It’s a time of year for planning and making resolutions, but more so now than ever before, it’s impossible to know what lies ahead. Who could have predicted 12 months ago what 2020 would bring? Brexit, yes, and an American election that was almost lost in other news when it was writing headlines of its own. But not the global lockdown that dominated the year.

I took all my staff for lunch on my birthday in early February and gave them the rest of the day off, nice guy that I am. We talked about the good times that lay ahead and made plans for the short and medium term. Everything in the garden seemed rosy. We all know what happened next.

Establishing financial stability should be at the top of your list

So what should our financial resolutions be for 2021? Top of the list surely has to be establishing financial stability. Not as easy to deliver as it is to say, and it’s relative for each of us, depending on our own individual financial circumstances.

But having a budget for our personal expenditure is a great place to start. If 2021 turns out to be another major challenge, we want to be in as strong a position as we can be to cope.

So what will Money Matters resolve to do this coming year? We’ll start with trying to keep you informed and entertained through the monthly ramblings on a variety of topics. We’ll look for as many positives as we can within our messages. And we’ll see what we can do to promote local businesses, which probably need our support more than ever.

Oh yes, and of course, we’ll still do the lottery, just in case one day it could be us.

Whatever you do, have a Happy and Prosperous New Year.