Profitable ways to retrain your brain

Building wealth is more than clicking your own lucky number. It’s also about cultivating the habits of mind that make saving second nature—or at least a whole lot less painful. But as someone who’s ever tried to get in shape can tell you, changing behavior never that easy. Sometimes you need a clever “cheat” to help you on your way. So here are just few brain tricks that can speed you on the path to financial guild.


1. plan a savings goal that matches your money mindset.
hand throwing dart


When you hear the word “saving,” do you imagine the retirement you hope to enjoy? Or does your brain go right to the 401(k) forms you need to fill out? For those who tend to focus on the big picture, a specific target (say, to reach a balance of $50,000 by a certain date) can motivate saving, says Gülden Ülkümen, a business professor at the University of Southern California. If you’re thinking mainly of the nuts and bolts, though, picking a dollar figure may make the task feel harder. Instead, concentrate on putting away as much as you can.

1. Set a savings goal that matches your money mindset.
    hand throwing dart
    Getty Images—(c) PM Images

    When you hear the word “saving,” do you imagine the retirement you hope to enjoy? Or does your brain go right to the 401(k) forms you need to fill out? For those who tend to focus on the big picture, a specific target (say, to reach a balance of $50,000 by a certain date) can motivate saving, says Gülden Ülkümen, a business professor at the University of Southern California. If you’re thinking mainly of the nuts and bolts, though, picking a dollar figure may make the task feel harder. Instead, concentrate on putting away as much as you can.

2. Whatever the goal, keep it real.
  
    

    “You don’t want goals that are so aggressive that you’ll lose steam,” says Lisa Ordóñez of the University of Arizona, who has studied the effects of goals on behavior.

Look forward for More