“Attract Human” is the concept of authentic, everyday interactions with people. “Tribes”, “community” and other recent terms describe this affect, but how can we incorporate within our daily interactions? How can we attract people to our ideas, concepts, thoughts or even products without considering the human component? Work, soccer games, places of worship, products….every place has one thing in common, how to attract real people with unique issues, dilemmas, backgrounds and desires?
In todays revenue focused pools, we market, sell and create content less about people and more about numbers (data, studies and focus groups). Sales people seek Potteresque tools to increase leads while marketers value a conglomerate of personas to shape targeted campaigns.
But aren’t we all individuals? Do we think EXACTLY alike or intrinsically share the SAME desires? Yes and maybe.
Individuals are unique regardless of culture, family or extraneous circumstances. I am a father of identical twins and herby attest to the fact that no two humans, regardless of genetic make-up are identical. Humans share intrinsic needs (achievement, goals, personal satisfaction) while each desire comes from completely different perspectives.
Let’s utilize recruiting as an example. Corporations refer to the department as “talent acquisition”. This elicits an act of acquiring skills, not humans, thus removing the “soul” from the equation. Corporations are programmed to advertise a job, seeking a specific skill versus a person that can perform a desired function. The process continues by retaining the skills of individuals until the corporation no longer requires the skills or the skill set is obsolete. Decisions are based on “keeping the business profitable”.
People are professionally programmed to find a job, keep a job, advance their career, grow old and retire. The missing layer is the individuals fundamental needs for growth, respect, security and survival (pay). Corporations are made up of people, unfortunately organization + people = amazingly disconnected.
Marketers spend millions on generational data; Gen Z is _____ or Gen X desires ____ The world changes, technology creates a smaller globe, yet people are the same, they only express themselves differently. Humans are humans. Per Maslow’s hierarchy we require;
- Self actualization: self growth
- Esteem: respect and admire, accepted & valued by others
- Love: an intense feeling of deep affection
- Safety: refer to the need for security and protection
- Physiological: These include survival needs like need for sleep, food, air, and reproduction.
The most fundamental and basic four layers of the pyramid contain what Maslow called “deficiency needs” or “d-needs”: esteem, friendship and love, security, and physical needs. If these “deficiency needs” are not met – with the exception of the most fundamental (physiological) need – there may not be a physical indication, but the individual will feel anxious and tense
When you begin the recruiting (dating) process, does your content focus on these fundamental needs? More importantly does your organization focus on the human versus a skill? Reading about layoffs is not a recipe for safety or love. Daunting annual performance reviews will never evoke a sense of security. Corporations focus on profits provide zero path to self growth for the majority of employees.
My goal is not earth shattering, nor is it groundbreaking. My professional career has always revolved around recruiting and how to create a better format. Luckily, I am surrounded professionally & personally by people from all walks of life who share a common thought; be human. #AttractHuman
