A matter of trust is fundamental to human nature. We want to trust each other – help each other – get along. If we couldn’t trust people to stop at red lights, how could our traffic operate at all? Trust is a fine balance. There is blind trust, and there is wise trust. Here is… Continue reading A Matter of Trust…
Category: Money Behaviors
You Spend More on Accessories When Purchased with a Big Item
We are likely to spend more money for accessories when purchased with an expensive item like a new dress, sofa, or car than if we purchased them alone. Here’s why, and how you can save money by avoiding it. My husband and I bought a new living room sofa that was a fair amount of… Continue reading You Spend More on Accessories When Purchased with a Big Item
Since When is Saving Money Rational?
Budgeting seems so rational. You merely have to calculate how much you want to have at retirement, look at the number of working years, and save a certain amount per year. Voila! Financial brochures make it look so darned simple – you must be the only one not doing it. Unfortunately, life, and the human… Continue reading Since When is Saving Money Rational?
Why You Avoid Money Decisions
Not deciding – is making a decision -to do nothing. Sometimes it is because we have way too many choices. According to Statista we have 8,970 mutual funds from which to choose. It can be overwhelming! Sometimes we fear we’ll regret the choice we made. This is called Regret Aversion and is a common human… Continue reading Why You Avoid Money Decisions
If The World Stopped, How Important Would All of Your Appointments Be?
It might be fair to say that if some major tragedy hit us, a lot of our everyday activities would pale in comparison. They would lose priority, and relevance. After September 11, 2001 I was shut out of my office on Wall Street for 3 weeks. Upon return, everything on my desk just didn’t seem… Continue reading If The World Stopped, How Important Would All of Your Appointments Be?
Dividing Your Money into Buckets – Good or Bad?
We all do it. We divide our money into buckets, physically or mentally for special purposes. There are buckets that are specifically defined by a financial structure, such as a mortgage or a 529 college savings fund. And then there are the other buckets that we mentally create to help drive our own behaviors. Sometimes… Continue reading Dividing Your Money into Buckets – Good or Bad?
More Money May Not be the Answer
I started equestrian lessons about 3 years ago because I love horses and had dreamed of doing this most of my life. Aside from landing in the dust a couple of times, and being stuck on a stubborn horse facing into the corner of the barn, I also learned about some more bad money behaviors.… Continue reading More Money May Not be the Answer
How to Manage Your Money Buckets & Behaviors
In our last blog we talked about mental accounting – how we separate our money into buckets in our minds. If we were all completely rational about it, generally speaking we would look at what we earn on our savings, what we pay on our debt, how our taxes are affected, and pay off our… Continue reading How to Manage Your Money Buckets & Behaviors
Saving Money & The Marshmallow Test – Would You Pass?
Dr. Walter Mischel, PhD, conducted a test with 4-year old children in the 1960’s. The children were offered a marshmallow sitting in front of them. If they waited and didn’t eat it, they would receive two marshmallows instead. It’s a fun exercise all about self-control – regulating emotions and behaviors. Dr. Mischel is still following… Continue reading Saving Money & The Marshmallow Test – Would You Pass?
Are You Spending, and Eating, on Automatic Pilot?
We all use the feeling or intuitive side of our brain more often than the thinking side of our brain. We get breakfast, ship the kids off to school, drive to work, fetch coffee, say good morning…all largely on auto-pilot. Mindless Eating If you think about it, we also eat that way. Brian Wansink, PhD… Continue reading Are You Spending, and Eating, on Automatic Pilot?