Get out of debt.  Stop procrastinating with money.  Learn to invest.  Make money when you’re broke.  Save for retirement when you’re young.  These are just a few of the money resolutions people have year after year, but by the time the snow thaws, many New Years resolutions have already bitten the dust…have yours?

It’s far too easy to let your finances simmer on the back burner either hoping that you’ll get to wealth eventually…somehow, some way or another.  Months of procrastination turn into years- so grab the reins today without overthinking it.

Take control of your life and your money before you talk yourself out of action and into another wasted year!  This next year of your life will pass whether or not you take advantage of this time, make it count.

1.  Make Room For Wealth:  

Pour over your monthly bills to make sure you’re not overpaying or could qualify for discounts.  Check to see what employee, student, senior, military or loyalty discounts you can qualify for.  You may kick yourself when you discover savings you could have been enjoying for months, but nobody is perfect.  Ignorance is bliss, financial savvy is way better!

Any time you find discounts in one area, make sure you transfer them over to save towards your goals- do NOT spend them.  Put aside any little bit you save to automatically drip into a savings account instead of leaking out of your available savings each month.  Being financially free and geting on track is a great reward- so any money you are able to shave off monthly bills, be sure to transfer those over towards paying down debts or contributing to long term goals.

3.  Do Something You’ve Never Done:

If you want something you’ve never had- you’ve got to do something you’ve never done.  Seems simple- right?   If you’ve been stuck in a rut or are wondering what your next move should be- take a big leap.  Try your hand at stock investing, start a new side hustle from home or explore options for making extra income from existing assets.  Stop procrastinating on paying off your debt and set up automatic payments for savings accounts.

If you feel clueless- that’s okay, everyone starts somewhere especially when it comes to changing spending habits and we all struggle to learn how to invest in the stock market.  Finding the best savings accounts is easier than ever thanks to the internet, but be patient with yourself to learn what will be best for you.  Know that you’ll have to invest some time into learning new skills and challenge your current behavior.

Many people hope they’ll be able to pay off debts or begin to build wealth overnight without modifying their behavior whatsoever.  Chances are, you’ll have to really reach out of the comfort zone of you and your social circles to really change your financial situation.  Many of us are influenced by our parents, family and when it comes to spending- by our friends and coworkers.  Think outside the box and examine your own behavior to not only see what you’re currently doing that could be destructive or what you’re not doing that could be holding you back.   Many of us feel we can’t be successful investors or buy real estate because our parents think it’s risky or our friends are still spending themselves into a hole.  If you want to learn how to invest wisely or find a good value fixed rate bonds available in your country, or even what those are- make financial literacy a project for the next part of 2013 and challenge yourself!

For each of us, there have been times when our money (or lack of it) has ruled our lives and put a stranglehold on our ambitions, adding daily stresses to our lives now, and sucking the life out of our future dreams.  

On Frugal Beautiful, I want as many people as possible to live debt free and save for the future.  I firmly believe in paying for everything in full and having the money in the bank so you can provide for the people you love.  Being in debt, or simply, living in fear that you can even afford your living is no way to go through life.

I’m writing this blog post from Cloud 9, well, actually, from my home office, but the point is- I just returned from my first trip to Walt Disney World, ever, to run the Princess Half Marathon.  Not only did I get to experience this world class event, and take a great vacation, but I got to spend it with the man I love, after 3 months of living apart in a long distance relationship.

When my boyfriend and I first started dating, we knew I would be moving to California- we didn’t know where the relationship would lead or how long we’d be “dating long distance,” but decided to plan for a vacation in February to run the Princess Half Marathon together. At the time, when we sat down and did the math, I was overwhelmed, frightened and a bit sick to my stomach.  I had just graduated with my M.A., so student loan payments were due, I was still looking for full time employment and the trip itself would cost about $1,300 in total.  I had the money in the bank to pay for the race registrations, but knew I would have to save up, penny by penny to get the rest of the cash to make this trip happen.

Six months ago, I felt totally out of control with my money, but I was committed to regaining control of both my money, and my life.  Each week, I took on side hustle projects, put a few dollars in the bank towards the trip and of course, schemed about the amazing fun we would have.  I knew that by the time I arrived in Orlando, I would have the trip PAID FOR so that I could be fully present and not be stressed about paying for it all.

If you’ve ever been lying about your money or secretly in debt, you know how hard it can be to really enjoy what you’re spending your money on! In my heart, I knew that relying on my boyfriend to foot the bill, borrowing from family or hiding behind a credit card would not be an option. I wanted this trip to feel 100% authentic and needed to feel totally at ease when I arrived.

