Dec 02, 2014

Question of the Day: What Is Your Time Personality (and Why Does it Matter)?

Interesting research out of Stanford earlier this year found your “time personality” matters when it comes to your financial health.  What is “time personality?” and why does it matter?  From the study:

We conducted a study across 6 countries, and our findings are amazing. Your approach to time has a big influence on your financial health — and that makes sense. Your financial health is the result of countless decisions you make over time (to buy or not to buy the car, the dress, the house, the dinner), and the way you make decisions is largely determined by your approach to time.

Do you live for the now? You probably spend like it.
Addicted to building a better future? You probably invest, buy insurance, set goals.
Are you stuck in the past? That may keep you from investing.

Take the 35 question quiz to determine your time personality.  Ask students to reflect on the quiz results to see if it matches up with their perception of themselves.  The next question would be whether they believe their time personalities are malleable and how they might go about changing it.

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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