According to Maslow, also the father of humanistic psychology, human beings can be whoever we want to be and achieve self-realization in life, but not without first having a category of areas covered, ranging from basic needs to emotional and emotional needs. social, to conclude by honoring the needs and desires of our hearts.
1. Physiological needs
Let’s start with the first step, the one at the base of the pyramid. This step is called “Physiological needs”, and is made up of: eating, drinking, breathing, sleeping, pain avoidance and sexual needs
This step ensures life as the basis of everything, if our body does not function optimally, we will not be able to focus on something else, having our physiological needs covered sets the tone so that everything else can be co-created, otherwise We would stay there, as a way of vital survival, trying to solve the deficiencies.
2. Security needs
When physiological needs have been met, new needs arise, such as “Security needs”, which are made up of: physical security, health, resources, stability, order and protection
This step assures us that we are being supported by more than just safeguarding our lives. It refers to life insurance, house, clothing, protection by the law, money. This is where how we develop in life starts and takes survival to a new level, because it not only refers to physiological needs like the previous point, but also refers to the needs for economic security and space to develop in the future. world with confidence.
After this step come what they are “Affiliation needs”, which are: love, affection, bonding, belonging to a group, intimacy As humans, we see the need to have social relationships, which is why this step provides us with and encompasses the need to have emotional ties and social groups.
Here we are governed by that nature of being accepted, being intimate, as well as giving and receiving love and being part of a group. The above are human needs and go hand in hand with the need for personal independence. In fact, to be truly independent it is important to form secure attachments with the people around us and our social context is of vital importance.
4. Recognition needs
The next step tells us about the needs for recognition, and these are: respect, feeling of dignity, confidence, success, freedom, self-esteem, among others This new level arises when the previous 3 are covered, and this becomes a more complex level, once the most primitive needs are covered, the needs for recognition and esteem appear. These needs are more oriented to our place within society and are based more on power and status.
Maslow divides the types of esteem into 2, high and low. High esteem tells us about the need for self-respect and low esteem tells us about the need for respect for other people. Low esteem is mainly represented by the need for attention, appreciation, recognition, reputation, status, dignity, fame, glory and dominance. It is of vital importance in children and adolescents and helps to achieve high self-esteem.
And finally we have the “need for self-realization”. That tells us about spontaneity, creativity, acceptance, problem solving, search for growth, expansion, spiritual realization At the top of the pyramid, there is the need to self-realize, once all the other steps are covered, the need for self-realization is born. These needs are more abstract and complex, since they are aimed at the personal development of the individual and are achieved through planned actions.
Personal growth, as well as the desire to become what one can become, are the main motivators that drive and shape this step. Creative expression, morality, sense of humor, self-acceptance, and problem solving are examples that constitute this point. Here the human being can be consistent with the desires of his heart, for example the dream of being a doctor is possible and the objective is to achieve it.
Conclusions
In conclusion, it can be highlighted that to achieve self-realization of the desires of our heart again and again, therefore achieving happiness and personal satisfaction with our own existence, it is important to have each of the steps of needs covered, in order to do so. to be able to focus more and more on something bigger and more than survival itself. This is basically the biological process to move from the scale of survival to the scale of life (living).
