Decatur, IL (WAND) – Many people are headed into the new year hoping to improve their money habits.

Cayla Hittmeier, the chief marketing officer for Land of Lincoln Credit Union, said most financial resolutions fall into four categories: creating a budget, reducing debt, building up savings and improving credit scores.

“We’ve got a lot of people who want to come in and make sure that they create a budget and stay on it,” Hittmeier said. “If you’ve never done that, it can be something as simple as looking back through your online banking or your bank statements, tracking your expenses and tracking your income.”

It is easier to develop habits gradually than to try to make huge changes. For example, if you don’t currently save anything from your paychecks, setting aside $10 a week will be easier to stick with than setting aside $100 a week. But those small changes can make a big difference.

“Even a couple bucks a pay period, all can really start to build that up for you so that when that emergency comes around or unexpected, you have money built up,” Hittmeier said. 

Other spending strategies include withdrawing a certain amount of cash each month and only spending what you have on hand and canceling any extra subscriptions. Hittmeier also encourages waiting 24 hours before purchasing items online to cut back on impulse spending. 

LLCU and many other financial institutions offer free financial counseling and resources. They can help you set realistic goals and come up with good ways to achieve them. LLCU also has online education tools, available to anyone.