The Disco Ball Model

Dale Roberts
Jun 15
3 min read

Updated: Jun 25

See your life from every angle

What if you could see your life goals not as a to-do list, not a bunch of naggy reminders, but as a glittering disco ball? Every mirrored facet reflecting a core need, every spin catching a new light on what it means to truly live well.

Welcome to the Disco Ball of Life — a visual framework inspired by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, but grounded in the real-life areas we navigate every day: family, career, friends, love, health, community, finances, and spirituality.

Why This Model?

Maslow’s classic pyramid of human needs—from food and safety, to belonging—has stood the test of time. But in real life, we don’t live in neat, hierarchical levels. We live in overlapping layers.

So, we took Maslow’s wisdom and turned it into something more dynamic, more celebratory of life —and more human. A wheel. A mirror. Lot's of mirrors. A disco ball.

Each Life Area, Five Core Needs

Every segment of the disco ball—each life area—addresses the five levels of human need:

Physiological: The basics that keep you alive
Safety: Stability, structure, and security
Belonging: Love, connection, and acceptance
Esteem: Recognition, confidence, mastery
Self-Actualisation / Self-Transcendence: Meaning, purpose, growth, contribution

Rather than separating these needs into silos, the model recognises that you can meet any human need through any area of life. It’s the reflection, not the hierarchy, that matters.

What Makes It a Disco Ball?

Because it shines differently depending on how you look at it or when you look at it. The light is different on different days, at certain times of year, even at different life stages. For some, there are times when the need for esteem might be mostly met by your career. At other times by community or family, or all of the above. Similarly finances are rarely just about basic needs, but safety and security, or the ability to support causes that matter to you.

Each facet reflects one aspect of need, and as life turns, the light catches a different combination. That’s the disco dance of life.

What Can You Do With It?

Reflect: What areas of your life are meeting which needs right now? What’s missing?
Balance: Instead of chasing everything through one area (like work), spread the love.
Grow: Move gently toward wholeness—not perfection—by nurturing underlit facets.
Celebrate: You’re already doing more than you realise. A disco ball is made of many small lights.

Why Circular, Not Linear?

Because human experience isn’t a climb, it’s a cycle. Life ebbs and flows. You don’t "graduate" from needing safety just because you’ve found purpose. You can feel a lack of belonging in one life area and abundant connection in another.

A circle reminds us: wholeness is not about climbing to the top, it’s about tending to all sides.

🪩 Final Word

The Disco Ball of Life is a tool for reflection, not judgment. A map, not a mandate. It gives you permission to be multi-faceted—to sparkle in your own unique way. To recognise that every part of life can hold meaning when we look at it through the lens of what we truly need.

Let your life turn. Let the light hit every side. Keep dancing.