Behavior
January 12, 2012
Present and Future Selves Do Battle
Squared Away keeps hammering away at this point in various ways, because it seems so central to our financial well-being: we can’t fully relate to our future selves, which makes it difficult to save money.
This is the psychologist’s take on what mainstream economists would call “discounting” the future – that is, the future is less important than what’s going on today. Buying a new pair of shoes or an ice cream cone is a lot more fun than saving money for a future utility bill or a distant retirement date.
In this humorous Ted video, London Business School professor Dan Goldstein explains that all humans are engaged in an “unequal battle” between our present self (the consumer) and our distant self (the saver).
“The future self doesn’t even have a lawyer present,” he said. Goldstein entertains as he proposes ways to intervene in our inner battle.
