Financial health has both economic and emotional dimensions, and the right balance of the two is crucial for success with your money.

If you have any doubts, consider the blissful spendthrift on the road to financial ruin, says Sarah Newcomb, a behavioral economist at investment research firm Morningstar.

Newcomb is the author of “Loaded: Money, Psychology and How to Get Ahead Without Leaving Your Values Behind.” I spoke with her recently at the annual Morningstar investor conference about her latest research, which shows that the further ahead you think and the clearer your picture of the future, the more you’ll save and the better you’ll manage your cash and credit.

The impact that thinking ahead has on your savings might surprise you. Newcomb’s survey of several hundred U.S. residents found that living-in-the-moment savers who looked ahead less than a year typically had saved less than $20,000; people who had thought about their financial lives 20 years ahead had saved 20 times more. Even looking ahead by just a few years increased savings fourfold.

The problem is that 70 percent of those surveyed had thought 10 to 20 years ahead, and just 8 percent had planned out their whole financial lives. Fortunately, there are ways to trick yourself into staring down your financial future. One is to picture yourself there. Discount broker Merrill Edge ran a successful ad campaign from 2012 to 2016 that encouraged saving by letting customers use a tool to see age-enhanced images of themselves.

When imagining your financial life in the years ahead, clarity counts, Newcomb says. Instead of thinking, “I want to relax and enjoy myself,” be specific: “I want to travel to see my children and grandchildren twice a year, and treat my family to a Disney vacation at least once.”

Empowerment is the key to emotional well-being, at least when it comes to finances. People who believe they create their own financial destiny are happier with respect to their money than those who believe they have less power, according to Newcomb’s surveys.

It’s important to stay involved in decisions about your finances, even if you work with an adviser. Non-earners need to recognize where they exert control in their family’s financial life: Do they shop for the household? Plan vacations?

Celebrating even small successes, such as opening a 401(k), can help build confidence. And surmounting near-term hurdles — say, curtailing restaurant meals to save for a trip — can work wonders in making you feel up to a lifetime of financial challenges.

Anne Kates Smith is a senior editor at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine. Send your questions and comments to moneypower@kiplinger.com. And for more on this and similar money topics, visit Kiplinger.com.