Cash For Debt

Source: Emediawire

As Americans begin abandoning their financial resolutions for the New Year, their retirement planning goals go up in smoke. Their best intentions for the New Year have already reverted back to old habits - spending more and saving less. Wealth Odyssey, a new book by Larry R. Frank Sr., shows people how to find the balance between saving and spending.

Approximately 34 percent of Americans said they would set a resolution related to their finances, however, only 8 percent of those people actually achieved their resolution (including those resolutions not related to their finances) according to a random telephone survey conducted by Stephen Shapiro, president of Goalfree.com, with the assistance of Opinion Research Corp. of Princeton N.J.

Another study from the Yale School of Management and the University of Chicago found that staying focused on the commitment to the goal is key. “For example, opening a new savings account can suggest that a goal of saving more for the future is being actively pursued,” Frank said. “As a result, the person may feel justified on spending more on indulgences. However, the goal is to save more, not spend more – stay focused on the commitment to the original goal. The key to success is to think about the commitment to the goal, not progress made, in other words saving more, not just opening the account.”

Wealth Odyssey and the accompanying website: www.WealthOdyssey.com, discuss how to determine one’s current Standard of Individual Living (SOIL) – their current level of spending. The book and website explain the relationship between income, net worth and other financial topics; and how knowing this helps with the unknowns of the markets, economy, Social Security and pensions.

“People must start to save more now,” Frank said. “Wealth Odyssey shows them how to simplify their retirement planning. The mere act of saving more lowers their current SOIL by that amount. This means they need to save less now since their SOIL is less. Ironic, or maybe not so ironic, but saving more helps make the goal more achievable.”

Categories General Personal Finance