3 Smart Financial New Year's Resolutions That Take 5 Minutes Tops

The start of a new year is a popular time for people to work on improving their personal finances. And if you've resolved to better yourself financially this year, you're not alone.

In 2023, The Ascent's research team found that two-thirds of Americans were making financial resolutions for 2024. But the reality is that the more complicated and time-consuming your resolutions are, the harder they might be to uphold. With that in mind, here are a few savvy financial moves you can make at the start of 2024 that should take five minutes or less of your time.

1. Boost your emergency fund with an automatic transfer

We all need money in the bank for unexpected expenses. And recent data from SecureSave reveals that 63% of Americans are not equipped to cover an unplanned $500 bill. Ouch.

If your emergency fund needs work, you'll definitely want to prioritize it in 2024. A good way to set yourself on a successful path is to set up an automatic transfer from your checking account to your savings account now. Doing so should only take a few minutes, and it's okay to be conservative with the amount you're comfortable moving over automatically.

If you feel you can only swing a $25 transfer each month off the bat, so be it. At the end of the year, you'll be $300 richer. But the key is to set up that transfer ASAP so you know for sure that some amount of money is getting moved into savings.

2. Save for retirement with your employer's plan

If the company you work for offers a 401(k) plan, you have a prime opportunity to start building retirement savings. All you need to do is sign up through your benefits portal (or whatever system your company uses) and allocate a specific amount of money to contribute out of your paychecks. That sum may be just $50 a month to start with -- but it's a start nonetheless.

Best of all, signing up for a 401(k) shouldn't take long. And because those contributions will come out of your paychecks directly, there's no further work to do beyond filling out an initial form.

Plus, many employers that sponsor 401(k)s also match worker contributions to some degree. So putting $50 a month into your 401(k) might mean also getting an additional $50 from your employer for long-term savings purposes.

3. Reduce your spending by making it harder to complete online transactions

If one of your New Year's resolutions is to spend less, you're no doubt in good company. And an easy way to achieve that goal is to make it harder on yourself to complete online purchases.

To that end, take two or three minutes to remove your saved credit card information from your phone, tablet, and the websites you use most often. If you don't have that information stored, you may find that you're less likely to complete transactions if it means having to get off the couch and go dig up your credit card number every single time.

Some New Year's resolutions are harder to keep than others. But if your goal is to boost your savings, start a retirement nest egg, or reduce your discretionary spending, then you should know that a few quick and simple moves on your part could really set you up for success.