Michael Jordan Essay, Research Paper

In Jim Naughton?s book Taking To The Air, the main character is Michael Jordan. The book is Jordan?s life and talents. Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York. He was the fourth child and the youngest of three boys. Michael Jordan is by any measure, the most popular athlete in America and perhaps the best-known figure in the world. I have chosen to use Maslow?s Theory of Hierarchy of Need to analysis Jordan?s personality. I will do my analysis by focusing on Jordan?s healthy personality, which is marked by his continued personal growth.

Michael Jordan?s parents are James and Deloris Jordan. James began work as a forklift operator for General Electric, rose to dispatcher and retired as a supervisor. Deloris took a job after her children were in school at a drive-through window for United Carolina Bank. She worked her way up to head teller and retired as chief of Customer Service. Jordan has two brothers and two sisters; James Ronald, Larry, Deloris and Roslyn. He married Juanita Vanoy. Juanita, who was a loan officer at Chicago Bank before marring Jordan, Michael and Juanita, have two sons; Jeffrey Michael and Marcus James.

Jordan?s friends admired him and value his friendship because he is a considerate and noble man. The Jordan?s are "pretty laid-back people". (Naughton, 1997, Pg. 19) Fred Whitfield, a friend of Jordan states, "he was just a real clean-cut guy with his head on straight." (Naughton, 1992, Pg. 18) "He hates to be embarrassed, he can?t take that. He can dish it out all the time, though. "If you make a mistake, he?ll let you know about it," states Buzz Peterson, a college roommate. Kevin Jones, another college friend, to whom Michael gave one of his tailored tuxedos, states "these gifts are Jordan?s way of making sure his buddies don?t get left behind." (Naughton, 1992, Pg. 23) Rod Higgins of the Golden State Warriors, who is Jordan?s best friend in the league states "to deal with him, you have to go right back to him just to make the night not so long." (Naughton, 1992, Pg. 22-23) Adolph Shiver was Michael?s summer time playmate at Empire Park in Wilmington, his classmate at Laney High School and began again Chapel Hill. Jordan has a big circle of friends but these were a few of the closet.

Beneath this verbal sparring, friends say, is the thoughtful Jordan who has dedicated his time to help charities. Several summers ago, after playing for two days in a McDonald?s charity golf tournament in Greensboro, Jordan chartered a plane so he could make it to Fresno by 7:30 that evening for Rod Higgins charity basketball game. That same summer, after the Bulls had been bounced from the playoffs, Jordan took his Father, Shiver, Whitfield and Kearns on a 10-day cross-country trip, which was paid by Jordan. "Once you are friends with him he really works at keeping that friendship and nursing that friendship," Higgins says.

Michael is a talented person that has achieved many dreams that he might have thought was impossible. Jordan?s goal is to buy a basketball team when he retires from basketball this year. Jordan along with Master P, wants to buy the Charlotte Hornets but this is still uncertain. Jordan not only is a talented athlete but he is a scholar. Jordan graduated from North Carolina State University with a degree in a Cultural Geography. It seemed almost useful field of studies for a young man who sensed that he might soon be touring the country or at least its airport, arenas and hotels, as a professional ballplayer.

Jordan is a friendly and outgoing person. The reason I say this is because as far as the way he interacts with others Deloris Jordan says, "He was the most outgoing of her children, the one who liked people more." Fred Whitfield, a friend of Jordan states, "He?s easy to talk to, easy to laugh and joke around with. That?s the reason our personalities just kind of clicked. He can walk into a roomful of white people and get along with everyone in there, from somebody who is in the Klan to the most liberal person in the room. And he can walk into a roomful of black people and do the same thing, from the person who is the bourgeois to the person who is the most streetwise." Jordan?s sense of humor is pugnacious. For example Jordan cracks about how he?s lost most of his hair are generally effective. "With his friends and people who are close to him, Jordan will see something and ride you and crack on you" says Rod Higgins. It shows that Jordan has a great sense of humor that makes him friendly and outgoing.

