What do you believe people want the most in life?

I attended a fireside at which the speaker discussed "triple 'A' protection."  He was referring to three basic human needs that are often neglected: Acceptance, Approval, and Appreciation.  He explained that when we give these things to others they will usually give them in return.
   If you have studied Maslow's hierarchy of needs, these three related things fit into the "social needs" section of the pyramid.  Let me explain.  The most basic of human needs we call "survival needs."  These include air to breathe, food to eat, water to drink, and shelter from the storm.  If we are deprived of these things we lose the ability to care about anything else.  I suppose that one of the positive effects of our habit of fasting is that we learn to set aside survival needs while attempting to develop high needs--spiritual needs.
   The second level of Maslow's hierarchy (there is more than one model because he developed and changed his ideas over time) is called "security needs."  This involved knowing where your next meal is coming from, knowing that there is plenty of breathable air, knowing that you have a shelter from the storm.  Security also involves personal safety: knowing how to avoid the bully at school, or the abuse at home.  For example, the student who is worried about which route to take after school to avoid a bully--that student will not be able to pay much attention to the teacher's prepared lesson, unless the teacher's lesson discusses how to deal with bullies.
   When these lower level needs are met and security is not a worry, a person develops social needs.  This is where the triple A comes into play.  Most of us are functioning at the social needs level.

•    Acceptance: we want to belong.  
•    Approval: we want others to agree with our way of thinking.
•    Appreciation: we want others to be pleased with the things we do.

   

“I believe that appreciation is a holy thing--that when we look for what's best in a person we happen to be with at the moment, we're doing what God does all the time. So in loving and appreciating our neighbor, we're participating in something sacred.” ― Fred Rogers

  Sometimes we discipline by withholding these things.  This causes more grief than it cures any bad behavior.  The Lord's way is to bolster his children with these things which brings them to obey out of love.  We would do well to follow the Lord's lead in this as Fred Rogers suggests.

There are higher levels to Maslow's hierarchy.  When a person's social needs are met, they will sometimes develop ego needs, or the need for power.  There are a few people form whom this need is over powering.

The top of Maslow's pyramid is called "self actualization."  This means fulfilling oneself by developing talents.  It can also mean fulfilling oneself by sacrificing one's own needs to help others achieve their needs.  Mothers do this the most.

What people want varies due to circumstance.  Their needs can usually be understood through Maslow's theories.