Skip the New Year Resolutions! Here are 5 Steps to Take In December to Build a Better New Year:
Can you believe it? There are only 2 weeks left in the year!
After this weekend, most offices, schools, and workspaces become a dead zone the week between Christmas and the New Year.
You might be stuck at work doing a whole lot of nothing. Maybe you’ll take the week off and relax at home with a cup of hot cider. Or you could just be trying to keep the kids alive and yourself sane while the house is full of new toys and a dozen different sugar-filled goodies.
Wherever you find yourself the last week of December, try to take a few minutes, maybe even 2-3 hours, and check off these 5 steps on your to-do list to build financial stability for you and your family in the New Year.
Step 1- Make Sure You Are Getting Any Employer Match in Your Retirement Fund
If your employer offers a retirement fund, there is a good chance that they offer employer matching. According to a Plan Sponsor Council of America survey, about 98% of 401(k) plans pay a company match or profit-sharing contribution.
Make sure that you are getting this free money! It is part of your salary and not taking advantage of it is saying “I’m fine with earning less money.”
While some employers require a certain number of years of employment to become fully vested in their offered match, it is still worth it.
Take a few minutes this week and ensure you are contributing enough to your employer-sponsored retirement fund to get your full match. Most employers match between 3-6% of your paycheck.
(IF you have a super generous employer who matches unlimited, lucky you! Contribute as much as you can afford within annual federal limits)
Contact HR or your payroll office and get started!
Step 2 – Open an IRA (Individual Retirement Fund)
An IRA (Roth or Traditional) is a retirement account that YOU fully own. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been with your company. It doesn’t matter if you are a stay-at-home parent.
So long you or your spouse (if you are married filing jointly) has earned income, you can contribute to your IRA.
- Find a low-cost brokerage like Vanguard or Fidelity.
- Open an IRA.
- Make a contribution. (Limits change annually)
- Choose some simple, low-cost index funds.
- Set up automatic contributions, if you can.
- Contribute every year (in good stock markets and bad) and watch your retirement fund grow.
You owe it to yourself.
Step 3- Pay Off Debt or Set Up A Debt Payoff Plan For the New Year
It’s the holidays. It seems like every December, we go a little overboard with gifts, parties, and celebrating. No matter how hard we try to have a frugal holiday.
Start your New Year off right by getting rid of any accumulated debt.
Pay off those credit cards. Sell excess gifts or things around the house. And start the new year fresh.
For many, that sounds like a dream.
If there is no way you will be able to pay off your debt by January, sit down and create a debt payoff plan for the New Year.
- Lay out your debts.
- Decide on a Snowball or Avalanche Technique
- Figure out how to cut expenses and/or increase income.
- Then make it happen!
If it took you years to build up your debt, don’t expect to get rid of it in a month. Give yourself grace while seeing how fast you can get to a Debt Free New Year.
Step 4 – Start Exercising and Eating Healthier NOW
So many people make New Years’ Resolutions to get fit and lose weight. Gyms are packed in January and slowly empty out by March.
Instead of making your fitness plan a Resolution to start full-bore next week, decide TODAY that you are going to make a small change:
- Do one pushup every day.
- Walk down your block 3 houses then turn around.
- Add one serving of vegetables to your dinner plate.
Start to make small changes now, then add on to them as you master each one.
I started doing 3 basic leg stretches each morning, while still in bed, 3 years ago. I’d just had surgery and didn’t want my other joints to start having problems while I recovered.
Over the years, I have added on a few extra stretches and even weight bands. I now do a full 10-20 minute routine every morning, depending on how I’m feeling and the time I have available.
But it has become a part of my life and I can tell a difference if I don’t do them.
The same with fruits and vegetables. My kids know that no matter what we eat, from lasagna to chicken nuggets, there will be at least 1 fruit and/or vegetable on their plate that they need to eat.
By making this a regular part of their life, it is automatic. They even surprised my mom at a buffet once when they came back, voluntarily, with broccoli and carrots on their plates, and ate them.
Skip the all-out RESOLUTION TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE… next week.
And start making small changes TODAY.
Step 5 – Plan Out Goals For The New Year
Take a quiet moment a decide on a goal, or a few goals, that you want to accomplish in the new year.
Change jobs, go on vacation, start a side hustle, feel healthier, or spend more time with your kids.
Whatever it is, write it down and make it a S.M.A.R.T. goal
Specific – Don’t just want to change jobs, want a specific job or a specific industry.
Measurable – Make sure you can know if you have actually achieved your goal. “Be healthy” is great, but what does that mean to you? Lose 10 pounds? Run a mile in 5 minutes? Walk through Target without getting winded?
Actionable- Is it something you can actually do? “I want my daughter to become the best gymnast ever!” Well, you can get her lessons but unless SHE wants to put in the effort and has the ability, it’s not really something you can do.
Realistic- Make sure your goal is something you can actually do. Maybe you want to pay off your $200,000 mortgage this year but you only make $40,000 a year. Unless you win the lottery or come into some large amount of money, it’s probably not gonna happen.
Time-bound- Have a realistic timeline and deadline. I want to have $1,000,000! Cool, if you put $50 in investments every month, you can totally achieve that in 78 years. Figure out your realistic timeline and what you need to do to meet it.
Take some time to decide on your goals, then figure out what you need to do to achieve them:
- Financially
- Timewise
- Effort
- Etc.
Then go for it!
Wrap-Up
The end of December is a great time to think about the past year and start planning for the year ahead.
Pour some cider. Grab a slice of gingerbread. Enjoy the quiet joy this time of year.
Then take a few simple steps these next 2 weeks and build yourself an awesome New Year!
What are your goals for the New Year? What has helped you reach your goals in the past? Or held you back?
Make sure to leave a comment below and share your favorite articles to help your friends and family build a great New Year!
4 thoughts on “Skip the Resolutions: 5 Steps To Build a Better New Year”