“Self Actualization”

Looking through Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (physiological – security – social – esteem and self-actualization) I am fascinated by the last of the needs self-actualization.
Abraham Maslow says man fulfils all the needs starting from physiological to Self-actualization, he doesn’t fulfil one need before another, and he has to follow the sequence as given above.

Physiological needs include food, shelter, clothing and sex. Maslow believes it is after this that man seeks security, then social status – the need to be recognized in society and by peers – and esteem needs which according to Maslow is in some way related to social needs and then we have the topic of discuss, Self-actualization.

Self-actualization is supposed to be the point where man has really hit his peak, a point where he says “Yes I Finally Made It”. Just as different people have different goals and objectives, so do they have different Self-actualization target.

During his hey days, President Goodluck Jonathan may say his Self-actualization target is to be the councillor of his ward in his local government area. Having achieved that, he pushes it to becoming the Local Government Chairman, and then the Governor of his State before hitting the ultimate – becoming the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As seen here, having reached Self-actualization, man being an animal never contented with the status quo like Oliver Twist asks for more. The more he gets, the more he wants, and the farther he is from Self-actualization as the previous Self-actualization target becomes an esteem need and he has to set a new Self-actualization target.

Even the president of the United States cannot say he has reached his Self-actualization target by becoming president of the most powerful Nation in the world, ere still is a need probably far higher than that he feels he has to achieve.

Bill Gates could have been said to have reached Self-actualization by being the richest man in the world at one time in his life but that certainly isn’t his ultimate Self-actualization as even with the riches, he still is striving to get more.

In my opinion, Self-actualization should be a state of mind or being where man would have reached a point in his life where he has achieved what he has been sent out to do in life – spiritually, even though I believe man can NEVER perfect this state of being.
Though we cannot know all that contains in the Holy Books, and sometimes we tend to perceive what these Books say in different ways viewing them from different perspectives, Self-actualization should be a state of fulfilment where we can say we have reached the target we set out to reach in this life. A need we vowed to fulfil from birth through a covenant with our Creator. This need is a state of mind where we can say we have lived our lives as the scriptures have laid down – even though we cannot be perfect. Only then do we say we have reached Self-actualization. All others such as becoming president, most outstanding CEO, richest man in the world, UN Secretary General and the likes are all ESTEEM needs.

It is in this context therefore that we can say all of man can achieve Self-actualization regardless of age, gender, race, religion and even regardless of whether rich or poor.
I therefore DARE to say that Self-actualization is a myth, we merely circle within Esteem needs.