Will You Spend Financial Resolutions for the New Year
With the New Year now in full swing, you may be looking for ways to tighten up your finances – especially if you overspent or simply have spending fatigue following the busy holiday season. The good news is that even small actions can make a big difference. Here are some simple steps to help you recover from the holiday frenzy and confidently take control of your finances in 2023.
Examine your spending history. You can only make meaningful changes to your spending habits when you have an accurate view of them. Look back several months to generate a list of your typical monthly expenditures. Then divide those
items into two lists. The first list will include “needs”— things like rent, mortgage payments, utilities, transportation, and food. The second list should include “wants” — what you like to spend money on but can live without.
Tally savings activities. How much are you saving each month? Be sure to include automated retirement savings contributions and your employer match, if applicable. Financial experts recommend building an emergency fund equivalent to six months of income before funding long-term goals.
Factor in credit card debt. How much do you owe? High-interest debt can impair your financial well-being. Plan to pay down high-interest credit card balances as quickly as possible. Put a halt to credit card spending, which should be reserved for emergencies unless you are already in the habit of paying these bills in full every month (and thereby avoiding interest payments).
Apply the 50-30-20 rule. Check to see if your spending aligns with the guideline of 50 percent for needs, 30 percent for wants, and 20 percent toward saving and paying off debts. What areas are
bloated? Where can you rein in spending? How can you build your nest egg?
Set attainable goals. Small changes in spending can add up over time. Look for opportunities to make manageable changes. Can you cut back on splurge purchases and eating out? Prioritize your travel wish list and go to places you can most afford? List your ideas and post them on the refrigerator or mirror to keep them top of mind.
Visualize your success. Create a “mood board” with photos or sketches of what your life will be like as you achieve your financial goals. This activity can help you associate positive feelings with the new behaviors you need to adopt to reach your financial goals.
Use an app. It’s never been easier to track your spending automatically. Your banking institution may already offer an app that can show you where your money is going each month –and help you identify areas where you could cut back or reallocate funds.
Tap an expert. There’s an endless supply of financial information available online, but
not all advice is created equal. To ensure you’re getting guidance that’s appropriately tailored to your unique situation, consider meeting with a financial advisor. An experienced investment professional who understands your current circumstances and your goals for the future can help you take control of your finances and come out stronger than ever in the New Year.
Duane J Lusson, CFP, ChFC, CLU, MSFS, is a Private Wealth Advisor with Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. in Ottumwa, Iowa. He specializes in fee-based financial planning and asset management strategies and has been in practice for 30 years. To contact him, call 641-684-4200 or stop by his office at 527 W. Second in Ottumwa, Iowa.
Ameriprise Financial, Inc. and its affiliates do not offer tax or legal advice. Consumers should consult with their tax advisor or attorney regarding their specific situation.
Investment advisory products and services are made available through Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC, a registered investment adviser.
Investment products are not insured by the FDIC, NCUA or any federal agency, are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed by any financial institution, and involve investment risks including possible loss of principal and fluctuation in value.
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When Its Cold Outside
Sometimes it makes a person wonder how wildlife can survive when things are frozen, covered with snow and the wind chills are brutal. Most people have sense enough to come in out of the cold, but the wildlife does not have that option.
Three requirements for cold weather survival are food, water, and shelter. Food can be hard to find when the ground is covered with ice or snow. Some animals stockpile supplies when they have the opportunity. Between our house and the storage shed, there is a stand of forty to fifty hickory trees. In the fall, when the hickory nuts have fallen, it is like walking on marbles to get to the shed. The ground is totally covered with nuts. By early winter, there are few if any nuts left on the ground. Squirrels pack them away for safekeeping. I must admire their ingenuity but do not
always appreciate their hiding places. Whenever I go to use the tractor, I need to check in all the openings and cervices for hidden hickory nuts.
In the spring when I get the lawn mower out for the first time, it is necessary to check the machine thoroughly so as to not suck a hickory nut into the engine. The nuts buried in the flower beds and forgotten will sprout in the spring and be weeded out. The leftovers buried in the timber can grow into new trees for future generations of squirrels.
Nut trees scattered about the farm serve as a food source for deer, turkeys, squirrels, and other animals.
Turkeys and deer can plow down through a foot or more of snow to find walnuts, acorns, and hickory nuts. Turkeys will also eat weed seeds and an occasional mouse. Deer will browse the tips of branches and rake the snow off protected grass. Water can become a scarce commodity when the temperature gets well below zero. Open water will remain in the bottom of the ditches up to a point. When it becomes cold enough to freeze there, the only liquid water is found in the few springs on the farm that brings water to the surface from deep underground. Traveling long distances to get to the water presents a hardship for the thirsty animals. For predators, it
is an opportunity to see all the wildlife in the area as they congregate in one spot to get a drink. The weak or slow are picked off by coyotes at these oases in the cold. The spring is also a great place to set up a camera to watch wildlife come and go.
Finding shelter from the cold presents different challenges for different animals. A squirrel can curl up in a hollow tree and withstand the coldest of weather being insulated from the cold. Deer will generally seek refuge in dense cedars or a steep ditch where they are protected from the wind while they ride out the cold snap. I am not sure why turkeys survive. On the coldest days with the wind howling making forty below zero wind chill factors, I see turkeys fly up to roost among the branches of a bare oak tree where they will spend the night fighting to keep from being blown away. They have no protection on their lower legs and no more feathers than they have in July. A person would think they would freeze their legs off at the knees and be walking around on stumps.
One way or another, animals have a coping mechanism when it comes to surviving the extreme cold weather. They do better than I do. When it gets that cold, I stay inside and complain a lot.
