rejected by her parents will find it
difficult to pursue personal goals
like good grades at school, unless
she can fix her relationship with
family or find other functional
ways of getting needs for love and
belonging met.
A person who feels that they are
not good enough finds it difficult
to feel good about himself and will
have low self esteem and confidence
levels.
These people include historical
figures such as Albert Einstein,
Eleanor Roosevelt and Martin
Luther King, Jr.
Does self-actualization contribute
to our well being? Most definitely!
Happiness = Success and life becomes
more meaningful. The possibility
of achieving self actualization is
available to us all.
They will often struggle with
progress in life unless they fix their
personal relationship - self love.
We can develop and grow in these
characteristics and behaviors by
making each of these characteristics
and behaviors a personal goal if and
when appropriate.
Learning how to love self exactly
as they are and seeing the good in
themselves.
Maslow believed that selfactualization can be achieved by
following these guidelines:
And this love will begin to trickle
into every area of their lives (from
inside out) only then is the need for
acceptance and belonging met.
p Experience life as a child does,
with full absorption and
concentration
p Try something new rather than
sticking to secure and safe ways
p Listen to your own feelings in
evaluating experiences rather
than to the voice of tradition,
authority or the majority
p Be honest; avoid pretences or ‘
game playing’
p Be prepared to be unpopular
even if your views do not
coincide with most people
p Assume responsibility
p work hard at whatever you
decide to do
p Try to identify your defenses and
have the courage to give them up
The needs for cognitive growth as
we ll as an aesthetic environment
come next after the needs for love
and belonging, as well as selfesteem needs. Maslow believes that
self-fulfillment is also hinged on
fulfilling the need to learn more
about people and things, as well as
develop intellectual and creative
potentials.
We all desire to be surrounded
by pleasant and beautiful things,
such as a well-kept home or office
environment. In order to move
towards self-actualization, we must
identify pre-requisite needs that
must be addressed, and find ways to
partially or fully fulfill these needs.
Abraham Maslow is also
responsible for identifying specific
characteristics and behaviors of
self-actualizing individuals. He
identified these characteristics and
behaviors by studying the lives
of people he considered as selfactualizers.
Reflect on your behavior for the
past week. What needs, according
to Abraham Maslow, have you
been pursuing in the last 7 days?
What does your answer say about
your own quest towards selfactualization?
This exercise focuses on increasing
awareness on what you consider
important in your life and where
you are at in terms of fulfilling that
quest. And self-realization is self-
Characteristics and
behaviors of self-actualizers
according to Maslow
p Perceive reality efficiently
and are able to tolerate
uncertainty
pAccept themselves and
others for what they are
p Spontaneous in thought
and behavior
p Problem-centered rather
than self-centered
p Have a good sense of
humor
p highly creative
p Resistant to inculturation,
although not purposely
unconventional
p Concerned for the
welfare of humanity
p Capable of deep
appreciation of the basic
experiences of life
p Establish deep, satisfying
interpersonal relationships
with a few, rather
than many people
p Able to look at life from an
objective viewpoint.
actualization. It is not by accident.
After all, you can’t change what
you’re not aware of !
Blessings!
Jennifer Mwangangi-Ayoti is a
Chartered Marketer (UK), and a
seasoned Wellness Coach at Licial
Wellness. You can commune with
her on this or related issues via mail
at: [email protected]. You
can also visit the website at: www.
licialwellness.com.