A new year brings new starts, new goals and more with it. Before you do anything this year, be sure you do these things you must do for the new year. Doing them will help to ensure you start the new year off with a bang!
For many people, a new year is looked at as a new start. It can be seen as a catalyst – also known as a swift kick in the… – to meet new goals, make new plans and more. With the right mindset, a person can use the new year to completely change their life should they be so inclined.
If that sounds like you, or something you’d want to do, keep reading.
How to Start a New Year Off Right
Because moving on and making the new year something that improves you life requires work on your part, there are several things you must do in the new year to prepare yourself and your home. These “tasks” may seem as if they wouldn’t matter much, but the truth is that without a strong foundation, any work you do toward improving yourself or your situation, will very likely be unsuccessful.
That’s why these new years tasks are so incredibly important. They allow you to build the life you want brick by brick and goal by goal. You wouldn’t think of building a house on sand without a strong foundation, would you?
No, you wouldn’t, so why would you consider building your life without one as well?
Set Three Goals for the Year
The first of the things you must do for the new year is to set the goals you want to reach in the new year. These are the things you want to work toward and accomplish in the upcoming year.
However, instead of setting a bunch of goals all at once, start with setting only the three most important goals you have.
Why? Two reasons.
First, when you prioritize your goals, you ensure that you are working toward what is truly important to you. Sure, you may want to read a book each week in the new year, but is that goal as important to you as wanting to build your savings account? Of course not.
By focusing on the more important goal, you will start off strong and have a stronger desire to reach each specific goal.
Secondly, by setting only three goals at a time, you give yourself the breathing room to really narrow your focus on what you’re working toward. Having too many goals at once can often be distracting and overwhelming. Keeping it small and simple will help to ensure your success.
Declutter Your Home
You very likely spend more time in your home than you do anywhere else and the condition of your home can really impact your mental health, motivation and more. Clutter around you breeds clutter in your mind. Mental clutter can cause more issues than most people understand including but in no way limited to health issues and overspending.
Because of this, it is so important to spend some time decluttering your home before the new year. Doing so allows you to start the year with a clean slate surrounding you. Put things in their rightful places. Get rid of things you no longer want or need. Organize your life in a way that works for you so that the organized life you build really can work for you.,
Organizing doesn’t need to be a long, drawn out process. It can be as simple as going through your clothing that no longer fits, cleaning your pantry, selling books you no longer read, clearing out old toys and so on. Tackling one thing at a time is the perfect way for you to declutter for the new year while not having to sacrifice time on busy days.
Things that may help you declutter and organize
- Household Organization Binder
- Pantry Organization Printables
- Personal Finance Organization Printables
- Family Emergency Preparation Printables
- Wrapping Paper Organizers
- Ornament Storage Boxes
- Desk Organization Kit
- Pants Hangers
- Skirt Hangers
- Closet Organizers
- Utensil Organizers
- Magnetic Knife Bar
- Kitchen bar with Hooks
- Shower Organizer
Clean Out Your Inbox
As a woman with almost 9,000 emails in my inbox, I say this will all honesty and yes, it is directed at myself in a way too. Digital clutter is almost as bad as physical clutter.
Let me say it again for the folks in the back; digital clutter is just as bad as physical clutter.
While digital clutter does not surround you and steal your peace, it does cause you stress, can contribute to being scatterbrained or forgetful, can cause you to feel depressed or a whole host of other issues.
Marketing emails that scream “buy me” or “spend, spend, spend” can quickly make you broke. Deadlines that are missed can cause issues at work or in other areas of your life. Missed payments can cause loss of services or items and excessive late fees.
In other words; self – and you too friend,- clean out your inbox before you start the year!
A quick tip; use Gmail filters and rules to help you clear your inbox clutter quickly. As you delete, you’ll also want to unsubscribe, but these rules and filters will help you keep your inox clear.
If you aren’t sure what I’m talking about, HERE is a great tutorial that explains what it is and how to do it .
