How to Make Your Financial Life Happier in 2022

“People spend a lot of time talking about how to manage their money but rarely think about how to improve their relationship with their finances,” said Dan Egan, vice president of behavioral finance and investing at Betterment.

There are many ways individuals can improve their thinking about and reduce stress from money. They include cultivating a healthier mind-set about money, enhancing self-knowledge to better define your goals and livening up tedious financial tasks and routines. These types of tasks also benefit from being more attainable and perhaps more enjoyable, according to behavioral scientists, psychologists and financial advisers. 

“Try to make it fun, or at least fun-ish,” said Brittany Wolff, an adviser in Greenville, S.C.

What follows are techniques to help you achieve greater happiness in your financial life.

Focus on yourself

Studies show that as income rises, so does happiness. 

But once earnings reach about $75,000, more money brings no significant improvements to happiness, according to a 2010 study. (The $75,000 in 2010 would be about $96,000 in today’s dollars. The income threshold is likely to be higher in expensive locations.)

Part of the problem is that when income rises, we start to compare ourselves with new peers, said Sonja Lyubomirsky, a psychology professor who studies happiness at the University of California, Riverside. 

“We might delight in a new hatchback just a tiny bit less every time our neighbor drives by in his convertible,” she added.

One way to boost happiness is to analyze what really matters to us—rather than to others. 

To prompt clients to clarify their goals and make sure their goals are really theirs, George Kinder, founder of the Kinder Institute of Life Planning, asks three questions: What would you do if you had all the time and money in the world? How would you live if you knew you had only five to 10 years left? And what would you most regret if you die tomorrow?

“The third question is key,” says Mr. Kinder, 73 years old, whose answers have led him to spend more time in nature, with family and writing books. “It is fundamentally important not to compromise on something that, if unfulfilled, would leave you with a deep regret.”

Save time and aggravation

“Anything you can do to create more free time can lead to happiness,” said Dr. Lyubomirsky.

Ways to save time on your financial life include automating bill payments and putting savings on autopilot. 

If you have more than one traditional IRA, Roth IRA, 401(k) and taxable account, consolidate your holdings into one of each type so you will have fewer statements to keep track of, says Rorik Larson, an adviser in Palos Heights, Ill. Try not to check your account balances more frequently than once a month or quarterly, advisers say.

Betterment’s Mr. Egan recommends what he calls stress-free budgeting. His method eliminates constant monitoring of spending, which can be tedious.

Mr. Egan and his wife send their paychecks to a joint bank account from which they automatically pay recurring bills, including their mortgage. The couple also automate transfers to subaccounts earmarked for items including emergencies, a new car and vacations. 

Then they divide what is left in half so each can spend the surplus as they see fit. 

Minimize conflict with your spouse, family members and friends       

Couples can relieve stress by following the Egans’ example and including some money in their budget for each to spend independently. The goal is to allow each to spend up to an agreed-upon limit without criticism from the other. 

Spouses who would rather save than spend their share can always do so, Ms. Wolff said.

“It’s a statement that each has the freedom to be their own individual as well as part of the relationship,” she said.

Some couples spend from a joint account. But Mr. Egan and his wife have gone a step further by dividing what remains after paying their bills into separate accounts. Segregating individual expenses from joint expenses makes it easier and less time- consuming to review account statements. 

“It used to kill us to try to manage our joint account,” Mr. Egan said. With separate accounts, he added, “We’re much happier this way.”

Get to a good place

Sarah Newcomb, a behavioral economist at Morningstar Inc., recommends giving yourself a score on a scale of one to 10 on “whether you feel you can handle whatever comes your way financially.” (One reflects pessimism, and 10 indicates optimism.) 

Regardless of income, Ms. Newcomb has found that people who assign themselves scores of five or more express greater satisfaction with their finances than those with lower scores.

Ms. Newcomb said resilient people generally focus on things they can control, such as their savings rate, rather than what is beyond their control, such as stock returns.

“By focusing on things that are out of your control, you are only going to increase your anxiety,” she added. 

Remind yourself of your financial achievements, such as a paid-off credit card or a down payment on a house, said Mr. Egan, who maintains a list of such accomplishments, big and small. 

Others advise practicing gratitude for what you have and forgiving yourself for mistakes.

“You don’t have to have it all figured out,” said Kelly Berenbaum, an adviser in Winter Park, Fla. “Take small steps and start heading in the right direction.” 

Write to Anne Tergesen at [email protected]