New year, fresh start, right? If you’ve got some big goals for yourself this year, don’t let old problems drag you down! Use these tips to start kissing the old year goodbye and learn what to invest your time and money into to start 2023 on solid footing.
Create a budget.
While this might not sound like the most glamorous or exciting way to embark on the new year, creating a thoughtful and realistic budget can ease your stress, simplify your life, and help you save for the fun stuff!
Start with the most important spending categories, like your rent/mortgage, utilities, food, transportation, and other necessities like medication, clothing, childcare, and so on. Take inventory of how much you’ve spent in the past on these things, and realistically allot for that. If you have any debt, you can consider paying that off as an essential category.
Once you’ve covered those non-negotiable expenses, you can move onto the nonessential (but important!) expenses, like dining out, going to movies, salon trips, and so on. If you’ve got saving goals, with dreams of a new car or a new home on the horizon, these categories are the places where you can really tighten the ropes!
Get rid of things (and people) that are no longer serving you.
As you’re closing one chapter and beginning another, it’s the perfect time to reflect on everything that’s working for you and everything that isn’t. This can be as small as decluttering and donating bags of your idle, unused belongings. It can also look as big as reevaluating your unhealthy habits and ineffective daily routines and ending negative or toxic relationships.
Make lists of everything that adds to your life and everything that subtracts from it, and go from there. It’s certainly not always easy or comfortable to take honest inventory like this, but it can help you begin the new year with nothing holding you down!
Invest in things that help make your dreams a reality.
As you’re setting goals and refocusing at the start of the new year, it’s the ideal time to make smart investments in the things that are most important. From items that allow you to move forward in your goals, like a high-speed, dependable laptop for work or school, to important necessities that keep your household running smoothly, like an upgraded washer and dryer. And for those looking to prioritize health in the coming year, maybe it’s time to invest in that treadmill or free weight set you’ve been considering.
However, investing in what’s most important doesn’t exclusively mean investing money. Start investing time in the areas that you’d like to improve, whether that means devoting more time to reading, creating a consistent fitness plan (perhaps including some simple, at-home couch workouts!), or scheduling weekly time for a little bit of crucial self-care.
While these may seem like intimidating goals at first, budgeting, eliminating the bad, and investing in the good are three simple key ways to help ensure your new year will go smoothly! Visit Rent-A-Center to help start your year on the right track, with the must-have essentials you need to reach your goals with payment plans that work with your brand-new budget! Let’s start the new year right, shall we?