Resolutions and Goals

Last year, I published 15 resolutions and goals for 2008.  Let’s see how those worked out -

Personal Finance Goals

1. Fully-fund 403(b)
   • Yes!  For the second year in a row, I managed to fully-fund my 403(b) retirement account.
2. Fully-fund 2 Roth IRAs
   • Not yet.  I fully-funded my Roth IRA way back in January – foolishly thinking that the market was at it’s low for the year – and I’m working to fully-fund my wife’s Roth IRA before April 15th, 2009.
3. Fully-fund 3 ESAs
   • Again, not yet.  I am working to fully-fund these before April 15th, 2009.
4. Increase Non-Retirement Savings
   • Unfortunately, not by much.  Keep reading for the reason why!
5. Stay Out Of Debt
   • Yes!  I’ve been debt free since February of 2006!  It’s hard to believe that I’ll soon celebrate three years of freedom.

Blogging Goals

1. Post twice-daily to No Credit Needed
   • I averaged about 30 posts per month, roughly 1 post a day.  Frankly, 2 posts a day is too many, especially considering that I have several other sites to manage.
2. Release a new No Credit Needed Podcast Episode every week
   • No.  In fact, the podcast has been on pause for quiet some time.  I have a few ideas for restarting the podcast, so stay tuned!
3. Improve the functionality and reach of the No Credit Needed Network
   • Yes and no.  The NCN Network charts are now automated, but I’ve closed the Network to new members.
4. Establish relationships with bloggers outside of the personal-finance community
   • Yes.  I’ve connected with several other bloggers, podcasters, writers, and authors.
5. Support my fellow personal-finance bloggers with comments and links
   • I have tried my best.

Health Goals

1. Post daily to No. Calories Needed
2. Lose 50 pounds
3. Limit fast food trips to once a month
4. Go one year without drinking a single soft drink
5. Walk 30 minutes per day, at least 4 times a week
   • There’s no need to update each of these individually.  If you go over to No. Calories Needed, you’ll see that I’ve lost (more than) 24.6 pounds, that I have completely given up soft drinks and fast food, that I’m going to the gym four to six times a week, and that I’m completely changing my life.  I didn’t start last January, but I finally put it all together in September.  Click here for more information about The 929 Project – my plan to lose 90 pounds before September 29, 2009.

Family and Life

Back in April, my wife gave birth to our third child, a beautiful baby girl.  Our family is now complete, and there are five of us.  2008 was an amazing year for us, and we are really looking forward to 2009.  Everything I do, every article I write, every financial choice I make, I do those things for my family.  When you read an article here at No Credit Needed, you can rest assured that I am writing as a regular guy, someone who is trying to bless his wife and his kids.

Websites

No Credit Needed – I don’t usually write about site statistics, so I’ll just briefly mention that No Credit Needed had almost 1 million page views during 2008.  That’s pretty cool, but what’s even cooler, No Credit Needed is just a few subscribers away from 5000!  Come on, hook me.  Subscribe to No Credit Needed via RSS or daily Email and help push the site past 5000.

I want to thank the following sites for referring the most visitors during 2008 -

Get Rich Slowly

The Simple Dollar

Free Money Finance

Five Cent Nickel

All Financial Matters

Paid Twice

My Money Blog

Consumerism Commentary

Wise Bread

Mighty Bargain Hunter

Lazy Man And Money

Almost Frugal

Blogging Away Debt

The Digerati Life

My Open Wallet

Frugal Dad

No. Calories Needed – Until September, No. Calories Needed was a complete disappointment.  Now, however, I’ve lost (more than) 24.6 pounds, and I’m loving the No. Cals site.  I really hope you’ll visit the site and check out my progress.  I weigh in on Mondays.

No Credit Needed Network and No Credit Needed Podcast – As I mentioned earlier, I’ve closed the Network to new members and I’m still debating about whether or not to continue the podcast.  Both sites take a lot of time to manage.  Check them out, listen to the podcast, and let me know what you think.  Should I reopen the Network to new members?  Should I restart the podcast?

99 Changes – Back in May, I started my newest site, 99 Changes, my personal development site.  So far, I’ve managed to make 25 changes.  The 99 Changes articles are short and to-the-point.  I hope you’ll visit the site and see how I’m doing.

Social Media

Twitter / StumbleUpon – I hope you’ll follow me on Twitter profile and check out my StumbleUpon profile. These sites have revolutionized how I connect with others online and how I find information online.

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Wrapping Up The Year 2008

Last December, I created some goals for 2008.  Throughout the year, I have been tracking my progress.  Here’s where I stand, with one month left in December, and with five months left to fund my wife’s Roth and my kids’ ESAs for 2008.

