When we do competitive sports and even more so cycling, our position in relation to adversity and therefore our place in the race ranking is THE major concern. This motivation translates into a sudden desire to feel better than the other. But isn't there a risk of getting lost and feeding frustrations? And what if, in order to achieve fulfillment, we managed to no longer worry about the results of others? And besides, what is performance? Do you have to perform well to be happy or do you have to be happy to perform well? Maslow's theory gives us an interesting line of thought here. I'll give it a try!
By Jean-François Tatard – Photos: @depositphotos.com / DR
In sport, and in the business world too, performance is often expressed in the form of a ranking and therefore a comparison with others. It is not uncommon that to measure the level of performance, you are asked what your place is in the ranking. We are rarely interested in progression, and we do not check the degree of improvement of the individual. However, performance is multifactorial. It is never acquired in the end. And it depends on so many other factors… Comparison to others is not enough. And I would even say that it is in some way dangerous.
The psycho-sociology of sport
This is nothing new and I am not telling you anything new, the psycho-sociology of sport tells us that the essence of performance lies in the mind. We can therefore deduce that the key to performance inevitably involves psychological fulfillment. And so this psychological approach takes a completely different turn in light of the analysis of Maslow's research, in terms of self-realization and personal development.
How to achieve self-fulfillment in sport?
If there is one question that has been fashionable in recent years – and not just in sport – it is to know how to access happiness. But also, how to access self-realization, or how to accomplish oneself. We are inundated with theories about these subjects on social networks. But ultimately, this old theory of Maslow offers us very simple, very clear and very pragmatic answers on which we can very easily rely, we cyclists, or more generally athletes.
Who is Maslow?
Abraham Maslow (1908 – 1970) is a famous American psychologist considered the father of the humanistic approach. He is best known for his explanation of motivation through the hierarchy of needs, which is often represented by a pyramid. Maslow was born in 1908 in Brooklyn (New York) and is the son of Russian immigrants of Jewish origin. He remains a reference for many psychologists around the world. His pyramid theory is systematically included in all business school programs.
Abraham Maslow thus developed a theory according to which An essential aspect of being human is to develop one's personal potential. Every individual aspires to satisfy various types of needs, from the most basic (hunger, thirst, etc.) to the most existential (self-fulfillment). And the major postulate of this concept is that higher needs can only appear if lower needs are already satisfied. As I was telling you, this is one of the most taught motivation models, particularly in management. This model has the advantagetagand to be immediately understandable and striking.
How does the pyramid work?
The hierarchy of needs in the pyramid means that man only achieves the full development of his psyche if he is satisfied on all levels. : physiological, security, belonging, reconbirth and self-fulfillment. This hierarchy is generally represented in the form of a pyramid which, from the base to the top, distinguishes five levels of needs:
- Physiological needs: eating, drinking, breathing, sleeping, dressing, sexual activity
- Safety and protection needs: good health, housing, job stability, entourage, money.
- Belonging needs: need for love, affection, social life, friends, belonging to a group, a club, a community, etc.tager, to communicate.
- Esteem needs: self-esteem, esteem of others, respect of others, being reconnaked, express one's skills, have independence.
- Self-fulfillment needs: to flourish, to meditate, to deepen one's culture, to be consulted and listened to, autonomy, to live one's passion, personal development.
Need or desire?
Have you ever asked yourself the question of the difference between need and desire? The need is expressed by the brain. But it is unconscious. It is actually an emotion that signals its presence. And this same emotion will give you satisfaction or the opposite: non-satisfaction. While desire can be expressed and defined. It is in this sense that it is conscious. But yet its origin is also unconscious. Desires are also distinguished from needs in the sense that they can be satisfied in an imaginary world. The fulfillment of desires does not necessarily allow access to fulfillment. This is why it is fundamental to differentiate between one's own desires and one's own needs. For example, it is up to adults to ensure that the child's needs are satisfied and not the desires that sometimes mask and distort them. In short, this pyramid can very possibly be for all of us, a user guide for self-realization, from a methodological point of view. It can provide us with a quality theoretical foundation and help us better understand the different aspects that govern what will ultimately make us happiest. It personally made me realize that the so-called "happiness" state is the result of a concordance of different social, personal, psychological elements and that we can always act on these elements to access it.
To conclude
The idea behind this article is the realization that Happiness is not a coincidence but a consequence. The consequence of our choices and decisions that gradually lead us to climb one after the other the steps of this famous Maslow pyramid. This very subjective and very individual progression that leads you every day to do a little better than what you did the day before, to compare yourself only to what you were yesterday to lead you, in a perpetual process of progression, to always more fulfillment. To stop situating yourself in relation to others. To forget a little more often the rankings that place you at a rank and impose comparison on you.
Happiness is the result of a gradual and much more thoughtful journey than that. It is much less bestial and much more subtle. Because wanting to reach this state of grace by counting only on results and your place in a ranking, without worrying about your own needs and without considering your "own being" in its entirety, is - I announce to you - doomed to failure! Being efficient is above all being well in your head. And then, do not forget, you who also often read our articles on 3bikes.fr, I imagine that you run, swim and cycle. And yet doing sports as you already do is already an undeniable plus in your quest for happiness. It is also a question of philosophy: " Happiness is not having everything you want, but appreciating what you have. ».
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