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Six ways to set financial resolutions that will actually stick
Itâs the end of the yearâa time for reflection, relaxation and resolutions. Come 2026, maybe you want to learn a new skill, make the gym a regular part of your routine or spend more time with friends and family. But if youâre planning to set a New Yearâs resolution that has to do with your wallet, youâre not alone.
A whopping 97% of Americans age 25 and older with a household income under $100,000 said they have already set or are considering financial resolutions as part of their 2026 resolutions, according to a survey of nearly 1,400 people conducted by Wells Fargo and marketing research firm Ipsos. The top resolutions are saving more money and spending less, but respondents are also resolving to improve their credit scores, pay off debt and start a new side hustle or income stream, reports Current, a consumer fintech banking platform.
Setting a financial resolution is easy. Itâs sticking to it thatâs hard. But financial advisors say that there are several simple steps you can take now to help give your future self a leg up.
1. Reflect on the last year
In order to make resolutions that youâll be able to put into practice, you need to start by reflecting on the last year, says Chelsea Ransom-Cooper, a certified financial planner at Zenith Wealth Partners.
Review your spending and transactions. You can either do this with a budgeting app or your mobile banking app, many of which offer money management tools to see what type of items and services get you to swipe your card most often. Note what your biggest spending categories are, and whether anything surprised you.
2. Be realistic
Thereâs no point identifying milestones you wonât be able to hit, and doing so can be discouraging. For example, if you only saved $1,000 last year, you probably donât want to say that this year youâre going to save $10,000.
A key part of this step is determining whether you have any significant changes to your income, Ransom-Cooper says. Perhaps youâre expecting a raise at the end of the year or youâre starting a new job with a higher salary after the holidays. If thatâs the case, it may make sense to give your savings goal a bump. But if you know youâre also taking on new expenses, like higher rent or medical bills, youâll want to adjust for those changes as well.
You should also limit the number of goals you set and keep them simple, says Cristian Mundy, a certified financial planner at LifeLine Financial & Wealth Management Group. Donât write down 10 to 20 goals, but instead stick to three to five, then build from there if you need to add more goals later.
And donât overcomplicate things. Make sure these are behaviors you can keep up, such as setting aside $20 each week for a future car.
âYouâve got to make it a habit,â Mundy says.
3. Keep your goals top of mind
Committing your goals to memory may work for the first few weeks of the new year, but itâs easy for them to go by the wayside if you donât push yourself to reflect on them regularly. Write your goals down somewhere youâll see them frequently, such as on a note on your desk or refrigerator.
Ransom-Cooper has her goals on her phoneâs homescreen so that every time she unlocks the phone, she sees them. She says sheâs even seen people write their goals on a sticky note and put them on their credit card so that every time they go to swipe their card, they’re reminded of the debt theyâre working to pay off.
âLittle things like that can be great nudges to remind you âHey, before you do something that may not be aligned with those goals, here’s a good reminder of where weâre trying to go this year,ââ Ransom-Cooper adds.
4. Avoid comparison
Itâs hard enough to stick to your own goalsâdonât try to meet someone elseâs.
That may seem like an obvious tip, but Ransom-Cooper says sheâs noticed more recently, with the rise of social media use, that clients can be tempted to choose goals just because it seems like everyone else is hitting that milestone, like buying a house.
âPick goals that are important to you,â she says. âTry not to latch onto trends or other peopleâs goals because they wonât feel fulfilling.â
5. Automate
To reach goals, you have to make them part of your daily routine. Automating is a simple way to do that, Mundy says. For instance, if youâre trying to save more money, set up an automatic transfer into your savings account every time your paycheck hits. If you have a 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement savings account, youâre likely already making automatic contributions with a portion of your paycheck. A budgeting app can help you track your budget and spending patterns automatically, too.
Mundy says to think of this practice like working out: Once it becomes a regular part of your routine and you donât wrestle everyday with whether or not youâre going to the gym, exercising becomes easier.
âAnybody that wants to be financially stable, they have to put in place fundamental processes that allow them to be successful financially without them really thinking about it,â he adds.
6. Be flexible
Be ready to adjust your goals if necessary. If you reach your goals, such as funding an emergency fund, sooner than expected, adjust your resolutions to make room for saving for the long term. And if the unexpected hits, like you get laid off from your job, revise your goals to make them attainable for the current moment and keep going.
You also want to be sure that youâre allowing yourself to enjoy your life now, not just saving for the future.
âWhen it comes to personal finance, itâs all about having a good balance,â Ransom-Cooper says. âWe want to have a balance of making sure weâre increasing towards our goals, but also allowing people to just enjoy some of their hard work, too.âÂ
This story was produced by Current and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
