As you move through time, you exist as a present self who makes decisions, an in-between self who should carry out those decisions, and a future self who will benefit from those decisions. Yet as we all know, in-between self often fails to follow through on what present self resolves, leaving future self pretty bummed out.The solution to this dilemma, my guest says, is for your present self to become much better friends with your future self.His name is Hal Hershfield, and he's a professor of marketing, behavioral decision making, and psychology, and the author of Your Future Self: How to Make Tomorrow Better Today. Hal and I spend the first part of our conversation taking a really interesting philosophical dive into what the self even is. We talk about why our future self can feel like a stranger, why it's hard to know what he'll be like, and what this dilemma has to do with becoming a vampire. We then discuss how building a stronger connection with your future self makes your present self more willing to help him, and how you can become closer to your future self by engaging in mental time traveling. Hal shares a couple techniques that can facilitate this mental time travel, three mistakes people make in taking this cognitive trip, and how to start making tomorrow better today.Resources Related to the Podcast"The Self Is Moral" by Nina StrohmingerTransformative Experience by L. A. PaulYuta Chishima and Anne Wilson on writing a letter to and from your future selfThe End-of-History IllusionstickK.comAoM Podcast #731: A Futurist’s Guide to Building the Life You WantConnect With Hal HershfieldHal's Website

Who will you be in 10 years? In 20 years? Envisioning how you will evolve is very hard. This hour, TED speakers share ideas on how to better plan for the future, while allowing for the unexpected. Guests include psychologist Hal Hershfield, journalist Shankar Vedantam, journalist Bina Venkataraman and philosopher Roman Krznaric.TED Radio Hour+ subscribers now get access to bonus episodes, with more ideas from TED speakers and a behind the scenes look with our producers. A Plus subscription also lets you listen to regular episodes (like this one!) without sponsors. Sign-up at: plus.npr.org/tedLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Psychologist, journalist, and philosopher discuss how to better plan for the future while allowing for the unexpected. Topics include perceiving the future self, planning for the future when hope seems dim, finding harmony between the present and the future, planning for an unpredictable future, consequences of failure in future planning, becoming good ancestors, and a philosopher's prescription for long-term thinking.

Leading behavioral psychologist Hal Hershfield reveals strategies for making and keeping New Year's resolutions, including the concept of a future self, the importance of commitment devices, breaking down big goals, and reframing commitments. They also discuss the role of mental time travel, cherishing time with children, using commitment devices to break bad habits, finding balance between long-term goals and the present moment, and the importance of socializing.

Today we welcome Hal Hershfield to the podcast. Hal is a Professor of Marketing, Behavioral Decision Making, and Psychology at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. The recipient of numerous teaching awards, Hal was named one of “The 40 Most Outstanding B-School Profs Under 40 In The World” by business education website Poets & Quants. He publishes in top academic journals and also contributes op-eds to the New York Times, Harvard Business Review, the Wall Street Journal, and other outlets.  His latest book is called Your Future Self: How to Make Tomorrow Better Today.In this episode I talk to Hal Hershfield about meeting your future self. Decisions are trade-offs between the present and the future. Oftentimes, it's easier to choose what feels gratifying now, than to choose what's more beneficial in the years to come. Hal believes this is because we feel disconnected to our future selves. Hal shows us the mental mistakes we commit when thinking about the future. He shares with us how to visualize who we want to become, so we can make choices that are better for us now and later. Website: www.halhershfield.comTwitter: @HalHershfield Topics03:21 Hal’s expertise and background05:40 Your Future Self13:12 How much do we change over time?17:25 Mental mistakes when thinking about the future 24:20 Productive prospection 28:48 Why do we fail in our long-term goals?34:33 Time travel mistakes40:35 Visualizing your future self42:53 Making present sacrifices feel easier45:42 How to get people to follow through 47:37 The future selves of organizations50:17 Facing an uncertain future 54:03 The collective selfSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Psychologist Hal Hershfield discusses the emotional connection we have to our future selves and the benefits of strengthening that connection. Learn how to strike a balance and build a better relationship with your future self, while also discovering new financial opportunities. Explore the challenge of feeling fear and negativity about the future and strategies to grapple with anxiety and uncertainty.

Guest Hal Hershfield discusses how people neglect their future selves, impacting decisions. Dr. Laurie explores finding a balance between present desires and future needs. She uses an AI time machine for happiness advice decades from now.

