Maslow’s Pyramid Is a Marketing Lie

1960s-era consultants mistranslated a valuable lesson for growth

Illustration: Laurie Rollitt

Chances are you’re familiar with Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, a pyramid with self-actualization depicted at the top. You likely learned about it in your Introduction to Psychology course in college or saw it diagrammed on Facebook. As it’s typically presented, the hierarchy indicates that…