Of course, even with the frugal hacks I used and the money saving tactics, there were times I felt totally guilty when buying an overpriced chocolate dipped strawberry or treating my boyfriend to an ice cold (gasp, $8) beer when we “could have” held back- but I felt free and confident to splurge knowing that I had earned this moment, and I had saved for it.

Too many of us are hiding behind our debts or we are living a lifestyle that’s a lie since we can’t afford it.  We live in an instant gratification society, but taking the time to savor, afford and enjoy what we spend our money on makes it so much more worthwhile.

At Walt Disney World, I did some shopping.  Stuffed animals, Mickey ears, candy & more overpriced goodies than I care to admit.  We splurged on fancy dinners and noshed on french desserts- we were overindulgent and instantly gratified, but honestly, there was nothing “instant” about it.  I saved for months for this trip, and while it’s over, I’m still riding the high since I know that when the credit card payment comes due, I can pay it off!

For my amazing readers, I wish this for each of you.  Dream big, make plans, save often and live debt free.  Knowing that you can overindulge while still living a life in balance with the people you love is the most authentic way to rule your money without it ruling you!

For me, six months ago- traveling to Walt Disney World seemed like a ridiculous dream for a fresh grad student on a tight budget, but I knew that if I could work at it, bit by bit, even the crazy dream of doing a week in Orlando could become a reality.

Every time I put away $5 or $10 to hit that savings goal for the trip, I imagined the dream coming true- spending time with my own Prince Charming at the Princess Half Marathon!  Trust me readers, making a few shopping sacrifices here and there for a big picture goal is so worth it, and even if your goal is to scuba dive in Hawaii or remodel your kitchen, you can do it!

Start now.  Dream big, make plans, save often and of course, live debt free- the victory is much sweeter when you get there!

So, what’s your crazy big dream?

Have you ever saved for a big goal, how did you do it?

When I started Frugal Beautiful two years ago, I mainly focused on frugality and finance in my writing.  I would spend hours pouring over my own finances, working long hours and trying to side hustle for income- expending every last bit of energy to getting my money in order.  Health was always an afterthought- I would wait until I was starving to plan a meal, often reaching for something high in calories and being too tired to exercise.

When I finally had the realization that fitness was important- I battled with ways to incorporate fitness into a blog about frugality and personal finance- but eventually, while out on a run, I had the epiphany that the two are interrelated.  Often, the behavior that causes us to live unhealthy lives- whether overeating, lack of exercise, avoiding the doctor or unhealthy indulgences with our health, are the same that destroy our wealth:  overspending, lack of planning, avoiding our debt and ahem, unhealthy indulgences with our money!

If you want to be financially or physically healthy, it’s easy to draw wisdom from either in order to make yourself wholly healthy. We all know that often being unhealthy costs us money, and conversely, when we’re financially unhealthy the stress spills over into our personal lives, making us feel stressed, tired, susceptible to unhealthy weight loss or gain- but beyond that, how are health and wealth connected?

1.  Diets Don’t Work.  Changing Behavior Does.

Many people feel they can turn around years of overspending or overeating by radically changing their behavior with a fad tactic- or a diet.  Tuning out all of your carbs or telling yourself you “won’t buy anything” for 30 days can be useful in the short term, but if you don’t address the behavior behind your bad habits, you’ll rebound back twice as hard.

I sometimes do participate in a “30 day no spend challenge” and have failed several times.  It was only after I discovered my emotional triggers for shopping that I was able to go 30 days without any impulse shopping.  I realized that if I subscribed to marketing emails from my favorite brands, I’d be emotionally compelled to “take advantage of a good sale” whether or not I really needed an item-  I was spending more by trying to “shop the sales,” and it was counterintuitive.

Conversely, how many times have you gone on a diet with your finances or your food and only bounced back twice as hard- packing on the pounds or spending hours in the shopping mall after depriving yourself of any indulgences whatsoever.  Fad diets are enticing because they offer a quick fix.  You have to make long term changes if you want long term results!

2.  Whether You’re In Debt or Overweight, To Get Healthy You Have To Get Specific.

I failed at making fitness a habit several times. I told myself I just wanted to “lose weight,” and fell off the wagon very quickly with such a vague goal.  Additionally, when I attempted to save up for an “vacation,” without really knowing what it would be for, I lost interest and would dip into my savings fund for other things like shoes and clothes.

