Do You Want to Be Happy?
By John Kreiser, B.S.W., R.S.W., Counsellor
Most people genuinely want to be happy. However happiness can not be pursued directly. We can become happier if we meet our basic human needs. If you can meet your basic psychological human needs and at the same time respect the rights of others to meet their needs then you have a supremely reasonable chance of becoming happier.
These human needs are universal and all human beings have these needs. However each individual meets these needs in their own unique way. These unique “wants” are portrayed as pictures within our mind much like a picture album. We are always comparing what we “want” with what we are getting from the real world.
Below you will find a list of these human needs. The other basic human need is one of survival. Survival needs include water, food, air, shelter and safety. When these basic survival needs are threatened these needs take priority and every individual will strive to meet his psychological needs after the threat has been staved off.