The festive season is a time of indulgence and luxuries, but in January it’s time to tighten the purse strings. Your finances might not be looking too healthy right now, but a bit of careful planning will mean you’re soon back on track. Here are a few things to consider for your finances this January.
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Tighten The Purse Strings
If you’ve overspent last month or accumulated some debt then now is the time to rectify this. Cut back on anything that’s not essential and use the money where it’s most needed, this will help you to quickly get back on track financially. January might be considered as a ‘clean slate’, but if you’re bringing through debt from Christmas, this should be addressed as quickly as possible.
Set Some Goals
We have a whole twelve months stretching out ahead of us. What are you going to achieve financially during this time? Maybe you want to pay off debt or save towards a summer holiday. Perhaps you want to start saving for a new car or a mortgage, or you just aim to plan your money better each month. Whatever it is, write down what you hope to achieve and then break each goal down into smaller and easy to achieve chunks. For example, if you want to plan your money better you could begin by writing out all of your income and expenditures and invest in a calendar or budgeting app to plan everything out. If you want to be debt free by December, you could work out exactly how much you’ll need to pay off each month.
Protect Yourself From Injury
The last thing you need after a financially draining Christmas is to be injured and out of work. Sometimes accidents and incidents are out of your control, but there are lots of precautions you can take against others. The start of the year is particularly bad for these kinds of things since the cold weather can lead to hazardous snow and ice. When travelling by road, you can drive safely and carefully- making sure your car is as safe as possible. Checking all of the fluid levels and switching the tyres to winter snow and ice tyres are some of the ways you can go about this. When walking in public in winter, ensure you are wearing sensible footwear with a good grip to prevent slips. If you’re injured due to the neglect of a company, putting in a personal injury claim will mean the compensation covers any medical expenses and time taken off work, so you don’t end up out of pocket. Companies like BHP law can provide experienced personal injury solicitors if you end up in this situation.
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Make the right decisions now, and you will set yourself up for a happy and prosperous new year. When it’s cold outside, and the weather is bad, it’s the perfect chance to tighten the belt and make cutbacks anyway. By the spring, you should be in a much better position financially.
