Hierarchy of Needs in the Workplace Essay Example

Hierarchy of Needs in the Workplace Essay Example Hierarchy of Needs in the Workplace Paper Hierarchy of Needs in the Workplace Paper Brief Biography: Abraham Maslow Abraham H. Maslow was born April 1, 1908 in Brooklyn, New York. As the eldest of seven children he was pushed hard for academic success. As a child he was smart yet shy and unhappy; as result he took refuge in reading books. Forty years later, after extensive education and research, Maslow developed the theory of human motivation known as â€Å"Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. † As a psychologist, he noted that some human needs were more powerful than others. Therefore he divided those needs into five general categories ranging from most urgent to most advance. Maslow first published his theory in the 1940s, which later became a widely accepted concept in the fields of psychology and anthropology. During his late years (1951 to 1969) he was a professor at Brandeis University until he died of a heart attack in 1970. Abraham Maslow saw a human beings needs arranged like a ladder, with the most basic needs at the bottom. First there are physical needs such as air, water, food, and sex. Next are safety needs (security and stability), followed by psychological or social needs (sense of belonging, love, and acceptance). At the top are the self-actualizing needs, such as self-fulfillment. Maslow felt that unfulfilled needs lower on the ladder would keep a person from climbing to the next step. He also felt that individuals who dealt in managing the higher needs were â€Å"self-actualized†. He generalized that self-actualizing people tend to focus on problems outside of themselves, have a clear sense of what is genuine, are spontaneous as well as creative, and do not feel the need to strictly attend social gatherings. â€Å"Hierarchy of Needs† in the Workplace To my beliefs, Abraham Maslow has had a significant impact on the practices which compose the field of organizational management, many of which I have been able to experience during my employment as an Avionics supervisor for the United States Marine Corps and as a Site Supervisor for Rio Salado College. During this essay, it will be my intent to give the reader an insight as to the different levels of the â€Å"Hierarchy of Needs† and how I feel they can be applied to the workplace. First begin with the lowest level on the hierarchy, human physiological concerns. In order to survive, one must feed themselves, drink water, breath, use the bathroom, and procreate. If one did not do these things, then one could not survive. It is the employer’s responsibility to ensure that an employee’s basic concerns and comforts are met in order for them to be productive. For example, if an employee is freezing cold in the work place, then he/she will not work as quickly and efficiently as if he/she were in a comfortable environment. On the second level there is safety and the need for human beings to feel protected. This could translate into the workplace as a need for job and financial security. Once again, it is an employer’s duty to establish this security for the employees. As a consequence for not fulfilling this need, an employee may not work to their fullest potential, especially if they feel that they could most likely be laid off or fired. In a worst case scenario, an employee may decide to give up or even do something to negatively impact the company as an act of revenge. The third level consists of a persons desire to belong and feel loved. An employer can help create this environment by establishing camaraderie among employees. There are possible ways for an employer to provide bonding opportunities by scheduling social events or by pairing compatible individuals to work together. Notorious for implementing these types of bonding strategies, are police units, military, as well as any organization where unit cohesion is of the utmost importance. This is primarily because camaraderie, unit morale, and willingness to work together are essential for these organizations to effectively carry out their purpose. The fourth level illustrates how human beings strive for success, feel strong emotions, and need self-assurance when in a group environment. Take for example how in the work place, ideally when an employee works to gain respect, the better their boost in self-confidence will be. With this principle, an employer should have the drive to create activities outside of work to motivate employees and raise self-esteem, thus raising worker self-reliance and most importantly workplace productivity. The final and most important level on Maslow’s hierarchy is â€Å"self actualization†, which refers to an accomplished individual’s ability to be creative, solve problems, and deal with feelings of morality. As related to the workplace, this characteristic unquestionably applies to those in supervisory positions. Without â€Å"self-actualization† a manager would not have the confidence to lead, resolve concerns, and deal with the ethical issues that commonly arise in the workplace, eventually resulting in the deterioration of unit structure. In the end, an efficient leader is the key o creating a healthy work environment and enhancing organizational effectiveness. References Abraham Maslow Biography. Value Based Management. 23 Aug. 2008 valuebasedmanagement. net/leaders_maslow_hierarchy. html. Huitt, William. Maslows hierarchy of needs. Educational Psychology Interactive. 23 Aug. 2008 ;http://chiron. valdosta. edu/whuitt/col/regsys/maslow. html;. Kermal ly, Sultan. Gurus on Managing People. London: Thorogood Books, 2005. Sirgy, Joseph M. , and Coskun A. Samli. New Dimensions in Marketing/Quality-of-Life Research. Westport: Quorum Books, 1995.

