Okay, the New Year has begun. As is par for the course, we've drafted our resolutions for change and self-improvement in 2006. Do you remember last year's resolutions? Did you achieve them? If you're like most people you answered "no" to both questions. You can't remember last year's resolutions and therefore you didn't reach their fruition. So, why is it that "the best laid plans of mice and men are soon laid awry"? By the way, the first person to email me at cfitz@financiallysavvy.com with the correct name of the person who first coined this phrase, or it's close proximity...hint, hint, hint...will receive a gift certificate for a free teleseminar, a $12.95 value.

In my opinion, we break our resolutions for one key reason: we select results we can not control rather than actions we can take. This year, write your resolutions but keep this rule in mind: set goals for results. Let me give you a few examples:

• Eliminate debt (result) versus stop using my credit cards (action)
• Retire at age 60 (result) versus contribute 15% of my income to my retirement account (action)
• Grow my portfolio by 10% (result) versus evaluate my current investments to identify and sell the losers

This approach to resolutions puts the control in your hands. If you take the action planned, you will achieve the desired goal. You can not affect the outcome but you have complete control over the input. Give it a try. Rewrite your annual financial resolutions to focus on specific action you will take rather than the results you hope to achieve.

This process works for other resolutions beyond those of a financial nature. So, if you wrote down that you'd like to lose weight or get fit this year, what action could you take to get one step closer to achieving your resolution? If you set to paper that you will spend more time with family, what one action can you take to make that a reality? Go for RESULTS!