In 2012- I committed to run the Princess Half Marathon at Walt Disney World in Florida and I knew that it would take two things:  a lot of hard work to train my body, and plenty of hard work to train my habit to save!  All of a sudden, when I had a soul stirring, heart wrenching goal that was “too big to fail,” I knew exactly what work it would take to get there.  Additionally, I set up a specific savings account with ImpulseSave (see my post about the saving for Princess Half) that would give me visual representations of my progress each week.  I knew I would have to save at least $20 a week and put aside any extra gift money I got for the holidays to pay for my goal.  I was realistic about my goal and knew the path I’d have to take to get there.

After 7 months of training, I ran over 300 miles to prepare for the Princess Half Marathon.  I also saved $20 each week to pay for the trip to avoid going into debt to do this half marathon.   Any goal you have, whether physical or financial needs to inspire you and you also need a definitive plan, with an end date, to put it in motion, otherwise you’ll be battling against yourself the whole way to make those big changes!

3.  Recognize You Are On A Journey & Don’t Go It Alone

If you want something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done, but often, we take the journey to health on our own because we’re ashamed of people seeing how vulnerable we are, or see the truth about our situation when we’re scared to even see it ourselves. While both debt or diet can leave us feeling horrible about ourselves, if you want to make big changes, don’t hide behind your fear.

Sometimes getting your body and your finances in check requires a support team of professionals, family, friends and peers that get where you’re coming from.  If you’ve been struggling for years and your finances are in the red or you are feeling totally out of shape- don’t attempt to overhaul this by yourself. No one is judging you the way you think they are!  The journey to get healthy will be long- it doesn’t matter if you’re paying down debts or saving up for a house, if you’re trying to lose weight or build up to your first half marathon, it takes a village.

Chances are, if you’ve experienced failure in the past, it was because you tried to go it alone.  I often would cheat myself out of success by trying to “DIY” everything-  from my running to managing my finances.  When I finally invested in a women’s gym that had a running program and hired a family friend to help me set up my ROTH, it was like a burden had been lifted.  The stuff I hated doing (and usually prevented me from making smart choices) was delegated to a professional, and when I had questions about my goals or had to overcome obstacles, I had a support network to do so.

Invest in yourself- everything worth having takes money, it takes time, and mostly- it takes work.  If you want to get healthy, it takes an investment!

Have you ever committed a huge health or financial goal?

How did you do it?

Disclosure: I have been a loyal ImpulseSave user for the past year and used their site to save for my trip to attend the Princess Half Marathon.  I recently had the opportunity to partner with ImpulseSave as a sponsor but opinions and the information provided is entirely my own.

I’ve gotten a few reader questions about how I was able to afford my trip to Walt Disney World for the Princess Half Marathon.  I will have more tips on how I cut expenses really soon, but how I was able to fund this expensive trip, even after cutting costs is an article within itself!

As a frugal girl, I had total sticker shock when I began saving for the Princess Half Marathon.  While I cut costs wherever I could by planning on packing my own meals, looking for deals on airfare and splitting hotel costs with my running buddy- there’s no doubt about it, planning a trip to Walt Disney World to run a half marathon can be really expensive!

Here’s My “As Frugal As Possible” runDisney Walt Disney World Vacation Budget:

Races:        $170.00

Airfare:       $471.60

Hotel:         $362.20

Gear:           $50.00

Shopping:  $100.00

Food:           $150.00

Total:         $1,303.00  <– YIKES.

That’s even after I used as many discounts as possible & decided to pack my own food, DIY a costume & split costs with my boyfriend, it was still darn expensive!

I truly feel that frugal people can afford anything with the right planning, and planning is twofold:  plan to find deals as often as you can, but also plan to start saving money to pay for your travel far in advance.   Back in August, when I purchased my ticket for the Princess Half Marathon and booked my airline ticket (which I had to buy right away),  I knew it was going to take a serious savings plan to make sure I could pay off my runDisney vacation without relying on credit card debt to handle it and fund the rest of the trip in full.

The key to saving for any large expenditure, runDisney vacation or otherwise is to plan for a series of small, weekly saves and larger, impulse saves to boost your goals & sock away extra money to hit them faster.

I’ve been using ImpulseSave for awhile now to sock away extra money for a rainy day, but it was critical in helping me simplify my savings goals during the last six months to pay for my trip to Walt Disney World.  When I used the site to propel a goal I was passionate about, it was exciting to put money away instead instead of spending it!

So, how’d I do it?