How does the connection we have with our future self impact the decisions we make today? And what active steps can we take to improve our connection with our future selves? Today on the show we welcome back Hal Hershfield, whose new book Your Future Self: How to Make Tomorrow Better Today delves into the science of our relationship with our future selves and what we can do to change it for the better. In our conversation with Hal, we discuss the concept of the self, how we change over time, and why so many of us feel disconnected from our future selves. He describes the research surrounding these subjects and their findings, including how the brain scans they performed demonstrate that we mostly see our future selves as strangers, and why this is caused, at least in part, by the fact that our future selves don’t technically exist yet. We also discuss the interventions that have been shown to improve our relationship with our future selves, like viewing age-progressed images or exchanging letters with our future selves, and why everyone responds to these interventions differently. Having a strong connection with your future self has many benefits. It means you’re more likely to make decisions that will serve you later in life, like saving for retirement, eating healthily, and exercising regularly. But Hal also warns that we risk losing sight of the present and what truly matters when we focus solely on the future. To hear all of Hal’s knowledgeable insights on this topic and what he wants to explore next, be sure to tune in today! Key Points From This Episode: Defining the self and how our identity shifts depending on age, context, and the people we surround ourselves with. (0:04:08) An overview of Hal’s research and what it reveals about how most people connect (or don’t connect) to their future selves. (0:08:29) How empathy can influence our connection to our future selves. (0:11:36) Insights into why we tend to think of our future self the same way we think about strangers or acquaintances. (0:14:19) Our level of connection to our future self and how it affects wealth accumulation and financial well-being. (0:17:53) The definition of ‘present bias’ and ‘hyperbolic discounting’ and the role they play in decisions about the future. (0:19:28) The end-of-history illusion and the impact it has on our decisions. (0:23:02) How viewing age-progressed images of yourself can help you build a connection with your future self. (0:26:35) The research Hal is conducting with MIT Media Lab using an AI chatbot called Future You. (0:29:35) © 2023 Rational Reminder Podcast 1 RRP 256 Show Notes Dan Pink’s work on the power of regret and how it overlaps with Hal’s research and findings. (0:31:59) The findings on being presented with age-progressed images of ourselves and how they impact our decision-making and relationship with our future selves. (0:35:20) How writing to your future self can improve your decisions. (0:40:16) The problems that arise when we become too focused on improving life for our future self and how to find harmony between the present and future. (0:44:03) The COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on our collective relationship with the future. (0:48:10) Learn about the live episode we’ll be recording at the upcoming Future Proof conference with Hal as our guest. (0:51:24)   Links From Today’s Episode: Hal Hershfield — https://www.halhershfield.com/ Hal Hershfield on Twitter — https://twitter.com/HalHershfield Hal Hershfield on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/hal-hershfield-a2b91510/ Your Future Self: How to Make Tomorrow Better Today — https://www.halhershfield.com/ yourfutureself Episode 141: Hal Hershfield: The Psychology of Long-term Decision Making — https:// rationalreminder.ca/podcast/141 The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward — https://www.amazon.com/ Power-Regret-Looking-Backward-Forward/ Episode 246: Daniel H. Pink: How to Use Regret — https://rationalreminder.ca/podcast/246 Future Proof Festival — https://futureproof.advisorcircle.com/ Brian Knutson — https://profiles.stanford.edu/brian-knutson Dan Martell — https://www.danmartell.com/ Derek Parfit — https://www.britannica.com/biography/Derek-Parfit Daniel Gilbert — http://www.danielgilbert.com/ ING — https://www.ing.com/Home.htm Merrill Lynch — https://www.ml.com/ Shlomo Benartzi — http://www.shlomobenartzi.com/ Stephen Shu — https://steveshuconsulting.com/ Rational Reminder on iTunes — https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-rational-reminder- podcast/id1426530582. 
 Rational Reminder Website — https://rationalreminder.ca/ Rational Reminder on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/rationalreminder/ Rational Reminder on YouTube — https://www.youtube.com/channel/ Rational Reminder Email — info@rationalreminder.ca
 Benjamin Felix — https://www.pwlcapital.com/author/benjamin-felix/ Benjamin on Twitter — https://twitter.com/benjaminwfelix Benjamin on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminwfelix/ Cameron Passmore — https://www.pwlcapital.com/profile/cameron-passmore/ Cameron on Twitter — https://twitter.com/CameronPassmore Cameron on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameronpassmore/

Hal Hershfield, Associate Professor of Marketing and Behavioral Decision Making, shares insights on framing insurance decisions and the impact of generative AI on financial choices. Also, the importance of personalized decisions, optimizing client meetings, and understanding different consumer segments. Plus, exploring end-of-life decisions, donation choices, inheritance, and the impact of money on happiness.

UCLA Professor Hal Hershfield discusses childhood money memories, aligning capital with values, and the emotional layers of money decisions. Topics include future self influence, intentional money decisions, and navigating trade-offs in financial choices.