money mistakes

Certified financial planner Jill Schlesinger has seen smart people make some pretty spectacular money mistakes.

One client who repeatedly refused to buy disability insurance later developed multiple sclerosis. A doctor she knew put off writing a will and left behind a six-figure tax bill. A technology company engineer balked at her suggestion to sell some of his stock options, only to watch their value and his retirement plans evaporate when the market plunged.

In my latest for the Associated Press, a look at how behavioral economics tries to pinpoint where our brains and emotions lead us wrong, as well as what we can do about it.