Do a Financial Audit
This one is especially important if you are setting any financial goals for the new year. Log into your bank account or accounts and download a spreadsheet or PDF copy of all bank statements for the year.
Next, grab yourself some colored highlighters.
As you go through your bank statements, assign each category a color from your highlighters. At the end, add each color up.
If you have ever wanted a clear picture of your spending, this will do it for you.
Once you have done this, you will have a crystal clear picture of where your money is going. If your goals for the new year involve growing your saving, fixing a spending problem, earning more money or building wealth you need to be able to see the whole picture.
But your financial preparation for the new year does not stop there. In order to get yourself on track and stay there, you will need to keep the work up and you will need to do it in real time.
This means:
- Creating a family spending plan if you do not already have one.
- Carrying a small notebook with you to track every time you spend a dime.
- Using a service such as Tiller Money to manage and balance your bank account
- Knowing the difference between a want and a need
- Promising yourself you will not buy anything you do not need or have not budgeted for and sticking to it.
- Using the proper payment method that works best for you.
One last thing on this; don’t forget your kids when you’re relearning good financial habits. They need to learn just as much as you do; probably more. One easy way to help teach them is by getting them a Greenlight Kids Debit card. It’ s their debit card that you add money to. They get to spend it, but you get to manage the account, what they can spend, when the can spend and more. It really is a fantastic way to teach your kids how to manage money.
Schedule a Physical
If you are sick, you are spending time, money and energy that you may not have to give.
Trust me on this one. I know it all too well.
Unexpected health, eye or dental issues can sneak up on you and frankly, they can cause unexpected death, bankrupt you and can even destroy your family if they are serious enough.
In other words; call your doctor, call your dentist and get your eyes checked. You will be glad you did.
While you are at it:
- Use a company such as Blink Health to save money on prescriptions.
- If you do not have vision insurance, check out VSP Vision. Plans start at just $13mo.
- If you need glasses, get your prescription and order them from the Zenni Optical Website. Complete pairs of glasses can cost as low a $20.00 depending on which options you choose.
- If you wear contacts, consider ordering them through Hubble Contacts. Your first box is just $1 and subsequent orders are only $39.00 shipped. Enter your email on their site and get a 20% off coupon code.
- For supplements, vitamins and other health related issues, consider shopping somewhere such as Vitacost. They often offer great coupons and promos to help you save considerably.
- If you don’t have dental insurance, or don’t have enough, look into a Careington Dental plan. They are not insurance. They are a dental and vision discount plan. For one really decent price each year, you can save up to 60% on dental and vision procedures.
- Finally, your dog is likely your best friend and you are his. Don’t forget him. Consider opting into a Petco Vital Care plan. For just $19 a month – billed yearly – you can see significant savings on grooming, routine vet exams and more. Given how expensive those services can be, any savings is a great savings.
Get a Daily Planner
Finally, the last thing you must do for the new year is to get yourself a great daily planner. The type and kind you choose will vary from others, but I personally love and use THIS 3-Month planner called the Legend Planner. I love how it’s undated and can be started anytime, is broken down into quarterly increments, how it has a place for goals, to track those goals, a daily schedule broken down hourly and more. It works very, very well for me on both a personal and business level.
Others prefer something such as The Happy Planner or Erin Condren planners. These are far more expensive, but can be customized to fit your needs and wants in a planner. I am a bit of a planner junkie so I get wanting something that works for you. It took me forever to find the one I currently use.
Having a daily planner though will allow you to focus more narrowly on reaching your goals. You’ll be able to track the steps necessary to meet hose goals and your progress in taking those steps. It can also help with spending and other financial issues.
These must-do things for the new year may seem tedious or unimportant. It’s true that they can absolutely be tedious.
But doing them is the only way you can be sure that you have set both yourself and your family up for success in the new year. Take the time to do them and I can guarantee that you’ll have the most productive, most abundant year you could possibly have.
Oh and one final thing; Happy New Year! I wish you and yours the healthiest and happiest year ever!