I'm up early this morning.
No, not because I've made a New Year's resolution to get up earlier, or to exercise more (though both would be a good idea!).
I'm up because even though it's New Year's Day (and I'm away), I'm still doing my regular radio gigs and one of those is at 6.30am, even on a public holiday.
And for the first time in ages, I did see midnight on New Year's Eve, so I might need to catch up on some sleep later on.
Thing is, I don't actually believe in New Year's resolutions. At least, not the way most people do them.
Not that they're not great, or that they don't work for some people, but I reckon they set us up to fail.
Most of those who make them last less than a week, according to some stats. And the vast bulk of us don't see out the month without our resolutions being long since abandoned.
And so?
And so we learn that it's a waste of time making resolutions.
But that's because we think of them as 'all or nothing'. We expect perfection of ourselves, starting from an arbitrary day on the calendar. And when we don't reach it, we discard the effort.
In most cases, though, that's a mistake. If you try to give up the gaspers, but end up smoking twice this month, that's still a win. If you're trying to get off the chocky, but have a couple of weak moments in January, you're almost certainly better off than if you hadn't tried at all. The same for exercise or whatever it is you're trying to do more — or less — of, starting today.
Instead of seeing imperfection as a failure, we should see it as the exception that proves the rule – evidence of how much we actually got done, not the one or two times we didn't live up to our new expectations.
That's not just a feel-good sentiment, by the way. It's important, because it makes it far, far more likely we'll actually stick with those changes we want to make.
Rather than trying to do something every day, and giving up because we messed up on January 13, we should celebrate that we did it for 12 of the first 13 days, then aim to start again on the 14th.
And if we do? Well, doing that thing for 30 (or 29 or 28) days of the first month of the year is almost certainly far better than not having done it at all, or having done it for a couple of weeks, then stopping, once the winning streak was broken.
We should be aiming for, and celebrating not perfection, but progress.
By all means, aim for 'every day', but celebrate doing those things more often, rather than castigating ourselves for falling a little short.
And sure, aim for 'never', if you want to cut some things out, but get back on the horse when you occasionally slip up, rather than giving up the effort thanks to a single misstep.
Now look, I'm not going to get a career as a life coach or motivational speaker any time soon. And you'll be pleased to know that this isn't an attempt to move in that direction.
Instead, I'm telling you this, because I'm about to share some New Year's (Financial) Resolutions you can make for yourself. Resolutions that, I'm pretty sure, will improve your finances (and, in all likelihood, your relationships, too, given the impact money can have on them!).
But not resolutions that I'm going to judge you for not keeping, or that I want you to judge yourself on.
Instead, these are things that you might embrace as financial aims; things you'll work towards being better at, over time, and things you'll adopt as ways of improving your financial life.
And when, as will almost certainly happen to almost all of us, we fall short, I hope you'll join me in simply starting again the next day, in our quest, as I said, not for perfection, but progress.
And with that… Happy New Year!
From all of us at The Motley Fool, we wish you a safe and prosperous 2025. Thank you for being members of our services and readers of my writings, here. I hope we'll continue the conversation as this new year unfolds.
13 Foolish New Year's Resolutions
1. I will live below my means — spending less than I earn.
2. I will save money into a rainy-day fund so I'm ready for what life might bring.
3. I will pay off my credit card debt, and then only spend what I can pay off within the interest free period each month.
4. I will regularly add to my investment account.
5. I will invest money I don't need for at least 3-5 years to build my nest egg.
6. I will learn more about investing, taking control of my financial future.
7. I will invest in quality businesses, remembering that I'm buying a slice of the company, not just a code on a screen.
8. I will buy shares in a company with the intention of holding them for the long term.
9. I will sell when my investment thesis fails, the company is overvalued or I have a better idea.
10. I will avoid anchoring my decisions to the price I paid for my shares.
11. I will remember that the market can be moody and over-react, both on the upside and the downside.
12. I will expect volatility, and I won't let it spook me into selling. Indeed, volatility can offer me great opportunities!
13. I will let the market offer me prices (be my servant), not dictate my mood or actions (be my master).
(Want a printable version? I'm glad you asked. Here it is!)
