¶ Introduction to Maslow's Hierarchy
Hello, hello, I'm James and I live in Manchester in the UK. And you're listening to English with a Brew, a podcast where I talk about different day-to-day topics to help you learn English the most natural way possible. And that is only by listening to it. If you want to support this podcast, read transcripts and get exclusive access to more content, go to patreon.com forward slash English with a brew. So as we say in Manchester,
Get a brew on and let's get started. Good morning, good afternoon and good evening. How are you all doing? i hope you're all good in this episode we're talking about something that could seem complicated or complex but it's actually quite simple we're talking about our needs as humans, the things we need to survive and to be happy. In the 1940s and 1950s, there was a psychologist
called Abraham Maslow, who created a theory. And in his theory, there is a pyramid or a triangle called the pyramid of needs. It's a way of thinking about human needs and what people need to live a happy and healthy life. His pyramid has five levels and the idea is that every level describes a different type, a different category of human needs. At the bottom of the pyramid is our most basic human needs.
and these are the needs that must be met first before you can move up to the next level this is called a hierarchy like the name hierarchy of needs So as you go up the pyramid, the needs become more specific. So let's look at each level. As I said, the first level is all about the most basic things we need to survive.
¶ Exploring the Five Levels of Needs
These are things like food, water, and sleep, the air that we breathe, and staying warm, not being too cold. Maslow called them physiological needs. because they are physical needs. Imagine you were really hungry or very thirsty. You wouldn't be thinking about anything else. You would just want to find food or water. The second level is about feeling safe and secure. Safety needs are all about being free from danger. This could mean having a safe place to live, a home.
But it can also mean that you have stability in your life. You have a job that pays you so that you can take care of yourself. People also need to feel safe emotionally. which means feeling comfortable and not stressed all the time. And if you feel safe and secure, then it's easier to feel calm and focus on other things in life. The next level is all about relationships. It's about feeling loved and part of a group or community. People need friends, family and other relationships.
and spending time with those people is incredibly important. This helps us feel less lonely and more connected to the world and the people around us. At the fourth level, things get a little more complicated. This level is our self-esteem, which means how we feel about ourselves, if we feel good about ourselves or not. Maslow thought that everyone wants to feel respected and valued, to have confidence and to feel proud of what we do.
There are two parts of esteem needs, feeling respected by other people and having self-respect, having respect for yourself. When we achieve something or do a good job, it builds our self-esteem and we feel better about ourselves little by little the final level the top level of maslow's pyramid is called self-actualization This is about becoming the best version of yourself. Once all the other needs are met, people can focus on their personal goals and dreams. This could mean trying new things.
working towards big goals, or finding ways to help others. Maslow believed that self-actualization is different for everyone. It's about doing what makes you happy. and fulfilled maslow's hierarchy of needs shows us that people have different needs at different levels no two people have identical needs
¶ Reflecting on Your Own Needs
And it explains why people might find certain things difficult if their lower needs, their more basic needs, aren't met. And that is the hierarchy of needs. So my question for you today is simply, what do you think? Do you think it's a good way, a good tool for thinking about our most basic needs? And are your needs being met? Have you reached self-actualization? Let me know.
That's everything for today's episode of English with a Brew. I hope you enjoyed it. Let me know in the comments if you did or if you didn't and tell me what topics you'd like to hear me talk about in future episodes. And don't forget if you want to support this podcast and get access to all of the exclusive episodes, you can do that on my Patreon page. I hope you have an absolutely wonderful day, morning, afternoon or evening, whatever time it is where you are right now. Take care.