Technically, the 403b and my wife’s pension will be fully funded at some point in December, but I went ahead and included them in my calculations, since they are automatic contributions from our paychecks.

I have five months, between now an April 15th, to fund my wife’s Roth and Education Savings Accounts for both of my kids.  Unfortunately, I had hoped to fund my Son’s ESA for 2007, but I missed the April 2008 deadline.  So, instead o $4000, as per my original goal, I’m working for a $2000 contribution before April 2009.

Looking back, the new baby and high gasoline prices really had an impact on our finances in 2008.  I am happy to note that I was able to fully-fund my 403b for the second year in a row.

My original plan was to fully-fund all of these accounts by the end of 2008, but there’s just no way.  I like to have a cash cushion in my emergency fund, and I’m not willing to dig into it in order to make an artificial December 31st deadline.  As long as I make the contributions before April 15th, I’m cool.

How did you do during 2008?  Are you on pace to reach your goals?  Did the higher gas prices or the falling economy set you back?  Leave a comment and let us know!

More reading -

Saving For College – What Is An ESA?

Contribution Goals And Time Frames For Retirement Accounts

As a side note, I did not include my SEP-IRA contributions in my original 2008 goals article, but I am working to put some money in this business-related retirement account.  The amount will be determined when I compute my income taxes.  And, at one point, I set up automatic contributions for several of the accounts mentioned above, but I never actually pulled the trigger on those automatic contributions.  Why?  Well, I was focusing on adding additional money to our non-retirement savings account, and decided to wait a few more months to begin the automatic contributions.  Never fear, those automatic contributions will begin, in January.

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Taking A Look At My 2008 Goals

Back in December, I posted my financial goals for 2008.  I thought it my be interesting to see how I’ve done, seven months into the year.  The chart below details my retirement and education savings contribution goals.

The pretax contributions highlighted in yellow are automatically withdrawn from our paychecks.  Those in green are contributions to Education Savings Accounts for our kids.  As you can see, I haven’t contributed to their ESAs yet, and I actually missed the opportunity to fund my son’s ESA for 2007.  The contributions highlighted in pink are after-tax contributions to our Roth IRAs.  We fully-funded my Roth IRA back in January and we hope to fully-fund my wife’s Roth IRA in December.

By the way, my goals for my retirement contributions are based on the maximum allowable contributions for 2008.  Click here for information about 403b and Roth IRA contribution limits for 2008.

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Midyear Retirement Funding Checkup (One Month Late): Taking A Look At My 2008 Contribution Goals

One of my goals for 2008 is to rebuild my non-retirement savings. In 2007, we purchased a new-to-us minivan and in early 2008, we had a new baby (and purchased several baby-related items). These expenses worked together to dramatically reduce our non-retirement savings and I’ve been working diligently to rebuild them.

I just made a transfer from my primary checking account to my ING DIRECT Savings Account. My current balance now rests at $5,000. My goal for 2008 is $16,000. Bright readers who can quickly do math in their heads will have already calculated that $16,000 divided by 12 months is $1,333.33. So, after 5 months, I’m a little behind. O.K. I’m a lot behind. In fact, I’m $1,666.6 behind. But, alas, I have a plan!

In just a few weeks, I should receive my economic stimulus rebate check. The amount on the check will read $1,800. I’ll deposit the check and – abracadabra – I’ll be right back on track.

Click here to see my current savings chart over at the No Credit Needed Network – NCNSavings2008.

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Updating My Non-Retirement Savings Chart

I like to create simple, easy-to-understand, financial goals. I have created a chart, outlining my ‘contribution goals’ for the next few months. I will make contributions to two Roth IRAs, two Education Savings Accounts, and a SEP-IRA.

(I also contribute to a 403b through work and my wife contributes to her pension plan. The chart reflects contributions to be made from ‘take-home’ pay.)

Contributions to the ESAs and Roth IRAs are made with ‘after-tax’ dollars – and grow ‘tax-free’.
Contributions to the SEP-IRA reduce current taxes and will be taxed when withdrawn.

Contributions in green have already been made.

Contributions in blue still need to be made.

I have already fully-funded Roth IRA #1 for 2008.

I am working to fully-fund ESA #2 for 2007 and the SEP-IRA for 2007 before April 15th.

According to the IRS website -

What is the time frame for depositing contributions into SEP-IRAs? IRS Retirement Faqs

Contributions for a year must be deposited by the due date (including extensions) for filing your Federal income tax return for the year.

