Dr. Mark Johnson had done everything right—or so he thought. After a grueling decade of medical training, he had finally arrived. He completed fellowship, landed a prestigious job, and immediately threw himself into building his practice. His income skyrocketed, and with it, his lifestyle.
With his newfound wealth, he bought the classic “doctor house”—a sprawling estate in an upscale neighborhood. A vacation home quickly followed, along with luxury cars, extravagant trips, and private school tuition for his kids. To sustain this lifestyle—and to meet the endless demand for his expertise—Dr. Johnson worked tirelessly, averaging 60-70 hours a week.
At first, everything felt perfect. His patients were deeply grateful. He was admired and respected at work. His high income allowed him to provide his family with a life he had only dreamed about. He reassured himself that the long hours were worth it—he was making a difference and securing his family’s future.
But over time, the cost of his choices became clear. In his pursuit of success, he neglected one critical investment—his future self.
He never made time for exercise, convincing himself he’d get to it later. He skipped meals or relied on quick, unhealthy food. He missed countless moments with his children and spouse, believing that financial support was a substitute for being present. And he never prioritized saving for the future, assuming that his employer’s default retirement contributions would be enough.
Fast forward 30 years.
At 65, Dr. Johnson was burned out, overweight, and struggling with hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, and chronic joint pain. His spouse had grown distant, and while he had provided financially for his children, they lacked independence and motivation.
The final blow came when he met with a financial planner and realized he was nowhere near ready for retirement. Despite years of earning a high income, his lavish lifestyle had prevented him from truly building wealth. With little in savings, he now faced an impossible choice: dramatically cut back his standard of living, work well into his 70s, or do some combination of both.
Reality set in—he had traded his health, his relationships, and his financial security for a lifestyle he could barely afford.
Why Do We Do This to Ourselves?
The answer lies in the way our brains are wired. Dr. Johnson’s story is a classic case of hyperbolic discounting and present bias—our brain’s tendency to prioritize immediate rewards over future benefits, often to our own long-term detriment.
Dr. Hal Hershfield, a psychologist at UCLA, has studied why people struggle with long-term decisions. His research shows that when people think about their future selves, the same brain regions activate as when they think about a stranger. In other words, our future selves feel like someone else entirely.
In a functional MRI study, Hershfield found that when participants described themselves 10 years in the future, their neural patterns were markedly different from those seen when they described their current selves. Instead, their brain activity closely resembled the patterns observed when they thought about well-known actors, such as Matt Damon and Natalie Portman. This disconnect had real consequences—when later given an asset allocation task, those whose brain activity changed the most when discussing their future selves were the least likely to prioritize long-term financial gains over smaller immediate rewards.
This explains why it’s so difficult to make sacrifices today for our future well-being. We instinctively prioritize the present version of ourselves over the stranger we will become. As Hershfield puts it:
“In the brain, the future self looks like another person.”
This disconnect is made worse by a lack of reciprocity. As Groucho Marx once quipped,
“What have future generations ever done for us?”
The same logic applies to our future selves—they haven’t done anything for us yet, so we feel no obligation to do anything for them. Unlike relationships with friends and family, where we help others knowing they may help us in return, our future selves can’t pay us back. As a result, we neglect them entirely.
Hershfield tested interventions to bridge this gap. In one study, he showed participants digitally aged images of themselves to make their future feel more real. The results were striking—those who saw their older selves were 16% more likely to contribute to retirement savings. When we make the future vivid, it becomes harder to ignore.
For a humorous take on this concept, watch this short video of Jerry Seinfeld talking about Night Guy vs. Morning Guy.
More information here:
Yes, Risk Tolerance Can Be Modified: You Just Have to Rewire Your Brain
Visualizing Your Way to Wealth
The Cost of Ignoring Future You
This disconnect doesn’t just affect finances—it impacts every aspect of life.
Financial Consequences
Delaying retirement savings means missing out on compounding growth. Hershfield’s research found that people with the greatest neural distance from their future selves were also the worst at saving money.
Health Consequences
Skipping workouts, eating poorly, and ignoring preventive care might feel insignificant today, but over time, they lead to chronic illness, reduced mobility, skyrocketing healthcare costs, and a shorter life.
Relationship Consequences
Many physicians justify long work hours by saying, “I’m doing this for my family.” But financial security can’t replace time and presence. The deepest relationships are built in the small, everyday moments—the ones that are easy to miss when work always comes first.
How to Build Empathy for Your Future Self
Hershfield’s research suggests that making the future self vivid and emotional can improve long-term decision-making. What is one of the most effective strategies?
Treat your future self the way you would treat a child you sponsor—someone whose well-being depends entirely on your actions today. Just as you’d commit to supporting a child in need, commit to financially securing the well-being of your future self.
Think About How We Care for Others
Many of us sponsor children in need, committing to a monthly financial contribution to help provide food, education, and healthcare. This system works because it engages our emotions, creates commitment, and uses automation.
We:
- Look at pictures of them.
- Receive letters from them and write letters to them.
- Make a commitment to provide them with financial support.
- Automate fulfilling that commitment with monthly donations.
Apply This to Your Future Self
You can use the same strategy to build a connection with your future self:
- Look at pictures of them. Use an age-progression app to visualize what you’ll look like in 30-40 years.
- Write letters to them and write letters from them to you. Imagine what they would say to thank you for taking care of them—or what they’d regret if you don’t.
- Make a commitment to help them. Just like sponsoring a child, make a conscious, written pledge to prioritize Future You. This should be part of your written financial plan.
- Automate your commitment. Set up recurring savings and investment contributions, ensuring that you’re taking care of yourself long before you need it.
Practical Strategies to Overcome Hyperbolic Discounting
How do we overcome hyperbolic discounting, where we'd prefer smaller rewards sooner rather than larger rewards later?
- Automate future-focused decisions: Setting an adequate savings rate from Day 1 (at least 20% of your income), and then setting up automatic retirement contributions and letting time do the work.
- Reframe savings as a present gain: Instead of saying, “I’m losing money by saving,” reframe it as, “I’m buying future freedom.” Think about specific ways you will use this freedom in retirement.
- Make Future You more vivid and real: You can 1) write in a journal about what you will spend your time doing in retirement; 2) draw a picture of the home you want to retire in, surrounded by your kids and grandkids; and 3) spend intentional time with the elderly, asking them about their lives, what they miss, and what they regret.
- Leverage social accountability: Share your written long-term financial goals with a trusted friend or advisor.
More information here:
Does Money Buy Happiness? What the Research Really Says
The Other Side of Hedonic Adaptation: When Life Knocks You Down
Your Future Self Needs You Now
Dr. Johnson never planned to end up burned out, unhealthy, and financially unprepared for retirement. But he neglected to prioritize his future self until it was too late.
Don’t make the same mistake. Your future self isn’t a stranger—they are you, just waiting for the decisions you make today. So, treat your future self like someone who depends on you:
- Look at pictures of them.
- Read and write letters to them.
- Make a commitment to help them.
- Automate that commitment with recurring savings.
Take five minutes today to picture your future self. What do they look like? What do they wish you had done differently? Now, take one concrete step to invest in them—whether it’s increasing your retirement contributions, scheduling a health checkup, or setting a boundary at work to reclaim your time. Your future self is counting on you.
Do you think about your future self when it comes to saving and investing? Does that make you a better investor? If you have been prioritizing short-term happiness, what can you do to think more about Future You?