Resolve to get your life in order in 2010
The blank slate of a new year beckons, and the early days of a fresh year are rich with possibility --the kind that makes our rested selves believe surely this will be the year we organize our personal finances, get started on home projects, and take charge of our career.
It is possible, especially if you focus on a few goals at a time, to get your life in order at work and at home as the new year begins. We've rounded up some of the wisest experts often found blogging on Yahoo! Shine about money, work, and home projects to help you get going.
YOUR MONEY
Dayana Yochim of The Motley Fool says getting organized about your money, how you spend it, and how you (hopefully) invest it starts with finding out where your money goes every month.
- Follow the money
Every budget starts with sniffing out your spending habits and determining exactly where your money goes on a day-to-day basis," Yochim says. Start with your debit card or if you use one credit card to pay most of your monthly bills and other expenses for an easy way to track your spending habits. If you use cash, for at least one week, write down what you spend every day, then multiply it by four and add it to the monthly recurring bills you pay to approximate how much you spend a month.
- Get a spending plan
Aside from the bills you know you need to pay month in, month out, now's the time to write down what you will need to-and want to-spend money on in the next three to six months. "These could be physical purchases (like new tires for the car, airfare for the family vacation) or financial plans (such as paying off a credit card, maxing out this year's IRA or adding to your emergency fund," Yochim says. Once you attach dollar amounts to these goals, and you decide how many months until you'll be spending on them, you'll be able to figure how much you need to save every month to reach one or more of your goals.
- Save automatically
"The best way to save your money is to keep your cash out of spending reach by diverting it to a separate savings account--one different from the checking account you use for everyday expenditures," Yochim says. Set up automatic transfers from your regular checking account to savings account so you can put the money out of reach before you spend it on something else.
YOUR CAREER
When you tend to the professional relationships in your life you are tending to your career because chances are good you will find your way to your next job through someone you already know. With that in mind, Marci Alboher, who blogged about Working the New Economy here on Yahoo! Shine and is now a senior fellow at Civic Ventures, has these tips for the new year:
- Focus on the people you know
Tend to strong relationships you already have, rather than making new contacts. "In the course of a career, people can usually trace the most significant opportunities to a small handful of people," Alboher says.
- Say thank you
Identify those who have done something helpful in your career in the past year and find your own way to say thanks. "A colleague recently made my week by hand delivering a box of chocolates from her hometown's confectioner," Alboher says. "An out-of-the-blue recommendation on LinkedIn or a handwritten thank you note would have a similar result."
- Be a mentor
The dark of winter is an ideal time to think about nurturing others, so look around for someone to mentor. You'll feel great about helping an up-and-comer and at the same time, you'll be plugging yourself in to where your industry is going.
YOUR HOME
Once all traces of holiday decorations and entertaining are put away, keep going. It's a good time to pare down and get rid of clutter that keeps you from enjoying your home-and fearing an unannounced drop-in visit.
- Start small
Create a gadget-charging area so you can tame the wires and know where to look for smartphones, iPods, and cameras when you need them. Pay your bills online to cut down on the paper coming into the house, and set up an accordion file by month for the paper bills you still get once they're paid.
The heart of the winter is also a good time to freshen up your home, but home projects don't have to be daunting or expensive.
- A splash of fresh paint
"If you want to freshen up a room but don't have time for a decorative overhaul, try painting one wall in a bold accent color. Apply it to the least prominent wall and the pop of color will always be a pleasant surprise as you move about the space," says PointClickHome.com Executive Editor, Anne E. Collins.
- Think storage
Keep things you use in view, and store clutter-y items like DVDs and other media behind closed doors. As for the items you keep in plain view, don't overdo it. "It's okay to have a few tchotchkes-if you consolidate them. Grouping similar items on a shelf or two will make them look like a curated collection rather than a hodgepodge of stuff," Collins says.
What's on your get-organized list for your goals at work and home at the start of the new year?