Contributions (to ESAs) must meet the following requirements. IRS Publication 970

They must be made by the due date of the contributor’s tax return (not including extensions).

When Can You Make Contributions (to Roth IRAs)? IRS Publication 590

You can make contributions to a Roth IRA for a year at any time during the year or by the due date of your return for that year (not including extensions).

So, technically, if I were to file for an extension, I could have a few more months to fund the SEP-IRA for 2007 – but, I’m not filing an extension, so my deadline will be April 15th.

Finally, while this chart reflects a goal date of April of 2009, I will try to fully-fund all of these accounts much sooner.

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Contribution Goals And Time Frames For Retirement And Education Savings Accounts

Click here to see my updated No Credit Needed Network Savings Chart – NCNSavings2008

I have deposited a total of $3500 in my non-retirement savings. One of my goals for 2008 is to rebuild my non-retirement savings. I like to create (and track) specific goals. For 2008, my goal is to save $16,000.

Click here to stream (or download) the latest episode of the No Credit Needed Podcast -

NCN Podcast Episode 3 of 2008 – The Three C’s of Debt Reduction

In this latest episode, I talk about the Three C’s of Debt Reduction -

Create a plan -

Consider the costs -

Chronicle your progress -

By the way, if you are new to podcasts (just another name for streaming, online audio), click here to learn how to listen to them, download them, and subscribe to them – for free!

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NCN Network Savings Chart Update And A New Episode Of The NCN Podcast

New Year’s Eve 2007, I shared my resolutions and goals for 2008. Let’s take a quick look and see how I’ve done, so far!

Personal Finance Goals

1. Fully-fund 403b
   • Yes! After some hesitation (due to the fact that our household income may decrease in 2007) I decided to fully-fund my 403b for 2008. The 403b is funded monthly from pre-tax income.
2. Fully-fund 2 Roth IRAs
   • I fully-funded my Roth IRA for 2008 – and I’m saving up so that I can fully-fund my wife’s in a few months.
3. Fully-fund 3 ESAs
   • I have downloaded the paperwork required to open an ESA for my son, but it wil be a few months before I actually begin funding these accounts.
4. Increase Non-Retirement Savings
   • Yes. In fact, I have setup a new chart, over at the No Credit Needed Network, tracking my progress.
5. Stay Out Of Debt
   • Yes, yes, yes!

Blogging Goals

1. Post twice-daily to No Credit Needed
   • Not quite, but I have managed to put out a decent number of posts.
2. Release a new No Credit Needed Podcast Episode every week
   • Yes (kinda). I did not release the first episode of 2008 until 2 weeks ago, but now I’m on a regular, weekly schedule. I was waiting for some new recording tools.
3. Improve the functionality and reach of the No Credit Needed Network
   • Yes. The site has been improved (and membership has continued to grow).
4. Establish relationships with bloggers outside of the personal-finance community
   • Yes. I have emailed three or four non-pf bloggers. I’m really working to establish relationships with several other podcasters.
5. Support my fellow personal-finance bloggers with comments and links
   • Yes, but I still want to do more.

Health Goals

1. Post daily to No. Calories Needed
   • No, but look for this to change in February.
2. Lose 50 pounds
   • HAHAHAHA
3. Limit fast food trips to once a month
   • HAHAHAHA
4. Go one year without drinking a single soft drink
   • HAHAHAHA
5. Walk 30 minutes per day, at least 4 times a week
   • My sister has talked me into running in a 5K, so I really, really need to get moving!

As you can see – When it comes to financial stuff, I’m cool. When it comes to weight loss / health issues, not so much. Throughout 2008, I’ll continue to track my progress (or lack thereof).

This entry is part of the MBN Group Writing Project for January.

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15 Resolutions And Goals For 2008 – January Update

Here are my resolutions / goals for 2008 -

Personal Finance Goals

1. Fully-fund 403b
2. Fully-fund 2 Roth IRAs
3. Fully-fund 3 ESAs
4. Increase Non-Retirement Savings
5. Stay Out Of Debt

Blogging Goals

1. Post twice-daily to No Credit Needed
2. Release a new No Credit Needed Podcast Episode every week
3. Improve the functionality and reach of the No Credit Needed Network
4. Establish relationships with bloggers outside of the personal-finance community
5. Support my fellow personal-finance bloggers with comments and links

Health Goals

1. Post daily to No. Calories Needed
2. Lose 50 pounds
3. Limit fast food trips to once a month
4. Go one year without drinking a single soft drink
5. Walk 30 minutes per day, at least 4 times a week

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15 Resolutions And Goals For 2008