Monday, December 26, 2016

New Year Resolution... again?

This is the last time we talk in 2016, so I will keep it nice and short. And I first want to wish you a VERY HAPPY 2017!

As we are getting closer and closer to the end of the year, it is perhaps the best time to reflect on the good, the bad and the ugly for 2016. It is a time to make plans for the New Year – what most people call RESOLUTIONS. Well, this is also your chance to make a choice: the choice that this time you WILL do those things you have been promising yourself you will do.

Do you know how many people decide there are going to lose weight or get out of debt in the New Year? Though I don’t know the exact number, I just found a statistic that shows the top 10 resolutions for 2016, and “Spend less, save more” is number 3, behind only “Lose weight” and “Getting organized”. Wow, by comparison, “Falling in love” and “Spend more time with the family” are the bottom 2 in this top. Does this surprise you? For me the surprise is that I was right. I thought that the HARD WORK type of resolutions top the list.

The other scary statistic is that only 45% of Americans even set a New Year’s Resolution, while about the same number (39%) say they never do it. And what is even more scary is the fact that from those 45%, after 6 months, almost half (46%) even keep track or work towards achieving those resolutions.

All things considered, my wish for you is to make your MONEY RESOLUTION for 2017 your last attempt at achieving it. I want to talk to you in 2018 and beyond about how you are maintaining the great systems you set up, and not how you are starting to save.  And in order for this to happen, I would like you to start working on your financial goal NOW. Remember, the Chinese said “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago; the next best time is now”. 

What is your goal for 2017? Please share, and I promise to hold you accountable for it to be the last time you set that exact goal - because it will be accomplished.