My daughter’s bus leaves her stop at 7:25 a.m. To get there with ample time, I know I need to leave our house at 7:15. Otherwise, I risk needing to text the other bus stop parents something along the lines of, “Hershfield family coming in hot! Please hold the bus for us!” which immediately prompts
The Headwinds vs. Tailwinds Asymmetry Read More »
Imagine you’ve been granted a choice from a magic (retirement) genie. He asks if you’d rather have $100K at the start of your retirement or $500 per month for the duration of your retirement. Which would you choose? Or, what if the choice was $200K versus $1K per month? Which option seems more adequate —
The Illusion of Wealth Read More »
Consider the numerous decisions we face every day: what to eat for breakfast, what we should wear to work or a restaurant, who we should spend time with, and whether and what to watch on our screens after the day ends. Those are undoubtedly choices that could fall under the umbrella of “little decisions.” We
The Psychology of “Big” Life Decisions Read More »
I recently had an experience that may be relatable to a lot of people who have thought about their own money, their kids’ money, or their clients’ money. For the last two July 4th weekends, my father-in-law has helped our children set up a lemonade stand in town. This year, my kids earned about $250.
Beyond the Lemonade Stand: Cultivating Financially Savvy Kids Read More »
Is home really where the heart is, or in today’s financial climate, has the adage evolved to “home is where your low mortgage rate from three years ago is?” Anecdotally, in conversations with financial advisors, I’ve heard the same story several times: Clients feel stuck in their homes because they don’t want to give up
Stuck at Home: Mortgage Rates and the Endowment Effect Read More »
It’s the start of a new year, and I’m sure you’ve thought a decent amount about how the year will play out. (Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be yet another post about New Year’s resolutions!). Consider, for a minute, something about your upcoming year that is marked by uncertainty. Maybe it’s the state of
Why Do We Mispredict the Future? Read More »
What do you think of when you hear the term “mindfulness?” For me, it’s an iconic image of Don Draper in the final season of the TV series “Mad Men.” The scene presents a lesson in contrasts: Draper, wearing a crisp white button-down, sits cross-legged on the ground with the Northern Californian coastline behind him
Can Financial Mindfulness Help Enhance Outcomes with Money? Read More »
Have you ever had the feeling that people are somehow getting worse over time? Or that the moral foundations of society are fraying as the years tick by? Brand new research published in Nature explores the prevalence of this perception as well as the reasons why it may come to be. Admittedly, this topic may
Is It Just Me, or Are Things Getting Worse? Read More »
We explore why taking a rigid approach versus a flexible approach is more effective when planning, pursuing and attaining goals.
How Do We and How Should We Set Goals for Ourselves and Others? Read More »
One of my favorite headlines from The Onion reads: “Thirty-one-year-old Edward Brawley’s plan to get himself an umbrella from a random lost and found took two hours, but it saved him $2.99.” What a relatable tale. After all, who among us hasn’t found ourselves in situations where we are completely ignorant of the value of