by Colette Machado

The start of a new year offers an opportunity to reflect on the past and set goals for the future. Give yourself the best chance of reaching your money goals in the coming year and preparing yourself for a better financial future by starting to plan now.

SET FINANCIAL GOALS

As you look back at the past year, what did you achieve? Did you reach the financial goals that you had hoped to? Did you buy that new car, go on that dream holiday or clear some of your debts?

If you did, congratulations! If you didn’t, why didn’t you? Was it because you didn’t have the money to achieve those goal or was it because you didn’t make a written plan and take action? If you don’t write down your financial goals and set a deadline with clear targets, you are much less likely to achieve them.

Action Step:

Set your financial goal. Write it down and set a deadline. Then work out how much you need to put towards your goal each month to make it happen. If your plan isn’t realistic, you may need to push your target date back. However, another option is to earn extra income to put toward your goal. You might think about taking on more hours at work, getting a part-time job or taking a look at Genistar’s business opportunity.

“A goal without a plan is just a wish” – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

BUDGETING

Re-examining your budget can help you figure out where you’ll need to make adjustments. Despite the cost-of-living crisis and inflation being at an all-time high, many people are probably spending over the odds for various household purchases.

The distance between dreams and reality is called action

Reducing your mobile phone bill, getting rid of premium TV services (that you don’t use), dropping magazine subscriptions (for magazines you don’t read), ordering fewer take-aways and reducing your monthly shopping bill are all ways you can reduce your outgoings in order to free up more money which can be put to better use.

Action Step:

Write down your monthly outgoings and input them into our very useful Fat Finder Tool to help you see which of your monthly expenses you could reduce in order to make some beneficial savings. You’ll be surprised at how much you can save.

SAVING AND INVESTING

If you haven’t got any savings in place, one of the best places to start is with an emergency fund which will be hugely beneficial for a variety of reasons.

Once you have your emergency pot of cash in place, you can start working to accumulate money for your long-term goals such as a holiday home abroad, university fees, etc. For these long-term goals, you may want to look at investing. Investing is likely to help your money grow faster in the long-term than leaving it in a savings account. However, be aware that when you invest, you need to plan on putting away your money for at least five years in order to see a good return.

Action Step:

Write down your goals and how much is needed for each one. Decide whether saving or investing would be best for that goal – depending on when you want to achieve it, the amount, etc. If you are debt-free and want to simply start working towards your retirement fund or another goal, why not let a Genistar representative refer you to our investment provider.

‘If you fail to plan, you plan to fail’ – Bear Bryant

WE CAN HELP

Genistar’s mission is to help families become debt-free and financially independent, so why not let us help you make this the year you start working towards a better financial future for yourself and your family?

Action Steps

1. If you haven’t had a complimentary Financial Game Plan done yet, book an appointment with a Genistar representative. The beginning of a new year is a time when many people review their life and decide on how they are going to have a better year than the year before. So book your appointment today.

• If you would like to increase your income in the new year, whether for the purpose of reaching your financial goals, clearing your debts or investing for your retirement, speak to a Genistar representative to find out when the next Business Opportunity Meeting is taking place.

Watch for part 2 of ‘Take Control of Your Financial Future in the New Year’ where we will be sharing more ways in which you can get a grip on your finances.