What are our wellbeing needs?

Wellbeing can be constructed through time, if we have a clear understanding of our selves, as well as of our needs and aspirations. Self awareness is key to developing a picture of our present life dynamics, both internal and external. Having that initial clarity about life can lead to more informed decisions going forward. What are some common areas of life, which people in the past have found important? Is there a hierarchy amongst them or are they all on the same level of importance?

Figure 1. Maslow's pyramid of needs.

Research in this field has found that human needs can be split into levels [1]. It turns out that each level needs to be satisfied in turn in order for the next level to be satisfiable. The base layers of the pyramid form the survival requirements, such as nourishment and safety. When these essential and vital needs are met the higher level needs become motivators for behaviour. Emotional belonging and loving relationships is the next layer of the pyramid. Building a supportive personal life can greatly increase life satisfaction and quality of life and can help one overcome challenges further up the pyramid. This is an interesting observation. Many people ops to build careers first and then a family second. It seems that this approach is less sustainable as we deprive ourselves of a solid support network. Having said that, a family is only one way to have a social connection. Other ways are through making friends, volunteering or hobbies. It is however important to remember that for life satisfaction to increase, we need deep, meaningful and long lasting connections. Jumping between different social groups in pursuit of social status or novelty is unlikely to bring us the above mentioned benefits. Relationships take time and effort, yet they can also be a great source of satisfaction and positive experiences. For this, see my posts on love, relationships and compassion. Going further, we have the desire to satisfy be accomplished though our deeds. This may be because we create something for the benefit of more than just ourselves. for most people, this is achieved through some sort of work, life project, hobby or combination of the above. Finally, we get to the tip of the pyramid, where the elusive self-fulfilment lives. This is about reaching or maximising some innate potential inside of us. I imagine this as finding mastery in any activity and, according to the original author's definition, is seldom achieved by people. This shouldn't be discouraging however, as life is about the journey more than it is about the destination. Walking the path towards mastery is certainly worth enough and will bring plenty of gratification. Inspirational stories about journeys towards mastery can be found on the Finding Mastery podcast.

Figure 2. Finding mastery website and podcast.

Finally, it is important to understand that Maslow's pyramid is a generic construct and there will be differences amongst individual values. However, it is useful to define where you sit on the pyramid and what parts still need building. Also, it is possible to reach the higher levels of the pyramid without having a complete base yet the stronger our foundation, the more stable our life would be and the less we are swayed by difficulties.

If you enjoyed this post, please share it with others and leave a comment below.

References

[1] Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370–396. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0054346