When you think about yourself in the future, what do you imagine? Maybe you’d like to be financially better off, or enjoying an important life milestone. Perhaps you’d like to retire at some point in years to come.
To reach those future goals, you need to make sure you plan and prepare. But for many people, today can feel like a greater priority than tomorrow. We want to help you connect to your future self and take steps towards the life you want to lead.
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Who is your ‘future self’?
Psychologist Hal Hershfield noticed that many people make decisions that seem at odds with the future they claim to want. Whether that’s eating an extra slice of cake when you want to get healthy, or overspending when you’re trying to save for a holiday, it’s easy to focus on how you feel today and forget about your future self.
Hershfield noticed that this can become problematic when your future self feels like a distant stranger. But spending time connecting with your future self can help you understand and prioritise what you need to do to make life better for them, without feeling like you’re sacrificing your happiness right now.
Connecting with your future
A great way to start connecting with your future self is to get clear about your long-term goals. These might include major life milestones like getting married, buying a home or having a family. They might also cover exciting luxuries like bucket list travel or getting that car you’ve always dreamed of. But don’t forget to consider your retirement, too. Many people aim to stop work at some point, and might also want to use that time to do things they can’t enjoy right now.
In addition to material goods or tangible achievements, considering your future self’s feelings can help you feel more connected to them. Do you want them to be secure or stressed? Comfortable or concerned?
Setting goals for the future
Rather than making vague plans (e.g. ‘retire early), it’s a good idea to set measurable goals. For example:
- Go on a trip to Japan within the next 5 years.
- Get married before 2030 with a guestlist of 70.
- Retire by age 65 with a comfortable lifestyle.
You can then set a rough financial target for each one. To understand how much money you might need in retirement, you can refer to the PLSA standards, which take into account your plans and the cost of living. Maji’s financial planning tool can also help you set a financial target for retirement.
Taking action
With longer-term goals, you have time to work towards them. This means that small actions, taken regularly, can help bring you closer and closer.
To keep things manageable, aim to review your progress towards long-term goals at least monthly. You can use your Maji financial plan to do so, or discuss this with your financial coach. This check-in can also be a great time to decide your next action along the road.
For example, you could research options for high-interest savings accounts or automate small change savings on your banking app.
Preparing for retirement
Retirement is, for most people, a significant goal, and one that will require a sizeable savings pot. It’s not hard to feel disconnected from your older self, especially if you’re a long way from being able to stop work. But there are some simple things you can put in place today to make your future self more comfortable and confident. For example:
- Learning more about how your pension is invested and the impact of compound interest.
- Making sure you have a record of all your pension pots (which you can keep track of on Maji).
- Increasing your pension contributions even a small amount (which you can do on your Maji app).
- Nominating your beneficiaries/making an expression of wishes in case you pass away before taking your whole pension.
Looking after yourself
Remember that the actions you take today can help shape your future. You don’t need to be perfect; everyone needs to enjoy today as well as thinking about tomorrow. But even getting started on preparing for your biggest goals can bring you closer to achieving them. Your future self will thank you!
