Financial New Year’s Resolutions—Are They Worth Making?

Every year, millions of people set New Year’s resolutions. If you look at survey data, you’ll find that roughly one-third to one-half of U.S. adults plan to make resolutions when the calendar turns. However, only about 9% of people actually stick to their resolutions. This low success rate begs the question: are New Year’s resolutions worth making?

The answer, especially when it comes to financial goals, is often yes. Financial resolutions are consistently among the most common, second only to health-related resolutions. After all, improving your financial situation is one of the most impactful changes you can make. Not only will it have a lasting effect on your wealth, but it can also bring positive changes in other areas of life, from reducing stress to giving you the freedom to pursue your passions.

But how can you actually stick to these resolutions? It’s all about building good habits and staying flexible. Here’s how to make your 2025 financial resolutions more achievable:

1. Focus on your financial foundation first. 

Before you dive into other financial resolutions, make sure you have the essentials in place. These foundational steps will help you stay financially healthy and ready to tackle more ambitious goals.

Key Foundations to Prioritize:

• Budgeting: Set up a realistic budget that reflects your income and expenses. Make sure it allows for saving and debt repayment.
• Emergency Fund: Aim to build a safety net of 3–6 months’ worth of expenses. This buffer helps protect you from unexpected financial hits.
• Retirement Contributions: If you’re not contributing regularly to retirement accounts such as a 401(k) or IRA, now’s the time to start. The earlier you invest, the more you’ll benefit from compound interest.

2. Document your progress

It’s easy to get discouraged when working toward big financial goals. One of the best ways to stay on track is by documenting your progress. Tracking where you started and where you are now keeps you motivated and shows how much you’ve accomplished.

• Track payments and savings: If your goal is to pay off debt, keep a log of every payment.
• Visualize milestones: Create a chart or spreadsheet to mark your progress and celebrate small wins.
• Use apps or tools: Financial management apps are a game-changer for keeping track of spending and achieving savings goals automatically. Origin’s all-in-one platform simplifies the process by offering budgeting, investing, and net worth tracking tools in one place. Learn more about how Origin can help you stay on top of your finances.

Automate the essentials

One of the easiest ways to stick to your financial resolutions is by automating as much as possible. Automation ensures consistency, freeing you from having to remember to make contributions or transfers each month.

Ways to Automate:

• Automatic Transfers to Savings: Set up recurring transfers for emergency savings or other goals. For example, $250 every month for your emergency fund.
• Automatic Contributions to Investments: Set up automatic transfers into a retirement account like a Roth IRA.
• Bill Payments: Automate bill payments to avoid late fees and stay on top of your budgeted monthly expenses.

4. Reassess and adjust your goals periodically

When you make a goal and put it on “set it and forget it” mode, the odds of it being forgotten and relegated to the resolution graveyard increase drastically. By regularly interacting with, updating, and checking in on the goals you set, you increase your odds of success monumentally. 

• Be flexible: If you plan to save $6,000 this year but an unexpected expense reduces that target, adjust to a more feasible goal.
• But also, try to beat it: While flexibility and forgiveness is important, it’s also important to see that goal as just a baseline—if you can exceed it, go for it.
• Check-in regularly: Set quarterly financial reviews to check if you’re on track, make adjustments, or celebrate progress.
• Update as needed: Goals should be living, breathing things—adjust them when life changes.

5. Break down big goals into manageable milestones 

Big goals, like saving $5,000 or paying off large debts, can feel overwhelming. Instead of trying to achieve these large objectives in one fell swoop, break them into smaller, more manageable milestones.

How to Break Down Big Goals:

• Set weekly or monthly targets: If you want to save $5,000, break it down into savings of $100 each week or $400 per month.
• Focus on consistency: Small, consistent efforts add up over time. Don’t worry about perfection, just progress.
• Celebrate milestones: Celebrate when you hit key targets, like paying off $1,000 of your debt or saving your first $500.

6. If you fall off track, get back on 

Don’t let a small setback derail your financial goals. If you fall off track, don’t abandon your resolutions altogether—just get back on. Remember, financial goals aren’t restricted to the start of the year.

• Start over at any time: You don’t have to wait for next January. Set your intentions and begin working on them today, whether it’s February or September.
• Forgive yourself: Be kind to yourself if things don’t go as planned. The important part is getting back to your goals, and not giving up.
• Stay consistent: Don’t let guilt or frustration stop you—just keep moving forward.

Final reminders

New Year’s resolutions, especially financial ones, can have a profound impact on your life—but only if you commit to them. By documenting your progress, focusing on the fundamentals, automating where possible, and adjusting your goals as needed, you can create a financial roadmap that leads to real change.

Remember, resolutions are about progress, not perfection. Embrace flexibility, break down big goals into manageable steps, and keep moving forward—even if you stumble along the way. Consistency is key, and Origin can help by providing an all-in-one platform to track, manage, and grow your finances—helping you stay on top of your goals all year long.

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