With the holidays well behind us and a full month of 2023 already exhausted, a sense of financial stress and uncertainty may have started to set in for some people.
It’s time to reflect on the experiences and accomplishments of January and welcome a brand new one.
It’s ideal to evaluate your financial situation when a new month begins and make or assess achievable goals for the future. A new month is a good time to start all over again and to also identify the exact financial activities you would like to carry out for the month, whether you’re attempting to pay off your debts, saving for a major purchase, or simply wanting to improve your overall financial wellness.
Here are a few activities I recommend to help you tidy up your January’s financial activities and help achieve a financially fit and fabulous February.
1. Spend some time reviewing your January bank statements. It will help you understand what areas of your budget you need to work on.Your bank statement is an indicator of where your money is going, and it reveals a lot about your level of financial discipline, or lack thereof.
2. If you had a budget at the beginning of the year, make time to review it and reflect on your actual spending. Don’t know how to draw a budget? We’ll look at that in another email, hopefully soon.
3. Did you save anything from your income this month?
It’s a good time to send something into your savings account (a money market mutual fund or savings platform) right away. Now, don’t worry about it being too small or not. Just make sure you get it done. Doing so will help you strengthen your consistency muscles.
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4. Pick a financial book to read in February.
Books will widen your knowledge base about your finances. They also provide direction and guidance on how to manage your resources better.
5. If you have investments, please take a moment to review them and adjust your records as needed. Make sure you have all your investments documented.
6. Map out your financial plans for February: your bills, expenses, trips, and events.
7. Take a look at your debts and map out a plan for repayment. Living overseas? Review your credit report and work on improving your credit score.
8. Take a look at the financial goals you set at the beginning of the year and continue to interact with them all year.
9. Pick a personal finance topic and increase your knowledge about it. You may consider reading about savings, budgeting, investing, or financial planning.
10. Get an accountability partner and make it a point of duty to start interacting with people who are serious about their finances.
Don’t allow the “January blues” dampen your financial morale; get your finances back on track. You can stay on top of your spending, debts, and investments as you keep going stronger on your journey to financial stability.