11th Commandment - Definition in Politics

11th Commandment - Definition in Politics The 11th commandment is an informal rule in the Republican Party mistakenly attributed to Presidential Ronald Reagan that discourages attacks on members of the party and encourages candidates to be kind to each other. The 11th commandment states: Thou shalt not speak ill of any Republican. The other thing about the 11th commandment: Nobody pays attention to it anymore. The 11th commandment  is not meant to discourage healthy debate over policy or political philosophy between Republican candidates for office. It is designed to prevent GOP candidates from launching into personal attacks that would damage the eventual nominee in his general-election contest with the Democratic opponent or preclude him from taking office. In modern politics, the 11th commandment has failed to prevent Republicans candidates from attacking each other. A good example is the 2016 Republican presidential primaries, in which eventual nominee and President-elect Donald Trump routinely disparaged his opponents. Trump referred to Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio as little Marco, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz as Lyin Ted, and former Florida Jeb Bush as a very low energy kind of guy. The 11th commandment is dead, in other words. Origin of 11th Commandment The origin of the 11th commandment is most often credited to former Republican President Ronald Reagan. Though Reagan used the term many times to discourage infighting in the GOP, he did not come up with 11th commandment. The term was first used by Calfornias Republican Party chairman, Gaylord B. Parkinson, before Reagans first campaign for governor of that state in 1966. Parkinson had inherited a party that was deeply divided. While Parkinson is believed to have first issued that commandment Thou shalt not speak ill of any Republican, he added: Henceforth, if any Republican has a grievance against another, that grievance is not to be bared publicly. The term 11th commandment is a reference to the original 10 commandments handed down by God on how humans should behave. Reagan is often mistakenly given credit with coining the 11th commandment because he was a devout believer in it since first running for political office in California. Reagan wrote in the autobiography An American Life: The personal attacks against me during the primary finally became so heavy that the state Republican chairman, Gaylord Parkinson, postulated what he called the Eleventh Commandment: Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican. Its a rule I followed during that campaign and have ever since. When Reagan challenged President Gerald Ford for the Republican nomination in 1976, he declined to attack his opponent. I will not put aside the 11th commandment for anyone, Reagan said in announcing his candidacy. 11th Commandment Role in Campaigns The 11th commandment itself has become a line of attack during Republican primaries. Republican candidates often accuse their intraparty rivals of violating the 11th commandment by running negative television ads or leveling misleading charges. In the 2012 Republican presidential contest, for example, Newt Gingrich accused a super PAC that was supporting front-runner Mitt Romney of violating the 11th commandment in the run-up to the Iowa Caucuses. The super PAC, Restore Our Future, questioned Gingrichs record as speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. Gingrich responded on the campaign trail in Iowa by saying, I believe in Reagans 11th commandment. He then went on to criticize Romney, calling the former governor a Massachusetts moderate, among other things. Erosion of 11th Commandment Some conservative thinkers have argued that most Republican candidates have forgotten about or simply choose to ignore the 11th commandment in modern politics. They believe the abandonment of the principle has undermined the Republican Party in elections. In a tribute to Reagan following his death in 2004, U.S. Sen. Byron L. Dorgan said the 11th commandment has been long forgotten, regrettably. I am afraid that todays politics have taken a turn for the worse. President Reagan was agressive in debate but always respectful. I believe he personified the notion that you can disagree without being disagreeable. The 11th commandment was not intended to prohibit Republican candidates from engaging in reasonable debates over policy or pointing out differences between themselves and their rivals. Reagan, for example, was unafraid of challenging his fellow Republicans over their policy decisions and political ideology. Reagans interpretation of the 11th commandment was that the rule was meant to discourage personal attacks between Republican candidates. The line between a spirited conversation over policy and philosophical difference, though, and speaking ill of an opponent is often blurry.