Welcome back, Noyackers!
You’ve done the hard part—landed a high-paying role, leveled up your lifestyle, and finally cracked six (or even seven) figures. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: high income doesn’t always translate to high net worth, especially after taking spending and taxes into consideration.
If you’ve ever looked at your earnings and thought, “I should have more to show for this,” you’re not alone. Many Millennials and Gen Z professionals are waking up to the fact that making money is only half the game. The real power play? Understanding the psychology that shapes how—and why—you spend.
“It’s not how much you make, but how much you keep that matters.” — Matt Kittay, NOYACK member
Let’s dive in.
💰 The Quiet Cost of Success
High earners often face a paradox: the more money you make, the more invisible pressure there is to spend it. You’re not just buying things—you’re buying into an identity. The condo with skyline views, the boutique gym, the dinner tab that says, “I’ve made it.”
This isn’t irrational. It’s psychological.
Spending activates the brain’s reward system, especially the dopamine-fueled nucleus accumbens. For high earners, financial decisions are less about survival and more about signaling status, soothing stress, or reinforcing self-worth. The stakes are no longer “Can I afford this?” but “Does this reflect who I am?”
🔊 Cognitive Biases That Sabotage Even Smart People
Earning more doesn’t immunize you against mental shortcuts—it often makes them harder to notice. Here’s how even the most intelligent professionals get caught:
📈 Lifestyle Creep
You tell yourself you “deserve” the nicer car, upgraded apartment, and luxury vacations because you’ve worked hard. And you have—but that slow burn of upgrades can silently erode your future financial freedom.
🕵️ Confirmation Bias
You seek out advice that supports your financial habits (“Travel is an investment in yourself!”), ignoring data that might challenge them (“You haven’t increased your savings rate in 3 years”).
⚓ Sunk Cost Fallacy
You keep pouring money into a pricey membership, subscription, or investment because of how much you’ve already spent, not because it’s still valuable.
💡 Note: Awareness of these biases isn’t just psychological trivia—it’s the first step in shifting from reactive to strategic financial behavior.
📱 Why Social Influence Hits High Earners Harder
At higher income levels, social comparison doesn’t stop—it escalates. The benchmarks move from “Am I doing okay?” to “Am I doing better than the next person?” Friends are launching startups, buying vacation homes, or posting about early retirement. You feel behind—even when you’re ahead.
And in the age of Instagram and LinkedIn, social proof is curated 24/7. You might know intellectually that these highlight reels aren’t real, but your subconscious brain is still taking notes—and opening your wallet.
🎙️ Learn More About Spending Psychology
Marketing and Business Professor Ray “Chuck” Howard breaks down the behavioral science behind spending, how marketers take advantage, and how you can take your psychology and turn it on its head.
Give our most recent episode of AccessGranted™ a listen to learn how to get in control of your brain today.
🏦 Turning Self-Awareness Into Wealth-Building Strategy
Here’s where understanding your spending psychology becomes your superpower—not just a personal development tool, but a financial advantage.
When you’re aware of your mental and emotional spending triggers, you can design a system that works with your brain instead of against it. That’s how you create wealth that isn’t fragile.
Start here:
- ✅ Codify Your Values: What do you actually care about? Flexibility? Family? Health? Use those values to prioritize where your money goes. That clarity shrinks impulse spending and boosts satisfaction.
- ✅Use Defaults to Your Advantage: Automate investments the same way you automate bills. Set up pre-tax contributions to retirement accounts, direct deposits into real asset funds, and monthly real estate allocations.
- ✅ Create a Margin of Safety: Instead of spending up to your income level, build a buffer. That gap is where wealth accumulates—and opportunity lives.
- ✅ Track Identity-Based Wins: Shift your sense of pride from consumption to contribution. Not “I bought the watch,” but “I increased my passive income by 15% this year.”
🧠 Wealth That Lasts Isn’t Emotional—It’s Intentional
The truth is, most high earners don’t lose money—they leak it. Drip by drip, through unexamined habits and unconscious patterns.
But when you understand the psychology of your spending, you don’t just stop the leaks. You redirect that flow into something powerful: real estate, income-producing assets, and long-term investments that compound over time.
You’ve earned the income. Now earn the outcome.
