BASIC HUMAN NEEDS; Significance

Recently I heard a talk by Tony Robbins, an expert in leadership psychology and  motivational speaker,  who was discussing why we do what we do and how we can do it better. 

What I found of praticular interesest was the discussion on human needs, and he says that everyone has six basic human needs, which include;

Certainty (from the healthy need to having a roof over your head and enough to eat but which can spiral ot into the more unhealthy need to control everything and everyone)

Uncertainty (variety, surprise)

Significance (feeling important, special, unique)

Connection and love (through friendship, walking in nature,)

Needs of spirit (fulfillment; appreciation and contribution.)

Contribute beyond ourselves (the secret of life is giving)

Emotion 

For this post I'd just like to touch on; 

Significance 

I loved this. Everyone needs to feel special, unique in someway. As Mr. Robbins points out ,unfortunately the easiest was to feel important and significant is through violence (put a gun in someone's hand and they immediately feel important). It takes more time, more brain cells, more  insight, more courage to feel significant through positive channels, but obviously it's far more rewarding. Sometimes people say in a critical way "he/she  only does that because he wants to feel special, he/she needs the attention." I think everyone has a RIGHT to feel special. Everyone has something special to offer. It's finding out what that special "something" is that may be hard. It may be something obvious like what you end up choosing as a career or something as simple as being a friend.

An example; I have a wonderful serb friend called Ika, who takes it upon herself to (free of charge) to translate between Italian doctors and serb families who have come to Milan to find medical (often temporary) solutions for their children suffering (and often dying) of cancer.  It's heart breaking stuff. Being particularly sensitive she finds herself emotionally tied to these  families even a long time after the death of the child in question, and during the process would often come home and cry herself to sleep- I just couldn't understand WHY she would put herself through this and then I realized; she has a gift..... A gift of giving of herself to others despite the great distress this causes. Giving your time is already a precious gift, doing it whilst facing incredible suffering I think is special.  It is unique. And so is she. I admire her.

By undertaking the above she includes in her life Significance, Connecton and Love and Needs of the spirit.  

This weeks homework/inviation  is heavily influenced by Robbins - let's say it comes indirectly from him and eeerrrr.....not at all from me!  and it is this;  think about what it would take you to feel unique, special. What is it that you could share with others that would make you feel this way?(it doesn't have to be anything as dramatic as what Ika does - it may be offering dinner to someone, deciding to make eye contact and smile at someone you usually wouldn't do that to, it could simply be trying to make the  lives of people around you - family, friends, collegues EASIER.) Perhaps this week decide to make a small act each day which allows your uniqueness to touch another human being. 

Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential. 

Barack Obama

Ps. Promise I'll talk about yoga more directly in my next post.......!!!!