Hyperbolic Discounting

We irrationally prefer smaller, immediate rewards over larger, future ones — and our valuation of the future drops off far more steeply than is rational.

• Most people prefer $100 today over $110 next week — yet would prefer $110 in 31 days over $100 in 30 days. Time proximity changes the decision, not logic.
• People consistently under-save for retirement — the future self feels like a stranger, and present pleasures feel overwhelmingly real.
• Dieters eat dessert today, telling themselves the diet starts tomorrow — and tomorrow never comes, because tomorrow always becomes today.