Below Belief

I’ve been catching up on Rob’s blog – a blog about nothing (in particular). He writes hilariously about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs…
(I think he’s trying to revise for his psychology degree so I expect this was light relief). It reminded me of the management science part of my degree – the pert nipple bit anyway.

Like Freud, Maslow (1908-70) argued that our own internal motivations are a central aspect of our personality. Unlike Freud Maslow was not a crusty old perv, who practised only on white middle class jews and linked all our ills to fixations with orifices.
In Maslow’s view we are driven by a hierarchy of needs.
At the bottom our most basic needs are food, water, oxygen, rest, freedom from George Galloway etc. Until these are met, we cannot be motivated by anything else.
Next comes safety and comfort. So shelter, security, and perhaps that luxury goose feather duvet from Heal’s all count at this level.
Then attachment needs. When Paul Simon sang he was a rock and an island he was wrong. (Yes that was a metaphor). Humans have a basic need to love and to be loved, and not in the pert nipple sense either.
Next comes self esteem – we want to be recognised as the fabulous people we tell ourselves we are in the mirror. I am not sure where Anya Hindmarch bags come in, maybe that is Maslow’s point.
Now we seek harmony and beauty and order, almost like a naked revue.
Finally, we seek self-actualisation. This is a concept which means achieving our full potential. The drive to self-actualise is fundamental to human nature (Maslow argues) if our other needs have been met.
So, er, get on and self actualise if you aren’t already. Or at least have a nice cup of tea so your other needs are being met.

So I’ve spent all day today travelling to Texas. It’s a 15 hour door-to-door trip.
Here’s a few things about my journey:

• I secretly enjoy travelling alone, it gives me time to think. I thought a lot about lovely S today. And solutions to my frustrating work-life balance problems.
• I need to be more positive – I feel I’ve been a downward spiral recently. It’s unlike me.
• So I’ll get down to some good old American ranting – that normally does the trick
• American’s really annoy me with the way they speak. In particular they say (in a nasal, slightly camp tone) “…and your gate is going to be 53″ when they mean “the gate number for your flight is 53″. Is that really bad of me?
• Chinos. OMG. American men what are you doing? Stop buying them. And those little tasselled brown leather loafers. They’re awful.
• American’s are quite “cheap”. Everything has a cheapness about it. A mass-produced plasticity – I don’t know how they do it. Some of the cheap-looking things are probably quite expensive.
• I didn’t speak to anyone other than during a “food or beverage transaction”, it was a fairly anti-social journey
• US immigration is always a nerve-wracking experience. These men at the border have this knack of making you feel like a criminal. I suppose giving finger prints and facial photos kind of reinforces this but nevertheless they must get special training. America feels like a fortress. It doesn’t help that I travel on a visa which I was originally intending to use to work full time over here. And I’m never quite sure this is the right thing to use – I think you’re supposed to tell them it’s “unused” and return to the visa waiver programme. But if I don’t travel on the visa will they stop me because I’m not? And it doesn’t help that the visa has the “old” company name on it not the current one – so whenever they ask what company I work for I generally lie… This is probably not a good thing. And finally since I managed to put my passport in the wash, my visa now looks like it is a complete fake anyway. So I’m surprised I’m let in.
• I finished off my journey with a trip to the local sushi bar, some yummy fish and then to bed. To recoup for tomorrow’s meetings. The good thing about gaining 6 hours is you really do gain 6 hours. The luxury of tiredness and an “early” night is quite something. I’ll pay for it Friday