5 New Year’s resolutions you can keep

Another year has come and gone and now it’s time to make your New Year’s resolutions. You know the ones: lose weight, quit smoking, reduce stress, volunteer more, and maybe the most important resolution, get a handle on your finances. Most people either try to tackle their resolutions and quit, or they forget about their New Year’s resolutions by February; and the biggest reason for this is because we set our goal too high or too broad. Here are five tips to help you control your finances in 2010.

1. Pay off one debt- Whether it is a credit card, car loan, or a student loan; choose one to pay off this year. Tackling one debt at a time will seem more manageable then trying to eliminate all your debt at once. And the satisfaction you will get from completely paying off that one thing might push you to eliminate one more, and even if it doesn’t, that is one less debt you have to pay off next year. Just make sure you don’t replace the debt you are paying off by creating another one.

2. Save something each paycheck- The hardest part of saving money is getting into the habit of it. Try taking as little as $10 from each paycheck and putting it into a savings account, odds are you won’t even miss it if you have the money automatically deducted from your account. It can be as simple as sacrificing one lunch or dinner out a week.

3. Pick one area of spending and control it- Don’t try and stop all your spending, just look at what you already spend money on and slowly eliminate one expense. Try keeping a log of your spending for two weeks, if you see something that you are spending money on that you don’t need to, ease yourself off it. For me it’s my morning coffee, I realized that I spend at least $15 a week on coffee every morning. If I switch from getting coffee every day to three times a week it will be easier to stop buying my coffee in the morning and instead bring some from home, saving around $750 a year. That is money I could use to pay off some of my loans.

4. Save for retirement- If you aren’t saving for retirement, you should start now, no matter your age. If you are eligible for a 401k, sign up to have a percentage deducted from your paycheck. Check to see if your company matches your contribution, and if your company doesn’t, open your own IRA and contribute what you can.

5. Learn something about finance- Take the time to learn one new thing about personal finance, one of the problems people have when they try and tackle their finances is feeling like they are in over their head. Look to your local credit union for help; see if they offer any workshops you can attend. Talk to someone at your credit union about starting a retirement plan, or developing a financial strategy for your small business. By the end of the year you will have enough knowledge to help you make financial decisions for your future.

-Jess H., Maine Credit Union League