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Seize the Year, Dave Style

from daveramsey.com on 21 Jul 2009

Think back to December of last year. Doesn’t seem very long ago, does it?

Well, now we’re finished with another calendar year. We’re all making the new year’s resolutions that will last to mid-January—lose 20 pounds, get out of debt or maybe even read a book. Statistics show that most of us will quit before we get anywhere close to those objectives.

This year, set a goal to not quit!

If you had stuck with the goals you made last year, then you would already be done. Wow! Last year went by quickly, and so will this year, so don’t let the time get away from you. The sooner you make something part of your routine, the less you’ll notice that you’re doing it, and the quicker you’ll be finished.

Don’t make a goal and then look at it as something you have to do. That’s the wrong attitude. Soon you’ll come to resent doing the thing that is supposed to make you better. Remember that every time you pay off a debt, get on the treadmill, or do something else productive, you become stronger and get closer to your target.

Think about when you graduated from college. You were used to going to bed at midnight or later. But now that you have a job, you need to get up earlier. So you start going to bed at 10 or even 9:30 p.m. You didn’t like it at first, and it took some adjusting. But now you’ve done it so much that you don’t even notice. It’s part of your routine.

Getting out of debt, losing weight, or anything else is the same way. Do it for a while, and it goes from being difficult to being a bother to just another thing. By the time beating debt becomes just another thing, you are reaping the rewards from it, which makes the process fun. And when it’s fun, the year passes quickly.

Whatever your financial goals are for this year, we have resources to help you. Go and seize the year with full force!

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My husband is 73 and is still working we have a condo in Michigan that we are renting out we owe 120000, we have a Motor home we owe 45,000 and we have a home in north carolina we owe 145,000 so what who cares we will never get out of debt and that is killing me he has to work because he has no pension and has ss and so do I . i get 800 a month and he get 1700 a month plus his yearly wages in 70,000

Sharon January 13 2010 6:53 PM

Great way to set goals instead of resolutions Christina. Hope you don't mind my borrowing the idea. Thanks and best of luck with your goals this year.

harold anderson January 13 2010 9:52 AM

i owe 75,000, make the same . companies that help "consolidate debt" are calling about reducing debt by 50% if" I go with there plan" Please help !

dave January 11 2010 10:08 AM

I think the comment posted by Christina is a very good idea and I will do the same. I would love to follow her blog. Can I find out where to find it?

Nezzie January 07 2010 12:39 PM

Instead of making new year's resolutions, I created 4 goals to meet in 2010. I want to loose 20 pounds, pay off 5 specific debts, sell 4 houses (I have my real estate license) and read one book per month. I created a collage of images that represent these goals and I started a blog about them. I will reach these goals and the blog helps others track my progress. People who have read my blog so far love it and ask me everday what will be next on the blog. Thanks for the encouragment Dave!

Christina January 04 2010 1:12 PM

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