Over all Jordan has a great personality. Deloris Jordan says, "He was the biggest handful. If there was something to be tried he was the one to try it. He was going to test you to the end. Michael learned about the world by challenging those close to him. It was a secure, if not contentious, way of learning his own limits and it allowed him to give full range to his competitive without risking any real damage. Deloris Jordan continues talking about Jordan?s personality by stating, "In sports he challenged his brother, Larry, who was one year older and in academics he competed with his sister, Rosalyn, who was one year younger. In other matters he challenged his parents." As a result, Jordan is a devoted father, husband, son and friend.

Not only does he compete with his family but has another aspect of his personality. Besides his greater career as a great athletic star, he promotes AIDS awareness, does a lot of charity golf tournaments for children and works with special Olympians. Jordan has a great love for children; he helps and gives them that attention that they don?t have at home. Many of these children grow up in ghettos accustomed to the sounds of gunfire. Jordan is the children?s hero at the Henry Horner Homes project. He helps them get over whatever humps they might have in life. For example children not having parents, parents in jail or parents that are drug addicted. Michael Jordan has a playground named Michael Jordan?s Playground and he has his own charitable foundation called Michael Jordan Foundation. This foundation is one-million-a-year children?s charity. Jordan also has a chain of "Flight 23" sportswear stores in North Carolina and serves on the board of JUMP, Inc., his personal corporation. "The good part about being me," Jordan says, "is being able to stretch myself and meet people and help them."

Maslow?s theorized that humans are driven by a need for self-actualization, which is the need to fulfill one?s, potential. Michael Jordan in many ways achieved his potential because he thrives on his work and he enjoys his sense of humor. In Maslow theory, the person can be both childlike and mature, both rational and intuitive, both conforming and rebellious. Jordan in many ways is child like when he?s helping those children that look up to him as a role model but is able to help them in a mature way that they don?t have at home. What I mean is that Jordan gives them love and attention they need. Jordan shows the children he cares what goes on in there life. Michael Jordan wants to give children what he had as a child the love affection of his parents. Showing concern makes Jordan reduce to there age level if it takes him acting like a child or make him look funny. Jordan wants children to live knowing that they have a friend that cares, live all they can of there childhood and try to be all they can in life. As a child "If there was something to be tried he was the on e to try it" Deloris Johnson says. "If someone needed to be disciplined more, he was the one who needed it. He was going to test you to the end." (Naughton, 1992, Pg. 41) "Michael was always? testingus." James Jordan told Red Kerr. "If we told him the stove was hot, don?t touch, he?d touch it. If there was a wet-paint sign, he would touch the paint to see if it was wet." (Naughton, 1992, Pg. 42) Jordan wants children to test themselves to prove to that they can do it to.

Maslow found that self-actualizers are accurately in to reality and that they?re at peace with themselves. He found that they are open and spontaneous and that they retain a fresh appreciation of the world around them. Socially, they are sensitive to others? needs and enjoy rewarding interpersonal relations. At the Henry Horner Homes Project, Michael has written his legend. "It is sentimental to pretend that he can solve the many problems that beset this pace, irresponsible to imagine that he owes a greater responsibility to these kids than one owes them one?s self. But he could focus attention on these children?s problems simply by crossing the street. These kids, and others like them, are not Jordan?s obligation, but they are his opportunity. And with so much on the lives, who would you rather see with the ball?" (Naughton, 1992 Pg. 250-251)

Michael Jordan has not only grown as a great athletic but also as a good human being. Jordan loves children and he will help those he can. Through Maslow?s Theory, I could see Michael Jordan Personality. He shows that he fulfills one?s potential and has a nature of the healthy personality. He strikes a nice balance between many polarities in personality. Michael Jordan, indeed, by any measure, is the most popular athletic in America and perhaps the best-known sports figure in the world.