Maslow needs and our demands
A “Need” is “to want something very much” . And “Demand” (for the purpose of this article) is “the desire to buy goods” per Cambridge Dictionary.
What do people really need ?
Short answer: people need shelter, food, and social recognition.
And what do they demand ?
Short answer: a lot.
What are human needs?
I believe Maslow Theory (or Maslow Pyramid of Needs) is one of the most brilliant ways to explain human behavior based on the human needs:
Maslow Pyramid of Needs:
Maslow categorized the needs to be:
1. Physiological needs
2. Safety
3. Socializing
4. Self esteem, and
5. Self actualization.
It is important to notice that humans, in general, require these needs from bottom to top (as shown in the pyramid graph).
If you watched the great movie (Cast Away), you might have noticed the similarities between the Maslow theory and the movie, when Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks) started his survival struggle. Chuck Noland started by searching for food (coconut and seafood) and shelter (the cave), then he moved to another level by creating his social group (his friend Wilson, the ball), and you will clearly notice the self esteem (rapture and dances) in the fire scene … “I HAVE MADE FIRE”.
Actually when you look deeply on the movie plot, you may notice that Chuck’s thoughts and responses became clear, mature, accountable, and directed to his return after he invented his friend (Wilson).
One day, my son asked me how game developers (or game manufacturing companies) create such attractive ideas; actually, he was talking about online gaming at that time. I remembered the Maslow Pyramid, and I explained to him the need for socializing -even in a game- and the need for success (self esteem) based on Maslow theory (assuming we are not looking for food and security in gaming).
Needs in a nutshell
Needs are more like concepts than things / goods, the need for eating (or food, whatever that food is), need for safety (or shelter, whatever that shelter is), the need for cleansing, …, and so on.
What are demands ?
People need cleansing (skin cleaning), for example; but they demand different types of soaps, shampoos, conditioners, cleansing cream, liquid hand soap, disinfectants, and so on. Ironically you find all these types in one house.
Looking deeply, all you need is one -and only one- piece of soap, assuming you don’t have the luxury to purchase all these types; like people in poor countries or if you are living on deserted island.
People need security, which is represented by a shelter, like a home, or could be a cave. But they demand a fancy villa with many rooms, several bathrooms, a beautiful garden in front of it, luxury furniture, a garage, and so on.
We must differentiate between the Need and the Demands, people need a little few things, but demanding too many things to fulfill one need.
On a visit to a friend of mine in his house, I wanted to use the bathroom. I found a lot of bottles of shampoos and detergents, actually I counted 27 bottles in there. (you may find a similar number if you entered mine). We all know the contemporary needs for body and hair care, probably every member of the family uses a specific type of shampoo, body lotion, hand soup, floor fragrance, air refresher, …, and so on.
I was raised in a middle income class family in a simple village, I remember in the 1980’s where my mom, and other housewives used one type of detergent, which is the Nabulsi Soap, for head wash, body wash, hand cleansing, and clothes washing (by shredding the soap and using it as a laundry detergent).
At the end
A group of alumni decided to visit their old university professor. After they all re-unioned, the conversation of the alumni soon turned into complaints about work, relationships and life.
Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups — porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite — telling them to help themselves to the coffee.
When all of his old students had a cup of coffee in hand, they sat down together and the professor said: “If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups have been taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is, of course, normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that can also be the source of much of your dissatisfaction, problems and stress.
It’s important to know that the cup itself adds no real quality to the coffee. What all of you really wanted was the experience of the coffee, not the cup, but you unconsciously went for the best cups. Some of you tried to get the best cup first or began eyeing each other’s cups to see if yours was nice enough.
Now consider this: Life is a bit like the cup of coffee; the jobs, money possessions and position in society are the cups. They are just tools and structures that contain or hold together the current story of your life, and the type of cup we have does not define, nor change the quality of life we live.
Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee. Here is my advice to you: Taste and enjoy the coffee, not the cups!
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References:
- NEED | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary
- DEMAND | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary
- need_1 verb — Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com
- demand_1 noun — Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com
- Maslow’s hierarchy of needs — Wikipedia
- Abraham Maslow — Wikipedia
- Nabulsi soap — Wikipedia
- Life is Like a Cup of Coffee — Melli O’Brien (mrsmindfulness.com)
- Cast Away — Wikipedia
