Not Made Of Money

If you’ve decided that 2009 is going to be your year to work on your finances, you’ve got your work cut out for you. While improving your financial situation is an admiral goal, you will need to narrow your focus a little to really get traction towards your resolutions. Specific goals are much more definable than something general like saying that you’re going to get your finances in order. To get started with setting your own goals check out these New Year’s resolutions with an emphasis in personal finance:

Create a detailed budget. Having a working budget is the key to any other goals in personal finance. Only by having and using a budget can you track your progress toward your goals and really start to see a change in your finances.

Get out of debt. No one will argue that having a lot of debt in your life is a real detriment to your personal finances. Debt restricts your ability to make choices in the way you spend your money and clouds your judgment. You should get rid of it as quickly as possible. If you have too much debt to get rid of it in one year, set a goal that you will reduce your debt by a specific amount in 2009.

Start an emergency fund. Emergency funds are great tools to help you weather any little, unexpected bumps in your personal finances. Having an emergency fund allows you to absorb costs of things like appliance repairs and hospital bills without incurring debt.

Pay for one large purchase with cash. Since you know that having too much debt is a bad thing, you should plan to start saving for major purchases ahead of time. Choose one large purchase you will be making in 2009 and start saving for it now. Then, before the year is over, go and buy that item. You’ll be amazed at how much more you’ll enjoy that vacation, appliance, or piece of furniture when you don’t have to make payments on it.

Make a long-term savings plan. Do you have kids to send to college? Are you planning on retiring someday? No financial plan is complete without including savings for these major life goals. Even if you can’t afford to put much money into these types of savings accounts right now, you should start putting a little money away. It’s a good habit to start now.

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