the concept behind the brand

Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a topic within motivational theory in psychology.  It is the core concept behind my brand.  I took AP Psychology my senior year in high school.  That is the first time I had learned about Maslow's hierarchy of needs and connected to that theory.  In this blog post, I am going to explain some of the principles behind the idea and why I named my brand Climbing Maslow.  

Principles of Theory

The original hierarchy of needs appeared in Abraham Maslow's 1943 paper entitled "A Theory of Human Motivation" and was composed of a pyramid with five basic needs: physiological, safety, belonging & love, esteem and self-actualization. I have read articles on the topic and seen, of course, the pyramid.  The original article was originally published in the Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-96. 1943.  I read the 2013 published version of the same title by Martino Publishing from which I will be referencing its page numbers.  The main premise behind the article is, "Man is a perpetually wanting animal."   (p 1).  This is mentioned in the introduction as well as repeated in the summary.  

(When speaking of "man" from the article, I want to say that "man" is all mankind.  The article was written in another space and time in history.  This does not discredit the topic, even if found insensitive in today's space and time.)

The three key principles I found behind the idea in the theory of human motivation to potentially fulfill his insatiable nature are 1) humans must approach motivations holistically, focusing on body, mind, and soul, 2) humans are dynamic, always changing, and 3) humans are usually partially satisfied and dissatisfied at all times.  

Maslow notes that for any of his motivational theory to hold any bearing of truth that preconditions must exist:

freedom to speak, freedom to do what one wishes so long as no harm is done to others, freedom to express one's self, freedom to investigate and seek for information, freedom to defend one's self, justice, fairness, honesty, and orderliness in the group. (p 8) 

Approaching Motivations Holistically: Body, Mind & Soul 

The eight Maslow needs are described below by

Gautam, Sandy. (2007, Dec 14). Maslow’s eight basic needs and the eight stage developmental model.  Retrieved from Maslow's eight basic needs and the eight stage developmental model | The Mouse Trap (the-mouse-trap.com)

Let me now present the eight Maslow needs and explain it using analogies form other eight stage models.

1. Physiological needs: These are the basic animal needs for such things as food, warmth, shelter, sex, water, and other body needs. If a person is hungry or thirsty or his body is chemically unbalanced, all of his energies turn toward remedying these deficiencies, and other needs remain inactive. If one’s basic biological needs are not met, one would never be able to trust the environment and would be stuck with high neuroticism and anxiety.
2. Safety needs: With his physical needs relatively satisfied, the individual’s safety needs take over and dominate his behavior. These needs have to do with man’s yearning for a predictable, orderly world in which injustice and inconsistency are under control, the familiar frequent, and the unfamiliar rare. This need for consistency, if not satisfied leads to feelings of doubt and shame (as opposed to feelings of autonomy or being in control) and lead to high conscientiousness or need for discipline and orderliness.
3. Belonging needs: After physiological and safety needs are fulfilled, the third layer of human needs is social. This psychological aspect of Maslow’s hierarchy involves emotionally-based relationships in general, such as friendship, sexual intimacy and having a supportive and communicative family. If one finds failure in having such close relationships, one is bedeviled with such negative social emotions like guilt (vis a vis initiative) and has low extraversion values.
4. Self-esteem needs: All humans have a need to be respected, to have self-esteem, self-respect, and to respect others. People need to engage themselves to gain recognition and have an activity or activities that give the person a sense of contribution, to feel accepted and self-valued, be it in a profession or hobby. This need if not satisfied leads to feelings of inferiority vis-a-vis feelings of industry. Feelings of inferiority in turn may lead to low agreeableness.
5. Cognitive needs: Maslow believed that humans have the need to increase their intelligence and thereby chase knowledge. Cognitive needs is the expression of the natural human need to learn, explore, discover and create to get a better understanding of the world around them.  This growth need for self-actualization and learning, when not fulfilled leads to confusion and identity crisis. Also, this is directly related to need to explore or the openness to experience.
6. Aesthetic needs: Based on Maslow’s beliefs, it is stated in the hierarchy that humans need beautiful imagery or something new and aesthetically pleasing to continue up towards Self-Actualization. Humans need to refresh themselves in the presence and beauty of nature while carefully absorbing and observing their surroundings to extract the beauty that the world has to offer. This need is a higher level need to relate in a beautiful way with the environment and leads to the beautiful feeling of intimacy with nature and everything beautiful.
7. Self-actualization needs: Self-actualization is the instinctual need of humans to make the most of their abilities and to strive to be the best they can.  This need when fulfilled leads to feeling of generativity.
8. Self-transcendence needs: Maslow later divided the top of the triangle to add self-transcendence which is also sometimes referred to as spiritual needs. Spiritual Needs are a little different from other needs, accessible from many level. This need when fulfilled, leads to feelings of integrity and take things to another level of being.

Humans are Dynamic

Maslow's hierarchy of basic needs is "basic" due to the practical nature of the need.  Maslow is not talking about superficial or material wants.  He describes the end being the focus, not the means.   Can the "end" be fulfillment?  Since “man is a perpetual wanting animal”, let us conclude the “end” is peace in the journal towards fulfillment.

Humans are dynamic, always changing.  The pyramid is not a vertical climb but a messy back and forth between all the stages depending on one’s unique circumstance, personally and culturally.  It is as if one were to look at the back of a hand sewn embroidery.  The appearance on the front does not show the messiness on the back, but it is the messiness that brings delight in the beauty hard work of completion.  The means is not the focus, but the end. 

Remember that the goal is not to have every one of the needs met but to be consciously aware and make efforts towards each one of them, to be a work in progress with a process. 

As described by Maslow, we are born into different stages by location, cultural norms and home environments.  One who has always been fed and cared for will not typically prioritize the physiological and safety needs.  There is an example in the article that one who will not take a job due to self-respect, after being jobless and not having the means to eat for six months, will then be more willing to take that job and give up some self-respect to provide and fulfill the physiological need again.  Some people have an urge within them that will deviate from the pyramid.   One might find they will go without food and sex for transcendence or go without the safety of a salary to fulfill their need for cognitive or aesthetic needs.  One might give up safety or cognitive or self-esteem needs to feel love and belonging.  It is a personal journey with many different avenues of fulfillment.  Discovering what need motivates you and which do not and why is also within the theory of human motivation. 

Humans are Usually Partially Satisfied and Dissatisfied at All Times

As one shifts between the needs, one is not expected to check mark 100% the need lower on the pyramid before moving to the next one.  It is ok to leave room for improvement.  It is ok to let go of certain expectations if your heart and mind change.  It is not a guide for happiness.  Maslow hierarchy of needs is about educating yourself of an environment that feeds your desire to be whoever it is you set out to be and hopefully in doing so, leave a positive mark on the next generation.

The Concept Behind the Brand

You may be asking yourself, what does this have to do with body care products and ice cubes.  Climbing Maslow is about self-care, inside and out.  It is about how you look and how you feel, how you present yourself to others.  It is about education and critical thought, empowerment and developing a creative culture.  It is about awareness and expression.  It is about the past, the present and future.  It is about thinking about others as much as yourself.  Like Maslow starting with physiological needs, I am starting with ice cubes.  The whole food ice cubes feed your body; taking care of your body and health is self-care with is crucial for safety, love and belonging and self-esteem.  We are in progress with a process building towards growth.