Why We Do What Do

Happy Friday! I hope you have had a great week in business so far and are looking forward to the weekend whatever is in store for you!

Motivation is a psychological phenomenon in which the wants and needs of an individual have to be tackled by framing an incentive plan.

Abraham Maslow, an American psychologist, popularly theorized the nature of human motivation throughout his studies and came up with something he coined, the ‘hierarchy of needs.’

According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, all human behaviour is goal-directed, which means that everything we do is because we are motivated to do so. Maslow proposed that any type of motivation is the result of a person’s attempt at fulfilling five basic needs: physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization.

• Physiological

These needs are most important to our livelihood and survival, so we are most motivated to meet them. These basic needs include food, water, shelter, air, etc.

• ?Safety

These needs are the second most important and include protection from danger, the safety of your property.

• ?Social

Humans are social, so things like love, affection, friendship, and conversation are the third most important rung in Maslow’s hierarchy.

• Esteem

These needs relate to the desire for self-respect, recognition, and respect from others.

• Self-Actualization

These are the needs of the highest order, meaning that a person who is looking for these needs has already satisfied the previous four. These needs might include social service, meditation, and self-care.

Over the remainder of this mini-series of newsletters on the topic of motivation, we’ll be breaking down different types of motivation and exploring the idea of understanding WHAT motivates you might help you finally reach your goals.

Take a moment to consider, what’s something you’re motivated to do, and where does it fit into Maslow’s hierarchy?