MODERN MASLOW

McGee adapts a core psychological principle to the world of business.

In this debut business book, the author, a sales and product manager, takes the familiar concept of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs—the idea that basic survival requirements must be met before people can focus on higher-level cognitive, aesthetic, and self-actualizing accomplishments—and applies it to the workplace. After a review of the history of the idea, including Abraham Maslow’s own attempts to apply it to the business world, McGee devotes a chapter to each category of needs, from the physiological to the transcendent, to explore how people can maximize their performance at work and find success in a corporate setting. Using examples from his own career and from published research, the author discusses how readers should seek to improve their physical health by eating well, exercising, and sleeping enough; build a team of employees with a solid and cohesive culture; learn to tolerate discomfort as an important step toward achieving more; and develop a sense of grace and gratitude in the face of hardship. McGee makes frequent references to popular authors like Tim Ferriss, Malcolm Gladwell, Arianna Huffington, and Eric Ries, and he does an excellent job of concisely summarizing relevant works. The author also helpfully provides a clear-eyed look at the mistakes he himself has made on the way to success (“Early in my career, I would beat myself up for every minor failure, holding back a key learning opportunity when challenges arose”), including moments of vulnerability that make his achievements seem more the product of concerted work than mere luck. While the book’s core concepts will be familiar to readers who have more than a passing acquaintance with business books, McGee’s enthusiasm and his use of Maslow’s hierarchy as a framing device for his advice add a unique twist that may draw in pop psychology readers as well.

An engaging psychological perspective on achieving success at work.