Starting out the New Year right
There's no doubt about it, the festive season can be an expensive time of year.
Now that all the celebrations are behind us, you may want to take stock and sort
out your finances for the year ahead.
Reality check
The best place to start is by looking at where you are right now. Write down all
of your outstanding debts so you know exactly where you stand.
- Did you max out your credit cards over the holidays?
- Are you falling behind in your bills?
- Have you got a few too many hire purchases?
If the answer to one or more of these questions is yes, then it will be important
for you to make a plan to meet your repayments.
Write down your goals
Take some quiet time when you're not under pressure to figure out your financial
goals for the coming year. Set yourself some short term and longer term goals. Make them specific
and realistic and write them down (research has shown that people who write down
their goals are more likely to achieve them!).
Your goals could be things like:
- Pay off your credit cards
- Save for a holiday / house / car
- Save up an ‘emergency fund'
- Increase your income
- Start a retirement savings plan.
The Sorted website has just
launched a new tool, the My Goals Worksheet that can help you work out your goals
and create a plan to keep track of them. Some of their other tools include a ‘Money
Personality Profiler' and a ‘Sort me' questionnaire which can help you work out
your financial strengths and weaknesses.
Budget, budget, budget
If you want to achieve your goals you will most likely need to budget regularly.
If you're not sure how to go about it there are a number of tools and options available:
Stick to your plan
Of course once you have a financial plan in place it won't work unless you stick
to it. It might not be easy, but it will be worth it when you end the year on a
better financial footing.
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