The one thing you’re missing in your financial plan that could make all the difference
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Many people know they should be doing more to secure their financial future, but often find themselves stuck in a cycle of procrastination.
What seems like a small hesitation could be holding you back from achieving the financial freedom you’ve always wanted.
A closer look at our own behaviours reveals some surprising truths about why we resist change, and how those tendencies are affecting our wealth.
Many people recognise the need to get their finances in order, but actually taking action? That’s where things often stall.
For those feeling stuck in a financial rut, it might help to know that this is quite a common challenge.
Human nature tends to favour the familiar, preferring stability over change. This tendency is known as status quo bias.
Brad Klontz, a certified financial planner, financial psychologist, and author of *Start Thinking Rich*, explains this concept further.
‘We have an aversion to making changes,’ he said. ‘In general, it requires thinking, it requires energy and activity. And we are cognitively lazy, essentially.’
On top of that, putting money towards paying off debt or saving for retirement means practising delayed gratification—setting aside funds for future goals rather than enjoying them now.
To overcome these hurdles, Klontz suggested putting systems in place that would help spark motivation to break through financial inertia.
He explained: ‘It’s hard, but it really is the key to becoming rich.’
Many people tend to spend money as soon as it hits their bank account, falling into a financial routine that feels hard to break.
The solution? Determining what you'd prefer your money to be doing instead.
Klontz advised: ‘Step one is having a super exciting vision of why you’re doing this. What are your financial goals?’
He went on, ‘You’re delaying gratification, which you’re not wired to do. So you have to have a compelling vision that you’re emotionally attached to.’
This could involve long-term goals like retirement, medium-term plans like buying a home, or short-term needs like paying off debt or building an emergency fund.
With a clear goal in mind, it becomes much easier to create a spending plan that allocates funds to these objectives.
Klontz suggested creating separate accounts for each goal and giving them personalised names.
For example, if you were saving for a holiday, you could label the account ‘Family trip to Italy 2025’ in your bank’s online dashboard.
‘It’s a really important hack,’ he said. ‘It’s no longer just an account with money in it since there is an emotional attachment to the goal.’
Once the accounts were set up, Klontz recommended setting up automatic transfers, either directly from your paycheck or from your checking account.
This way, you could rest easy knowing your money was safely working toward your goals.
‘If you rely on yourself to every month to check and see how much money you have left, and then write a check to one of these goals, it’s going to fail,’ he warned.
‘(Automation) basically takes away all the friction so you never have to think about it.’
So, what’s holding you back from taking control of your finances? Is it the fear of change, or just the comfort of staying where you are? Share your thoughts in the comments.
What seems like a small hesitation could be holding you back from achieving the financial freedom you’ve always wanted.
A closer look at our own behaviours reveals some surprising truths about why we resist change, and how those tendencies are affecting our wealth.
Many people recognise the need to get their finances in order, but actually taking action? That’s where things often stall.
For those feeling stuck in a financial rut, it might help to know that this is quite a common challenge.
Human nature tends to favour the familiar, preferring stability over change. This tendency is known as status quo bias.
Brad Klontz, a certified financial planner, financial psychologist, and author of *Start Thinking Rich*, explains this concept further.
‘We have an aversion to making changes,’ he said. ‘In general, it requires thinking, it requires energy and activity. And we are cognitively lazy, essentially.’
On top of that, putting money towards paying off debt or saving for retirement means practising delayed gratification—setting aside funds for future goals rather than enjoying them now.
To overcome these hurdles, Klontz suggested putting systems in place that would help spark motivation to break through financial inertia.
He explained: ‘It’s hard, but it really is the key to becoming rich.’
Many people tend to spend money as soon as it hits their bank account, falling into a financial routine that feels hard to break.
The solution? Determining what you'd prefer your money to be doing instead.
Klontz advised: ‘Step one is having a super exciting vision of why you’re doing this. What are your financial goals?’
He went on, ‘You’re delaying gratification, which you’re not wired to do. So you have to have a compelling vision that you’re emotionally attached to.’
This could involve long-term goals like retirement, medium-term plans like buying a home, or short-term needs like paying off debt or building an emergency fund.
With a clear goal in mind, it becomes much easier to create a spending plan that allocates funds to these objectives.
Klontz suggested creating separate accounts for each goal and giving them personalised names.
For example, if you were saving for a holiday, you could label the account ‘Family trip to Italy 2025’ in your bank’s online dashboard.
‘It’s a really important hack,’ he said. ‘It’s no longer just an account with money in it since there is an emotional attachment to the goal.’
Once the accounts were set up, Klontz recommended setting up automatic transfers, either directly from your paycheck or from your checking account.
This way, you could rest easy knowing your money was safely working toward your goals.
‘If you rely on yourself to every month to check and see how much money you have left, and then write a check to one of these goals, it’s going to fail,’ he warned.
‘(Automation) basically takes away all the friction so you never have to think about it.’
So, what’s holding you back from taking control of your finances? Is it the fear of change, or just the comfort of staying where you are? Share your thoughts in the comments.
