The Foolproof Guide to Dealing With Setbacks to Your Financial Resolutions

When making 2021 New Year’s resolutions, you might've chosen several aimed at boosting your financial health. You’re still committed to them, but to be honest, you haven’t made much progress — or maybe you’ve even taken a few steps backward.

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It’s only natural to feel discouraged when you haven’t met the goals you set for yourself, but there’s plenty of time to make things right. Resolutions are typically made at the beginning of the year, but they’re intended to be a work in progress.

There’s nothing wrong with fine-tuning your resolutions or doing a complete reset during the first few months of the year. This is something you should never be ashamed of — especially this year, as you work to make positive changes amid the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.

Read: 35 Useless Expenses You Need To Slash From Your Budget Now

Ready to start fresh with your financial resolutions for 2021? Keep reading for tips to deal with issues holding you back from the success you deserve.

Set Intentions and Find Your ‘Why’

Instead of setting resolutions, Arynton Senna Hardy, AIF® and wealth manager at Hardy Capital Investments, prefers to set intentions.

“Setting goals without intention are bound to fail,” he said. “When adversity strikes, which it always does when we are doing something worthwhile, your ‘why’ will put you back on track.”

He said your ‘why’ should be more powerful than the goal itself, so think long and hard about the reason behind each of your financial goals.

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Focus On Short-Term Goals

You might be failing at your financial resolutions, because you’re trying to take on too much at once.

“It’s difficult to stay on track with long-term goals — life has a way of throwing us curveballs, said Matthew T. Gray, CFP®, a financial advisor at Personal Capital, an Empower Company. “Creating short-term goals helps us stay focused while slowly working towards the long-term.”

Find Out: 20 Things You Should Know About Saving Money in Your 20s

Track Your Progress

Getting back on track with your financial resolutions isn’t always easy, so help yourself stay motivated by charting your steps forward.

“Tracking and monitoring behavior is proven to help us succeed more than just reviewing our results,” Gray said. “Progress towards a long-term goal can be slow, so monitoring behavior keeps us motivated.”

Read: How To Be ‘Financially Resilient’ — Even in Times of Crisis

Meet With a Financial Planner

Your financial resolutions might look good on paper, but it’s possible you’re having trouble sticking to them because they’re not the right moves for you. Dean Graziosi, a success coach and entrepreneur, recommends meeting with a financial planner to create a plan that fits your lifestyle.

“We’re all influenced by so many personal factors, including family size, family health and much more,” Graziosi said. “A financial planner will help you decide the best way to improve your financial health and hit your financial goals."

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About the Author

Laura Woods

Laura Woods is a freelance writer with more than 10 years of experience. She specializes in a variety of topics, including marketing, personal finance, entertainment and lifestyle. Her work has been featured on dozens of sites, including HuffPost, CNBC, Business Insider, Nasdaq, MSN, Yahoo, Fortune, Inc., Entrepreneur and POPSUGAR. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from the University of Pittsburgh and an MBA from Robert Morris University.

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