The actions I took that created my financial peak

As of late I have been a bit disorganized with my finances. I can't tell you off the top of my head exactly how much I have in my 401(k). I'm not quite sure if I my net worth has gone up or down since the beginning of the year. It seem that I have backslidden from my life of financial responsibility. What caused me to get where I am and how am I going to get back on track?

In 2007 I was in my financial prime. I created excel spreadsheets to track my income, savings, and my net worth. Every pay cycle I would update how much I was able to save and how much debt I was able to pay down. Just that simple action once or twice a month would bring my financial situation to my consciousness. I consistently thought about how I could increase my net worth and improve my financial standing. Because of that, I was able to increase both the amount of money I saved and the amount of debt I paid off dramatically.

So far this year I can't say that I am heading in the same direction. This year I am technically making even more money than last year because of an annual pay increase. My spouse is even doing a little better financially and can provide some help on the expenses. Yet still, I am almost positive that I was doing much better this time last year than I am right now. This year, my personal finances are not at the forefront of my thoughts. As a result, my decisions are not fully driven by my financial goals. Instead I am making decisions based on if I could afford to purchase. Just because I can afford to do it, doesn't mean that I should do it. Short term, I am not making a major impact on my finances, but by the end of the year, I'll be way behind where I need to be.

So now that I have confessed, I am ready to repent. My first course of action will be to update the spreadsheet that lists my assets and my debts. This will give me a clearer picture of my overall financial status. Once I have those numbers, I will create very short term goals for myself. Goals such as "I will save this much money by the end of the month." Then my goal will be to save a certain amount by the end of the year and to have paid off the rest of my credit card. The card is at a 0% interest rate so I have not been in a rush to pay it off. Even though I am not paying any interest to those people. Just the very fact that I am indebted to them should be motivation enough to wipe it out.

My hopes are to save 6 months worth of living expenses so I can allocate any "extra" income to my student loans. The economy is not getting any better to now is the time to buckle down. I am excited to get back on track with my finances. Last year I was so impressed with how much progress I made just by being consistent with my tracking. The system I created was so effective that I did not have to budget my income. I just merely allocated it. I didn't feel deprived yet I was able to increase my net worth dramatically. Take a look at your overall financial picture. Where do you stand? Do you have some short-term financial goals that you'd like to accomplish?

Where will you be financially at the end of the year if you were better allocating your income today?