Each week, I would put away around $20- the ImpulseSave interface instantly updates my weekly savings to approximate when I hit my savings goal.  Since I had already paid for my race ticket & booked my airline ticket far in advance to take advantage of earlybird deals (paid off), I still had about $650 of expenses unaccounted for.  My goal was to save at least $750 to pay for the rest of my trip and have it in the bank before I boarded the plane.  Looking at ImpulseSave’s timeline- I knew by putting away an automatic $20 a week, I’d have $480 of that saved automatically without much effort.

The other $270 would have to come from my “impulse saves,” of when I resisted temptation to buy something I didn’t need or was gifted some extra cash for Christmas.   Every time I earned extra money or decided to save money by not buying something I didn’t need- that money was quickly added to my ImpulseSave goal for my runDisney vacation.   I picked up some extra freelance work and sold some old books on Amazon to add money to my fund- Impulse Saving gets addicting when you see how quickly a few bucks shaves down your timeline!

*Notice that dip? That was when I had an emergency funding issue, had to withdraw, and was so annoyed by my lack of progress I doubled my efforts to save that money back and will hit my $750 goal in time!

Honestly, I loved my experience with ImpulseSave because it helps you do two things:

1. It makes saving quick, easy and best of all- automatic. The money is transferred weekly before you miss it.

2. If you struggle with impulse shopping, the ImpulseSave interface makes it easy to reframe that behavior by saving instead of spending.

In all honesty, though I write a lot about finances, I am only human and previous to using ImpulseSave, I often faced big purchases unprepared since I didn’t transfer money to set aside for the future.  There are times when I know I need to save money for a major goal, to put cash away for an emergency fund or for travel expenses, but I simply don’t do it.  I couldn’t believe that I hit my $750 savings goal without the pain and frustration it normally takes to save.  Truly, if I see the money in my main checking account, I spend it- and when it comes time to pay for a major purchase I didn’t budget for, I’m caught off guard.

Using this system, I not only saved the $750 for my trip before I actually go on the trip (because darnit, it is fun to hit that goal), I’ve also set up new goals for my move to Chicago, an emergency fund and started a fund for a wedding (since I have more than enough time to save!).  Each account gets anywhere from $5-30 a week and I know exactly what date I’ll hit my goal and how much money I’d need to chip in to hit the goal ahead of schedule- so simple!

What money saving tips have you used to save for a big goal?

Disclosure: I have been a loyal ImpulseSave user for the past year and used their site to save for my trip to attend the Princess Half Marathon.  I recently had the opportunity to partner with ImpulseSave as a sponsor to talk about my user experience to save for this trip, but opinions and the data provided are entirely my own.

1.  Go through your subscriptions. Look at all of them — television, magazine, website, health clubs and otherwise. If you’re not using a subscription or no longer enjoy it, stop kidding yourself and cancel.

2.  Reassess holiday gifts. Take the ones you no longer use and sell them online, or have a garage sale.

3.  Plan ahead for frugal fun.   Consider local hotspots you’ve never visited or attractions you’ve overlooked that are within driving distance.

4.  Make saving a part of your weekly routine. Add an automatic deposit of $5 to $10 each week to build toward something special such as an emergency fund, anniversary gift or dream vacation.

5.  Put your spare change to good use.  Empty your pockets, drawers and jars to cash in your coins for something fun.

6.  Check in with your credit report or financial accounts. Fail to do this, and you could overlook fraudulent charges or accounts you no longer need.

7.  Face your financial fears. Maybe you still haven’t set up a will or trust, your financial statements are in a state of disarray, or you can’t keep track of your credit cards. Get organized and tackle these projects.

8.  Help your dollar go further by sharing it. Whether donating money or time, remember to give.

9.  Challenge a bad financial habit. We all have a few bad habits that nag at us- overspending when we shop online, ordering takeout too often, procrastinating on setting up that Roth IRA.  If your habits seem to rule over your money, now is the time to change!

10.  Tackle your taxes early.  Get your tax documents and receipts together early, don’t wait until April when stress is high.

11.   Commit yourself to learn.  Put aside time to read at least one book (click here to see some of my faves) on personal finance, subscribing to a podcast, or brushing up on your financial know-how by recruiting a knowledgable friend to mentor you.

12.  Learn to D.I.Y. for one expense you can’t live without.  Invest in an at-home salon or brew your own coffee.  Saving money in the new year isn’t about deprivation but creatively getting what you want.

13.  Pick one big financial goal to powerhouse the new year. Personal finance shouldn’t be a chore- so what gets you most excited about your money in a fresh new year?  Would you feel free without credit card debt or does saving for a house make you giddy? Whatever you choose, make sure that you have the excitement behind it to make the goal a reality.

 What gets you excited about the new year?

Any big financial goals?