Thrifty Thinking: Financial Resolutions

As the holiday season will soon be upon us, what better time to begin revisiting your budget and financial goals than NOW??? No need to wait until The Ball drops on New Year’s Eve!!!

Altair Gobo, CFP® is a partner at U.S. Financial Services, LLC, in Fairfield, New Jersey and media savvy. http://www.usfsc.com/team/altair-m-gobo

He’s also author of GETTING TO THE GREEN:  GOLF, FINANCIAL PLANNING, AND LIFE: NOT NECESSARILY IN THAT ORDER.

Altair Gobo, CFP® author of GETTING TO THE GREEN offers these tips to begin your FINANCIAL RESOLUTION TODAY:

1.      PLAN 

·         There’s an old cliché that says “people don’t plan to fail, they simply fail to plan”.

·         Whether it’s losing weight, saving for a home, providing for a child’s education your retirement….on and on !

·         They all require an examination on the quantitative and qualitative aspects …..or simply put Dollars and Sense.

·         How can you measure your success (or failure) if you don’t have a plan to look back at?

2.      WRITE IT DOWN

The easiest way put your goals in writing. Then assess if they are realistic or not ( don’t expect to have $1M in 2years if you make $50k/yr )

3.      DISCIPLINE

Once you’ve agreed that you goal is doable the key is DISCIPLINE ! Put together a plan of action and stick to it!

4.      SET GOALS

·         If I planned on losing 20lbs but only lost 19…..I could say I failed or I could say that without trying I would have never lost the 19lbs!!

·         Without setting goals you can never reach them. It would be great if we met or exceeded every goal we ever set….but that’s not life.

·         Again….an old saying….if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

5.      TAKE THE GOOD WITH THE BAD

·         I think it’s human nature to get discouraged but it’s important that we deal with it, get up and move on.

·         Imagine a baby taking his first step and falling and never wanting to get up again. Imagine Thomas Edison giving up after his first attempt.

·         Imagine ALL the things you’ve accomplished in your life…..How many of them happened without a few hurdles or speed bumps?

6.      ASSESS AND BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF

·         How much do you owe?

·         How much do you have?

·         How much do you earn?

7.      ANALYZE YOUR CASH FLOW

·         How much is coming in/how much is going out.

·         If there’s money left over…..don’t spend it….save it.

·         Depending on your situation, maybe increase IRA/401(k) contributions.

·         Or develop a systematic investment plan that automatically withdraws that extra money and puts it in a portfolio that you’ve set up.

8.      MAKE MORE

·         If there’s no money left over, you have only two options….make more or spend less.

·         If you can’t earn more, take a real hard look at your expenses.

9.      SPEND LESS

·         Try to cut some costs.

·         Do you really need that $5 cup of latte every morning ?

·         You’d be surprised at how much you could save every month by making a few adjustments in your spending habits!