{"id":3199,"date":"2021-08-30T18:38:17","date_gmt":"2021-08-30T18:38:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.simplifimoney.com\/blog\/?p=1532"},"modified":"2024-11-18T10:20:59","modified_gmt":"2024-11-18T18:20:59","slug":"achievements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.quicken.com\/blog\/achievements\/","title":{"rendered":"Introducing Simplifi Achievements: How to Win at Managing Your Money"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019re not spending as much time overseeing your finances as you think you should, you\u2019re not alone. In fact, a recent survey<\/a> showed that most people spend less time than they want to on money management because it makes them feel anxious, unprepared, or just plain unhappy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why Simplifi by Quicken set out from the start to make money management easier, with insights and notifications that can help you stay on top of your finances in less than 5 minutes a week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, Simplifi\u2019s new comprehensive achievement program takes that a step further, eliminating many of the key roadblocks along the journey to financial success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why does the road to financial success feel like such a struggle?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Actually, there are a lot of reasons why we struggle<\/a> with financial management. Some of those reasons are based on our personal circumstances, but it turns out that many of them are baked into our DNA and the way the human mind responds to long-term goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Saving is harder than spending<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

On a fundamental level, saving is harder than spending because it doesn\u2019t feel very rewarding. Every time you buy something new, you feel a small (or even large) surge of excitement and happiness for a while. That chemical kick from your brain reinforces the behavior, making you want to do it again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saving, on the other hand, feels boring by comparison. You put some money away and then, well, nothing. You don\u2019t get much of a kick for doing it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Motivation is tougher over time<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

How often have you started a new exercise routine only to quit again after a few days? Or made a New Year\u2019s resolution<\/a> that you abandoned by February?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The human brain is wired to do things that get immediate, positive results, and starting<\/em> new habits gives us a sweet kick of excitement. But pretty soon, that kick just isn\u2019t there anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We quit exercising before we get the abs we wanted. We stop reading self-help books before we achieve nirvana. And we stop saving before we get anywhere near our original goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s because the real joy comes later, sometimes months or years later, and we\u2019re not wired very well for that kind of deferred gratification. Long-term habits don\u2019t stay interesting when we\u2019re not reaping enough rewards along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Money management isn\u2019t part of our education<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many high schools are starting to teach courses about basic credit and personal finances, but that approach tends to be too little, too late. In fact, more than a quarter of young adults in the U.S. feel that their formal education didn\u2019t prepare them<\/a> to manage their finances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By not making personal finance a core part of the curriculum from day one, our educational system leaves those skills out until it\u2019s far too late for them to feel \u201cnatural.\u201d As a result, starting to take those new skills on as an adult can feel uncomfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Money gets associated with negative emotions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Learning new things as an adult tends to be harder than it is for kids, at least partly because we become more nervous as adults about trying new things and making mistakes\u2014two factors that are absolutely critical when we\u2019re learning anything new.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On top of that, many people either grew up in a home that struggled with money or encountered their own money struggles as young adults. This can lead to negative emotional feelings about money itself, making us even more reluctant to pay close attention to our finances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, a full 37% of participants in a recent study<\/a> reported that they don\u2019t spend more time managing their finances because it triggers feelings of anxiety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Those negative \u201cstories\u201d make us feel stuck<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

All of these factors work together to give us recurring thoughts about finances that make us feel even more stuck. These can take many forms, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n