2008 sucked! The only folks who seemingly made any money last year were the bankruptcy lawyers and the uber bears that shorted the market.
Like most, I’m welcoming the new year a little more than usual.
That said, most of us have the pleasant (or foolish) belief that a new year brings new hopes and new resolutions to help us achieve them.
With such destruction in 2008, I would guestimate it’s fairly easy to set lackluster goals or half-ass resolutions that really won’t help all that much in the grand scheme of things. Moreover, it’s not really the goals that matter but the energy invested that I find that distinguishes one as a Doer versus a Sayer.
My New Year’s Resolutions for 2009
- All of my transactions will somehow benefit my longterm financial goals. I’ve seen hundreds of articles on using cash to save consumers money, and I think it’s one of the worst ideas out there IF you are a responsible credit/debit card user. I’ve got a 6% high yield savings account that I found via CheckingFinder.com where I earn a ton of interest for my emergency fund. In turn, I only have to use a debit card 10 times each month plus 1 electronic transaction per month. After I get my 10 debit card swipes, I’ll be using my new Charles Schwab 2% cash back VISA card that will be arriving shortly. Alternatively, you could max out a gas rewards card or frequent flier miles card that you use as your primary source of membership rewards.
- I will read more and work less. Sounds counterintuitive, but I spent far too much time in 2008 pouring over stock charts and digging through quarterly Earnings Call Transcripts at Seeking Alpha. I’m hoping to pick up my pleasure reading or spend more time reading information relevant to this blog.
- I will watch more documentary films. These are my newest guilty pleasure and I’m soaking up the information in these things like a sponge. For example, my latest find called Takin For A Ride based on the monopolistic stranglehold General Motors placed upon the U.S. public transportation system after World War II was mind blowing. It was so well executed that it would make even Bill Gates green with envy.
- Remain vigilant on parasitic expenses. I generally cut every frivolous expense from my budget that is possible as soon as I identify it, but I’m sure that things will pop up from time to time that I’ve missed. Other things I’m considering cutting from the budget is my cable TV subscription and reducing my vampire power usage as much as possible.
- Complete a minimum of two medium difficulty green living projects. I’ve mentioned that I’ve become a reluctant treehugger several times, and since green living and frugal living are one in the same to me, I want to further my efforts to reduce my energy consumption. I would really like to install a tankless water heater and install a solar powered attic fan. Tankless water heaters can cut costs up to 30% (although they do have their drawbacks), and an attic fan can cut home cooling costs up to 20% during the summer months. I live in the southeast, so my attic can function as a dry sauna from May to August each year.
Got any New Year’s resolutions you feel like bragginng about?
Photo by This Old House