I decided to write about the 6 core human needs Tony Robbins has identified over more than 40 years of working with people. These are
Needs of the personality
- Certainty – an assurance you can avoid pain and gain pleasure, safety, and security
- Variety – the need for unknown, change, new stimuli, and adventure
- Significance – feeling unique, of value, important, special or needed, independence
- Love / Connection – a strong feeling of closeness or union with someone or something
Needs of the spirit
- Growth – expansion of capacity, capability or understanding
- Contribution – the sense of service and focus on helping, giving to and supporting others.
I attended Tony Robbins’ Unleash your Power Within workshop years ago and there, I identified my needs as Variety and Growth. It made sense at the time as my business involved learning lots of different things.
I thought that these needs would be the same but after doing the short quiz today (1) – Connection came out. Like with most of these tests, we require all of these things to a certain extent but there will be some that stand out.
With each need, there is an up and a downside. For those with connection, getting to know and bonding with people is important for us but it’s also hard for us to say no. Don’t I know it?
What are your needs today?
Footnotes