and I guess I stored it in a part of my brain that used it but never realized it.

Long story short, this guy is BA (thank you brother.. Bad Ass) and I think it's worth knowing that even though he created it back in the 40s, it still holds truth and strength today


ANYWAY:



We start at the bottom of this pyramid and work our way up. And with every level we start with......

WHAT DO WE NEED??

1. Physiological Needs: Here we're looking at the basics:
-Air
-Water
-Food
-Sleep

**Can we all check these off our list?? If not, it's going to be a whole different kind of post. So for the sake of getting on with this, we're going to assume that everyone has the basics. REALLY look at this list, if you have these 4 things, you're already on your way!! Life doesn't seem all too bad now does it?? Damn Americans**

2. Safety Needs: This part of the pyramid is looking at the attempt to relieve yourself of daily threats such as:

-Do I live in a safe area?

-Is my job secure for me?

-Is my health ok? And if it is not, can I afford to fix the problem?

**So this is where it might start getting hazy for us. Our economy is low, our jobs are absolute shit, our food is now such shit that it might be the problem with our health. What do we do here? Again, a whole different post. But as a society, if the people cannot feel safe, they cannot move up the pyramid until this part is fixed. Think about how much time a parent thinks about providing for the family, 9-5 shit job, health insurance. Trying to focus on anything else seems miniscule compared to the worry of creating a safe environment for their family.**

3. Social Needs: Here is where we're looking at interactions with other people, including:

-Relationships with the opposite sex

-Friendship circles

-Finding a group you feel a part of

**Let's face it, we're not the kind of creatures that like to be alone for the most part. We do things together and like to know we are loved. And it's a vicious circle here: you don't feel loved because you feel threatened. You feel threatened because you don't feel loved. Round and Round. So get some love in your life!! And allow people to love you. The biggest problem I find in other people is their inability to drop their ego or guard and just let people LOVE them! (speaking from experience here)

4. Esteem Needs: I feel like everyone can improve on this, but I also feel that it takes both yourself and the people you surround yourself with in order to accomplish this level of need.

-Recognition from OTHERS

-Attention from OTHERS

-Feeling Accomplished (YOURSELF)

-Respecting YOURSELF

**Now here you have full power to choose who you surround yourself with and how you feel about yourself. This is where you start making your OWN goddamn decisions. You are what you eat? Well, you are also who you surround yourself with. Remember this.**

5. Self-Actualization: Enlightenment, Nirvana, call it what you want. This is where you go "holy shit! life is beautiful!" and "i now realize I know absolutely nothing"

-Wisdom

-Justice

-Truth

-Meaning

**I would like to say that I think I've gotten here. The problem with this stage though is once you're here, you realize you're never TRULY satisfied, but you're happy with what you have. Sounds weird, I know. But the more you learn, the more you realize you know nothing. But you are also so happy to be learning that you don't even care.

Knowing IS Half the Battle!

GI JOE WAS RIGHT!

"As for me, all I know is that I know nothing."

-Socrates

Now You Know [Nothing]