Maslow’s Hierarchy and Event Planning

I am a self-labeled foodie. I love anything regarding food – eating, cooking, studying, traveling, etc. To me, a dish is a work of art, and the ingredients are the various mediums used to create the masterpiece.

Food is powerful. It can create memories (both good and bad), comfort, inspire, and energize. Food is a necessity of life and a truly remarkable one. We need shelter. We build and decorate our houses to become homes – to become places where families are raised and memories are made. We customize our basic need to take us from surviving to living. The same is true with food. We seek out recipes and dishes that enrich our lives rather than simply sustain them. In a nutshell, we spruce up Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to create happiness.
When you break an event down into its components, you are essentially addressing various needs along this hierarchy. Like we do in life, in event planning, you start at these basic needs and glamorize them into a memorable conglomeration.

For those that have been out of school for a minute, the following is a quick refresher and its application in event planning:

1. Physiological Needs: breathing / food / water / sleep / sex / homeostasis / excretion / shelter

Event Application:
-catering
-venue
-restroom access
-temperature modification

2. Safety: body / employment / resources / morality / family / health / property

Event Application:
-physical security (guards or police on-site, security cameras, etc.)
-budgeting
-first aid or healthcare access
-property security (lock up valuables, restricted access, monitoring money/property, etc.)

3. Love/Belonging: friendship / family / sexual intimacy

Event Application: event attendees

4. Esteem: self-esteem / confidence / achievement / respect of others / respect by others

Event Application: how you treat your clients, staff, and guests

5. Self-Actualization: morality / creativity / spontaneity / problem solving / lack of prejudice / acceptance of facts

Event Application:
-designing the event
-managing the event
-planning for contingencies

Fulfill these basic needs at a creative and extreme level, and you will have a remarkable event!