How to outsmart yourself and start taking care of your future

I always wondered why people aren't saving for retirement. Life expectancy has increased, so it is logical that more money will be needed for a comfortable existence after leaving work. Yet the average 15 years away from retirement only saves one third of what is needed to maintain their current standard of living. People spend money today, worsening their well-being in the future.

You know your weaknesses and can predict how you will think and act in the future. This means that you can oppose yourself. Don't expect to magically have motivation and willpower tomorrow. Expect the worst of yourself.

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• If you want to save money, turn on the monthly automatic transfer of money to your savings account. Then you won't have free money to spend on nonsense.

• If you're looking for a healthy diet, always keep healthy snacks on hand. Prepare food for the week ahead on Sunday, and freeze several servings in case of emergency.

• Need to start a project that has been postponed for a long time? Prepare everything you need in the evening. For example, in the morning you want to finish your article. Then in the evening close all unnecessary tabs in the browser, leaving only the document with the text.

Of course, this does not guarantee the absence of procrastination. Try to insure yourself additionally:

• If, while working at the computer, you are often distracted on social networks, install an extension that limits the time on such sites. For example, Freedom .

• If you want to exercise in the morning, but find it difficult to get yourself out of bed, set an alarm that forces you to solve math problems ( Puzzle Alarm Clock ) or scan a barcode ( Barcode Alarm ).

• Need to save money? Unsubscribe from all discount mailings and block sites where you often buy.

• If you want to play sports, report to a friend, or sign up for a joint activity and pay for it. Cost and social pressure will help keep you from skipping workouts.

And remember: nothing is as motivating as the good old deadline. Install it and choose backfire in case of delay.

For example, write a letter to yourself in the future. Those who wrote a letter to themselves in 20 years did more sports in the following days than those who wrote to themselves in three months.

Another option is to bring the future closer. When we think about upcoming events in days rather than years, it seems to us that they will come sooner. This was confirmed by an experiment... Participants who thought of retirement in days (10,950 days) rather than years (30 years) started saving four times faster.

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• Write a letter from your future self. Imagine what your life will be like in a few decades and what will be important to you.

• Set deadlines for goals in weeks, days, or even hours.

• Visualize the path to the goal in the form of a table, where each square is one day. Circle those elements that represent important milestones. Each evening, write down what you did for the day and cross out the box.

• In the morning, imagine that you are completely satisfied with the past day. Think about what work will give you this feeling, and start with it.

When we set goals, we usually focus on long-term results: lose weight , get a raise, learn a skill. While these goals are inspiring, they do little to help you complete the required steps day after day. To do this, it is more useful to reformulate your actions in terms of instant gratification.

• Think about your most important goal 20 years from now. If nothing comes to mind, write a letter from yourself in the future. Highlight the main achievement in a prominent place.

• List specific actions that will bring you closer to your goal. For example, if you want to write a book, determine the number of words you need to write in a day. Add every deadline activity to your calendar or task tracker.

• Write down everything that you want to do instead of the necessary thing. Go to social networks, reply to mail, and so on. For each item on this list, come up with a strategy to avoid distractions. For example, block social media pages, set aside some time to parse mail.

• Make a list of ideas that will help automate the required actions or make them easier to complete. Incorporate them into your daily routine. Add recurring tasks to your calendar.

• Promise to move towards your goal, better publicly, then you will feel obligated. Think of the consequences you will have to put up with if you don't meet the condition.

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• Count the number of working days or hours until the deadline. Mark them on a sticker and stick them in a prominent place, remembering to update regularly.

• Write down any quick rewards from your actions needed to achieve your goal. Try to enjoy the process.

It is difficult for us to make decisions about what to spend time and money on, what to eat, how often to exercise. Therefore, there cannot be one simple answer to how to deal with procrastination. But by understanding the cognitive distortion that prevents you from seeing yourself in the future as you do yourself in the present, you will take one step closer to your goals.

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