{"id":2171,"date":"2016-12-14T00:15:26","date_gmt":"2016-12-14T08:15:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/?p=2171"},"modified":"2016-12-13T12:41:26","modified_gmt":"2016-12-13T20:41:26","slug":"5-simple-powerful-financial-new-years-resolutions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/5-simple-powerful-financial-new-years-resolutions\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Simple But Powerful Financial New Year’s Resolutions"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"LookingI\u2019ve never been one to limit myself to setting only New Year\u2019s resolutions. Instead I set and reset my goals whenever I see fit. But I\u2019m not going to lie \u2013 I love the fresh feeling of the New Year. I just can\u2019t help but get excited about what the next twelve months will bring and what I\u2019ve accomplished over the last twelve.<\/p>\n

Over the past few years I\u2019ve experimented with all kinds of financial goals. Some went well and some didn\u2019t. What has surprised me though, is how impactful some of the small resolutions have been.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re looking for big wins that come with a comparatively small amount of effort here are five powerful financial goals to work on this coming year.<\/p>\n

# 1 \u2013 A Simple Financial Organization System<\/h2>\n

Time and time again I\u2019ve witnessed the profound money saving effects of organization<\/a>.<\/strong> For instance, have you ever thought that you had more money in your checking account than you actually did and overspent? Have every lost an insurance policy? Do you forget your online banking passwords? Are there receipts scattered all over your desk? Is tax a time the biggest pain in your you-know-what?<\/p>\n

If so, I promise<\/em> you, spending a couple hours coming up with an organization system plus twenty minutes each week maintaining it could completely transform your finances. (And I don\u2019t say that lightly!)<\/p>\n

Once you get organized you\u2019re better able to budget your money, plan for the future and know what you have. Not to mention tax time becomes a total breeze.<\/p>\n

To get started clear out a small filing cabinet or a large basket to use as your financial organization zone. Get a folder and put in it all things that you need to keep, such as insurance policies, retirement statements, etc. Toss out all other paid bills that you\u2019re hanging onto for no reason. Get a separate folder or large envelope and use it to place any receipts or documents needed for your taxes.<\/p>\n

As mail comes in place your bills in the basket. Immediately throw away junk mail or file any \u201cneed to keep\u201d papers (which shouldn\u2019t be many.) Then, once per week sit down, pay your bills and throw away\/shred the paper statements. Also balance your checkbook and check any online accounts.<\/p>\n

This system is SO simple but it is super effective when it comes to staying organized financially.<\/p>\n

# 2 \u2013 Automatically Saving $20 Per Pay<\/h2>\n

When I got my first job my Grandma urged me to save $20 per paycheck. At the time that seemed like a huge amount to me and I refused. Now I really wish I would have!<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not currently saving any money, sign up for an online savings account and have $20 per paycheck automatically deposited. (If you can save more, definitely do so!)<\/p>\n

If you are already saving increase your contributions by at least $20 per paycheck.<\/p>\n

# 3 \u2013 Increasing Retirement Contributions by 5%<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re like me you may have gotten a little bit of a late start saving for retirement. While not ideal, there\u2019s no need to freak out about it. Do what you can to increase your contributions. For me this has been increasing the amount I contribute by at least 5% per year and exploring other ways to fund retirement.<\/p>\n

# 4\u00a0 – Read 4 New Personal Finance Books This Year<\/h2>\n

When it comes to building wealth it can be easy to lose motivation. I\u2019ve found that reading new personal finance books at least quarterly gives me new ideas and keeps me motivated to work on my goals.<\/p>\n

Since reading more is also one of the top New Year\u2019s resolutions this could help you kill two birds with one stone.<\/p>\n

# 5 \u2013 Start a Side Hustle<\/h2>\n

One of the most beneficial things I\u2019ve ever accidentally done for my finances was to start a side hustle.<\/strong><\/a> About four years ago I decided to look for ways to earn money from home to supplement my income. After a year I was able to turn that side hustle into a full-blown job and now earn almost triple of what I did before.<\/p>\n

The beauty of a side hustle is that it doesn\u2019t have to take up a ton of time and you get to pick it. Start thinking ideas and commit 5-10 hours per week to giving it a go.<\/p>\n

These five financial New Year\u2019s resolutions might seem simple but they can have a huge impact on your finances. Go ahead and pick at least one or two to implement and in a year from now you\u2019ll be able to look back and see just how powerful they were.<\/p>\n

Have you set any financial resolutions yet?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve never been one to limit myself to setting only New Year\u2019s resolutions. Instead I set and reset my goals whenever I see fit. But I\u2019m not going to lie \u2013 I love the fresh feeling of the New Year. I just can\u2019t help but get excited about what the next twelve months will bring […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2172,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[14,9],"tags":[236,45,531],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2171"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2171"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2171\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2172"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cultofmoney.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}