5 Financial Resolutions to make 2021 the best year yet!
Tags: Budgeting, Financial Planning, 2021, Extra Income, Financial Goal Setting

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We wouldn’t argue that 2020 has been a crappy year for most people; to many of us, it wasn’t the ‘2020’ we all envisaged. Think about it again; it was the start of a new decade. Ten, twenty years back, many of us imagined flying cars, lighting speed trains, and houses suspended by gravity. While there are already flying cars and all sorts, the new normal as we now see instead face masks, social distancing, and hand sanitizer. To put it straight, many plans were shattered micro and macro wise.

But wait! Don’t despair, you’re not alone, and there’s no reason to drop the towel. Tough times never last, but tough people do. We think even though 2020 might have been a drag (an understatement), but 2021 doesn’t have to be the puff.

As 2020 comes to an end, with enough preparation, planning, reflection, and hope, you can make 2021 your best year yet and smile to the bank. You can begin by taking all these factors into account to create a realistic, accurate, and exact financial resolution.

We think you could do these five things to help you plan better financially for 2021

1. Cut things OUT OF YOUR LIFE that doesn’t work

The best treat you can give yourself in 2021 is a firm resolve. Cut out anything from your life that isn’t working for you. It could be someone, a toxic relationship, lousy spending, an addiction, gambling, gluttony, extravagant lifestyle, poor financial advice, inability to make a budget or anything in between. The list is endless.

By taking out things from your life, you give room for stuff that works and impacts positively to come because apparently, nature doesn’t give room for the void. Weights, if not the ones at the gym pull you down, keeping you from accomplishing your life goals. Directly or indirectly because it has a connection to your finances.

Sometimes, after cutting things out of your life that doesn’t matter, you will realise it has been a total waste of your time and money. Cut the stuff out of your life that doesn’t matter, and gift yourself a good break.

2. Consider an Extra Source of Income

An extra source of income or side hustle can make a lot of difference in your life in 2021.

It doesn’t matter how many streams of income you already have, having more isn’t bad. This is one of those moments where more is always right. It doesn’t stop there; the good news is even if you didn’t have any before now, you could start increasing your income all-around with some innovative and entrepreneurial spirit to give you more financial security and reach your financial goals faster.

Having more than one source of income is a great long-term solution because it essentially has multiple income streams that guarantee financial security.

A lot of startups out there are re-inventing and redefining everything we know about business and paid employment. You don’t even need a certificate, a godfather, or a programming skill to plug into mainstream financial goals any more. Take, for instance, us at StoreLoad; we help you make extra income by simply putting your idle or underutilised space to fair use for those who may have an instant (on-demand) need for it. This 2021, this is an excellent way to convert your extra space to cash or get an on-demand space sharing platform for storage for anything ranging from groceries, automobiles, gadgets, or even heavy machinery. We can talk about Uber that allows you to convert your vehicle into an asset and make money from it. Private Cars used to be a liability before now, but not anymore.

3. Start Saying No!

Sometimes, the best plan you have in your arsenal against making bad financial decisions and goals isn’t an attack or a defence, it’s cultivating the ability to say “NO” and not feel bad about it. Train yourself to be comfortable saying no to that partner, friend, or family member who always comes around asking for a loan or a handout all the time. Requests from family members, friends, children, co-workers, etc., will never stop coming. To minimise stress and avoid getting overwhelmed, you have to learn to say no, when it’s necessary. Taking on too many commitments makes you less productive even at the most important ones. That’s why the art of saying no can be a game-changer for productivity.

Saying “No” is a skill, most people don’t even realise that saying “yes” kills your chance to be productive and successful. When you make “No” a part of your vocabulary, you’ll find that you’re more in control of your mental space, time and faculties, leaving you the time to focus on the things that matter to you. And most times, that’s your finance!

4. Do the best you can to automate most parts of your daily activities

Do you know the best part about living in the modern age? Technology and automation! Automation software does some fantastic things like upgrade administrative tasks and improves inefficient business and financial processes that once took hours of manual labour.

Automation is such a huge deal if you must deliver productively in your finances. This 2021, make a plan to automate everything in your finances, especially bills, income investments, and savings.

By cutting out paying bills by physically being present, or visiting the bank and queuing up, you will save yourself hours of time and energy you can put into something else. It’s almost impossible to miss a payment or make an error you won’t notice and address when you pay through an online portal of the company you’re paying.

If you are keen on saving and investing, automate the deposits, if you don’t get to see the money, you will curb the cravings to spend it, and at the end of the month, you pat yourself on the back for saving right.

5. Have a budget

Budgeting is your spending plan for any particular period. With a plan, you can determine in advance what you need or don’t with your expected income. One common problem budgeting addresses is helping people realise they are spending more than they earn. When you build a budget, you, therefore, prioritise your spending and focus your money on the things that are most important to you.

This isn’t the same as cutting down on your expenditures and living a life of misery; it merely means preparing for the future, and if avoiding falling into debt is part of it, then it’s worth it. When you understand the volume and frequency of the money that comes in and goes out each month, you are in control.