Life Coach Fiona Buckland believes volume of choice impacts our ability to make long-term decisions as our brains haven’t evolved to decipher this complexity. As part of our Decodes: Short-termism research, she believes taking the time for financial planning can lead to freedom.
‘One thing as human beings that we’re just not very good at is uncertainty. I believe there is a correlation between the volume of choice that we have and our ability to make long-term decisions. Confusion sets in and we’re not used to having so many choices. Our brains haven’t evolved to process this complexity, so people have this analysis paralysis where they don’t move forward because they’ve analysed everything to death.
‘You’ve got this cognitive popcorn that goes on; we’re constantly pulled into very short-term activities and it’s very difficult now to focus to sit back and have that self reflection time just to focus on what you need and what your future is going to look like. Financial planning is a short-term act in itself, and the long-term gift of it is freedom.’
We’ve worked with a panel of world-leading experts including Life Coach Fiona Buckland, Trends Forecaster Jonathan Openshaw, Behavioural Economist Ivo Vlaev, and Author Lucy Mangan to create this Decodes: Short-termism research.
Fiona Buckland has worked in both the UK and US, including key strategic roles in publishing, where she worked with thought- leaders from the worlds of psychology, neuroscience, behavioural science, history and culture. She is a Faculty Member and regular speaker at The School of Life.