Stuff About Money: 2 Things Erik and Xavier Are Doing to Better Their Finances in 2024

Better health and finances always top the charts for New Year's resolutions. Clearly, improving your health and finances are both noble causes that many value. But only 1% of Americans follow through on their resolutions! Is it even worth making resolutions? For this reason, in this episode of the Stuff About Money podcast, Erik Garcia, CFP®, BFA and Xavier Angel, CFP®, ChFC, CLTC, share one piece of advice they would give to anyone wanting to better their finances and one thing they are each doing to better their finances. They are not much for making "New Year's resolutions," but they do champion better finances. Episode Highlights: Xavier emphasizes the essential practice of regularly integrating budgeting and saving into daily life to manage finances effectively. (6:46) Erik discusses the importance of being aware of how you spend your money by checking and understanding your recent spending habits. (9:31) Erik shares that his 2024 personal financial goal is to spend more on family experiences and focus on being intentional with his time to align his work schedule with his wife's teaching calendar for shared family activities. (14:42) Xavier mentions that he aims to save more by carefully checking his spending and making a budget, especially to pay for his daughter's school without needing a loan. (17:26) Xavier emphasizes the importance of writing down goals for regular visibility and having accountability partners like family and friends to stay on track with financial and personal objectives. (20:32) Erik explains his plans to hold himself accountable to be able to achieve his financial goals in 2024. (21:22) Erik mentions that he and Xavier focus on helping clients change financial behaviors, not just saving for retirement or investing, but also in managing cash flow and spending intentionally on experiences, offering to assist anyone seeking guidance in these areas. (25:32) Key Quotes: “I'm not against the idea of resolutions. All resolutions are coming from a position of people recognizing that there are areas in their life that they value that they deem important that they recognize they need to change or improve upon.” - Erik Garcia, CFP®, BFA “Sit down and look at what your budget is. And then from that budget, what I want you guys to do is to come back and put together a saving strategy and begin saving more.” - Xavier Angel, CFP®, ChFC, CLTC “We recognize the importance in engaging people, particularly our clients in behavior change as it deals with their finances.” - Erik Garcia, CFP®, BFA Resources Mentioned: Erik Garcia, CFP®, BFA Xavier Angel, CFP®, ChFC, CLTC Plan Wisely Wealth Advisors