The Curriculum

Series Modules

Eight modules, each focused on a distinct mechanism of financial inaction. The series can be followed in sequence or explored by topic. Every session stands on its own.

01
Foundation

The Anatomy of Financial Delay

This opening module establishes the framework for the entire series. We begin by distinguishing financial procrastination from general procrastination. They share some features, but the financial variety has specific characteristics that require specific analysis.

We examine what makes money decisions structurally different from other decisions: the combination of genuine uncertainty, high stakes, delayed feedback, and emotional charge. We also introduce the concept of "productive delay" versus counterproductive avoidance, because not all financial waiting is procrastination.

Key themes in this session:

  • What distinguishes financial procrastination from general delay
  • The role of uncertainty in producing avoidance behavior
  • How to distinguish productive deliberation from counterproductive delay
  • An introduction to the cognitive mechanisms covered in later modules
90 minutes
Introductory level
Foundation module
02
Cognition

When Knowing Isn't Enough

The assumption underlying most financial education is that knowledge produces behavior. If people understand compound interest, they will invest. If they understand insurance, they will buy coverage. This module examines why that assumption fails, and what the behavioral science literature says about the gap between financial literacy and financial behavior.

We look at the intention-action gap as a specific, well-documented phenomenon, and examine the conditions under which information is more or less likely to translate into action.

Key themes in this session:

  • The intention-action gap: what it is and why it's robust
  • Why financial literacy research shows limited behavioral effects
  • The role of implementation context in translating intention to action
90 minutes
Introductory level
Core module
03
Psychology

Making the Future Feel Real

One of the most consistent findings in behavioral economics is that people discount future rewards relative to present ones, and that this discounting is steeper than rational models predict. This module examines temporal discounting and present bias in detail, with particular attention to how they operate in financial contexts.

We look at the psychological distance between present and future self, and at specific techniques for reducing that distance: vivid future visualization, concrete goal specification, and pre-commitment mechanisms that reduce the cost of future action.

Key themes in this session:

  • Temporal discounting and why future rewards feel abstract
  • Present bias: the specific pattern of preferring now over later
  • Techniques for making future financial outcomes more concrete and motivating
  • Pre-commitment as a tool for reducing the pull of present bias
90 minutes
Intermediate
Core module
04
Behavior

The Minimum Viable Decision

Large financial decisions are difficult to start because they feel large. This module examines how decomposing a complex financial decision into its smallest actionable unit reduces the psychological cost of beginning. We look at the concept of implementation intentions, which are specific if-then plans that dramatically increase the likelihood of follow-through.

We also examine decision rules: pre-set criteria that remove the need to re-evaluate a decision each time it arises. Both tools are well-supported in the behavioral science literature and are genuinely small to implement.

Key themes in this session:

  • How decision size affects the likelihood of starting
  • Implementation intentions: the structure and the evidence
  • Decision rules as a tool for reducing ongoing cognitive load
90 minutes
Intermediate
Applied module
05
Environment

Environment as Architecture

The behavioral environment shapes what we do more reliably than our intentions do. This module examines how the physical and digital spaces around us either support or undermine financial action, and what specific changes to that environment can shift the default from inaction to action.

We look at choice architecture, friction reduction, and the concept of defaults. Making the desired behavior the path of least resistance is often more effective than increasing motivation.

Key themes in this session:

  • Choice architecture and how defaults shape behavior
  • Reducing friction as an alternative to increasing motivation
  • Specific environmental design changes relevant to financial behavior
  • The limits of environment design and where it doesn't apply
90 minutes
Intermediate
Applied module
06
Emotion

Emotional Accounting

Money is not emotionally neutral, and financial decisions are not purely rational calculations. This module examines how emotional states interact with financial decision-making, including the role of anxiety, shame, and avoidance in producing delay. We also examine mental accounting, the tendency to treat money differently depending on its emotional context or source.

The session includes specific techniques for working with emotional responses to financial decisions rather than trying to eliminate them.

Key themes in this session:

  • Mental accounting and how emotional context shapes financial behavior
  • The role of financial anxiety in producing avoidance
  • Reframing techniques that reduce the emotional weight of financial decisions
90 minutes
Intermediate
Core module
07
Information

The Paralysis of Perfect Information

Seeking more information is a socially acceptable and internally justifiable form of delay. This module examines how the search for perfect information becomes a mechanism for avoiding the decision itself. We look at information overload, the paradox of choice, and the conditions under which more options produce less action.

We introduce the concept of "satisficing" as a practical alternative to optimizing, and examine what a "good enough" decision framework looks like in financial contexts.

Key themes in this session:

  • How information-seeking functions as avoidance
  • The paradox of choice and its effects on financial decision-making
  • Satisficing as a practical decision strategy
  • Criteria for knowing when you have enough information to decide
90 minutes
Advanced
Core module
08
Integration

Designing Your Own Decision Triggers

The final module is integrative. We revisit the patterns covered throughout the series and work on building personal systems for financial action. The focus is on creating conditions where acting on financial decisions becomes the default rather than something that requires a separate act of will each time.

Participants work through a structured process for identifying their own most persistent patterns and selecting the smallest, most targeted intervention from the series that addresses it.

Key themes in this session:

  • Review of the series' core mechanisms and interventions
  • Personal pattern identification: which mechanisms are most active for you
  • Designing a minimal personal decision system
  • How to maintain behavioral change without relying on motivation
120 minutes
All levels
Capstone module

Ready to Attend?

Sessions are delivered online and open to anyone with an interest in financial behavior. No prior background in psychology or economics is required.

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