5 Ways to Prepare Yourself For a Financially Successful 2022

The new year has officially begun, we’re back to work and settling into the routine again. Regardless of your current situation or goals - whether you’re accumulating wealth, ditching debt, starting your first job or planning for retirement - let’s start the year right with a healthy mindset towards money and finance. 

From a team of financial experts and problem solvers, these are a few helpful tips to prepare yourself for a financially successful 2022. 

Set yourself a realistic goal

Have you asked yourself what you really want to achieve? Set yourself a goal, something that you know is realistic and achievable, and write it down. You’re 42% more likely to achieve your goal if you write it down - says Dr. Gail Matthews, from the Dominican University in California.

Once you know the goal, you can plan and decide the steps you need to take in order to achieve that goal in the timeframe you’ve given yourself. 

Review your 2021 spending

2021 was the year of spending! Online shopping boomed as shops closed and websites crashed due to visitor capacity. Take the time now to run through your 2021 spending…all of it - debit cards, credit cards, cash receipts. How much did you spend? What did you spend it on? Were these purchases and expenditures essential? How does this compare to the income you received?

Know your budget

Now that you know how and where you spent your money last year, and how it compared to your income. You know whether or not it was within budget. Setting yourself an appropriate budget is key to financial success. Having enough money to live and enjoy the life you live is important, so make smart choices with your bills. One rule, make more than you spend. 

Big events coming up? Plan ahead 

Birthdays, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day…. and more. They come around at the same time, every year. So, plan ahead. If there are people or events in your life that you know you’re going to celebrate, don’t leave it to the last minute. Start your Christmas shopping earlier and spread it out throughout the year so that you’re not faced with a huge credit card bill at the end of December. 

Make it automatic

Starting the year with new resolutions, good intentions and high motivation? Make the most of it. While you’re feeling energised about getting your finances on track for success, set up some simple automations to help future you out on days when motivation might be lacking. Set up automatic bank transfers to your high-earning savings accounts, billing accounts and any investment accounts you own. This way, you’ll never miss a payment. 

Being financially ready for a new year is important at any age or stage in your life. If you are looking for financial advice, or need help budgeting for the new year, do not hesitate to contact the Maher Group team on 02 8522 4500 or call our Director of Financial Advice, Carl Tennant on 0478 132 995.