Questioning time — Part 2
In the second part of our series on learning lessons from one of history’s great problem solvers, Scott Liddell, Head of Enterprise Solutions at Standard Life, says it was a lateral leap that helped Harrison solve the problem of longitude. Could a similar shift in focus help us build the future of life savings?
At its outset, the Board of Longitude assumed that the solution to determining longitude at sea would involve something that related to the measurement of where you were. The lateral leap made by Harrison was simply to worry about when, not where. He made it a question about time. We have done the same. Let me explain.
Let’s assume you can’t be bothered
There is a truth that sits at the centre of everyone’s attitude to dealing with their financial life. Most people can’t be bothered.
Pretty much everyone accepts that it is a good thing and that they should do something to get in control of things but very few do because, well, we have a life to live and we prioritise that over planning for a life yet to come.
It is about our time. If you could offer people a form that said “tick here to get your finances in a better place” most people would tick it. Give them all the data, all the options and ask them to wade in and sort it, they shut the laptop and put the TV on. You can make this approach as easy and accessible as possible, but if people don’t want to spend the time to engage, then they are still unlikely to get involved.
We’re not asking for much …
We accept that we have no right to expect access to people’s time. So we started from the basic premise that we wouldn’t ask for much, if any, time.
The reasoning is based on a simple, if slightly unpalatable, truth — none of us are who we want to be. There is a concept in psychology called the ‘Narrative Identity of Self’. Put simply, this is the story we write about ourselves to describe who we want to be and how we want to act. This is in contrast with the ‘Experiential Self’, who we really are.
It is your Narrative Self that joins a gym, your Experiential Self that doesn’t go. It is your Narrative Self that starts a diet, but your Experiential Self that suggests that one bag of crisps won’t hurt. And, in the context of your financial life, it is your Narrative Self that knows you should plan, be prudent, understand your financial position and save a bit. It is your Experiential Self that thinks that is far too much trouble and buys a new TV instead.
In some cases you will see some benefits from this. The avoidance of things like managing your finances may push you towards what you perceive as lesser evils. Maybe you’ll do that decorating you’ve been meaning to do for a while to put off having to understand your pension position.
The psychologist Abraham Maslow famously defined a Hierarchy of Needs. But it has a dark side twin, the Hierarchy of Distraction. Ironically, this may actually get you to the gym because it may compel you to do the dishes rather than working out how much you can afford to put into an ISA. Obviously, at the bottom of this inverted pyramid is all the fun stuff. Be honest, how often do they win with you?
Talking to the real you
Most things for managing your finances today are aimed at your Narrative Self. They appeal to that part of you that knows that it should but rarely take into account whether or not you would. They expect you to be the imagined best version of you, not the real you. They require your Narrative Self and Experiential Self to come together as one and agree to dedicate some of your precious time to your finances.
All the time your Experiential Self will be screaming “why can’t I just live?”, your Narrative Self rolling its eyes with a mumbled: “I’m trying to help with that”. Truth is, that rarely happens, the Hierarchy of Distraction rules supreme. Dashboards, planners, tools — they all imply work, work implies time, so maybe you’ll just watch Gogglebox.
We have started our thinking the other way. We know that time is important and we know what the Experiential Self always wins the day, so why not build something for that person, the real you, not the imagined you?
We’re building the future of life savings. If you’ve got an idea that could help or think there’s someone we should speak to — get in touch. Email simon_lyle@standardlife.com
