花钱的心理学以及你为什么会花这么多钱

Ever wonder why you spent so much money on a pair of pants that don't even fit? 或者买一把 彩票 当你知道你赢得头奖的机会几乎为零时? 你并不孤单. The Nobel Prize-winning science of behavioral finance has tackled these questions for several decades and helps explain why people relate to money as they do.

In a perfect world we'd all resist the urge to splurge, and instead save the right amount for a 舒适的退休. Call it gut instinct or rules of thumb: Most people rely on emotional shortcuts to make their financial decisions. 心理学家说，这些规则是随着 认知捷径 in the human brain — if you think through every move you make, it takes a long time. 但在金融领域, shortcuts can make you see patterns that don't exist and point you toward irrelevant information.

By understanding the reasons for spending money and how many of your financial decisions are subconscious, you can become more aware of ways to change your usual way of doing things — which can lead to 更好的消费习惯.

常见问题和简单修复

问题1:未来是遥远的

For early humans the most vexing threats were the most immediate — securing food and keeping marauding beasts away — not a potential threat many years later. 由于现代化，现在是相当安全的, a plentiful food supply and beasts that stay away from human population centers. But when it comes to money, we still have trouble making careful judgments about the future.

Money in the distant future is not considered as much compared to what you want to spend now. 例如, a vacation next year is much more concrete than buying a home five years from now, 或者30年后退休. The further away the goal is, the harder it is to properly evaluate all aspects around saving.

问题2:信用不是“真实的”

人们倾向于用信用卡比用现金花更多的钱. 为什么? 使用信用卡，你只有在账单来的时候才会感到花钱的痛苦. 使用现金会让痛苦更加瞬间发生.

问题3:金钱不等于时间

大多数人都知道他们每年赚多少钱. 但有多少人能说出他们每小时或每天挣多少钱呢? Relating an expense to how long it took you to make that amount can help you look at the decision in a different light. 65,000美元的年薪听起来肯定比178美元的日薪好. 当面对日常消费决策时，冲动消费就像3美元.50 for a cup of coffee or $65 for a new item of clothing seem like larger amounts against $178 a day.

Additionally, let’s illustrate how money saved from the $65 clothing item could grow over the years. 如果你把每个月的65美元存起来，然后每两周发一次工资, what might that savings look like in a basic savings account 5 years down the road instead of on a closet floor? 65美元× 26张薪水× 5年= 8450美元加上任何利息. So, a larger item that looks out of reach may be attainable with a little self-discipline.

问题4:追踪很困难

Many people are unaware how much money they spend each day, and the money quietly seeps out. To determine how much you spend, keep track of what's spent for 30 days, then rate each transaction. Tracking your spending can help you reprioritize w在这里 money should really be spent.

储蓄通常被视为一种牺牲. 然而, 如果你开始存钱，看到余额开始增长, 它可以变得更充实. 有一些微妙的方法可以帮助你调整支出 增加你的储蓄 by 做小的调整.

 

情绪化的决定

Here are some questions to help you determine if you're making an emotional financial decision.

• 它能给我带来快乐吗?
  对一些人来说，购买，比如鞋子，是纯粹的快乐. For others it might be a watch, a necktie or a decadent meal at the hottest restaurant in town. 从1到5分给你的购物行为打分，5分是最令人愉快的. If you find most of your purchases rank low and they don't bring you much fulfillment, 是时候三思而后行了. Not only does this make your spending more meaningful, but you also might end up saving money.
• 我买这东西的回报是多少?
  T在这里's nothing wrong with buying a lottery ticket 在这里 or t在这里, but understand your 赢得头奖的机会 极低(2.92亿分之一). Yet people still believe they could be one of the lucky few because they see real-life examples of people who have won. They pay too much attention to low-probability events such as winning the lottery.
• 等待会有什么影响?
  即使你挣的不多, 时间是不可替代的, 当你年轻的时候，你可能有很多. 怎么强调它的力量都不为过 从小就开始存钱，甚至到 教孩子存钱. 随着年龄的增长, 生活在财务上变得更加复杂和昂贵, 而且没有办法知道你能存多少钱. 今天的少量储蓄和投资可能会在未来带来丰厚的回报.