35 New Year’s Resolutions For Your Finances

The new year is just a few short days away. It’s a good time to reflect on last year’s successes and failures, and to make plans for a prosperous new year. If you need some ideas to get you started, I’ve provided a huge list of potential financial goals for you to set in the new year. Remember to keep your goals SMART so you can more easily keep your resolutions.

Save More

• Open a separate savings account to stash an emergency fund and other savings.
  • Example savings goals: vacation, new laptop, real estate, graduate degree, etc.
• Create separate, goal-based, savings accounts for specific goals and set up automatic contributions of x amount per month/week to each.
• Increase your workplace retirement plan contributions to get the company match.
• Increase your workplace retirement plan contribution percentage by 1%.
• Increase your workplace retirement plan contributions to max it out in 2011 (if 401K: $16,500)
• Open up a Roth IRA and start contributing to your retirement outside of your work plan.
• Create an automatic contribution of x amount per month/week to your new Roth IRA.
• Open up a self-employed retirement plan and start contributing x amount per month/week automatically.
• Open up a 529 college savings plan and start contributing x amount per month/week automatically.
• Open up a Flexible Savings Account or Health Savings Account (if eligible) and start contributing x amount per month/week automatically.
• Open up a taxable brokerage account and start investing for financial freedom.

Reduce Debt

• Create a master list of all your debts. Check your credit report to ensure you have everything.
• Create a specific plan to systematically pay of your debts.
• Start contributing x amount per month/week automatically to pay off your debts.
• Call your creditors to ask about reducing your interest rates.
• Consider using a 0% balance transfer credit card to help you pay off your debts faster.
• Consider using a peer lending site to help you consolidate your debts and pay them off faster.

Spend More Wisely

• Develop a zero-based budget to ensure that each of your dollars has a home.
• Create a simple, cash-only budget for one or two trouble areas (i.e. dining, shopping).
• Create an account with Mint.com to start tracking your spending more closely. Use their budgeting and goals tools.
• Plan out your upcoming major purchases and set aside time to research the best prices and best time to buy.
• Make a list each time you go to the grocery store.
• Go through all of your bills and call the service providers to see if you can reduce your expenses.
• Make a list of the things you really want to spend your hard earned money on. Then slash expenses everywhere else.
• Open a reward checking account to earn cash back for your spending.
• Apply for a cash back credit card to earn cash back on your spending.
• Set up automatic bill payment on all your bills so that you don’t miss a payment.
• Spend some money on a will and proper term life insurance.
• Setup automatic contributions to your favorite charities.

Make More

• Ask your employer for a raise.
• Meet with a recruiter to start the search for a job, a higher paying job.
• Get a part-time job on the nights or weekends.
• Start freelancing.
• Start a side-business and grow it using your nights and weekends.
• Sell or give away x number of unused items per week/month from your home.

Got anymore ideas? Leave them in the comments below.