Keep it up!

Today’s challenge is simple, keep up your good work! As you’ve learned this past week, small challenges to work on your finances are simple and have great results! Don’t feel stranded or alone, there are people and resources available to help and guide you. The Believe website is the home for these trusted resources.

So, bookmark the site. Follow me (Bill) on Facebook and Twitter.  Remember, if you believe you can achieve!

Include Family

Without financial goals, and specific plans for meeting them, you leave your future to chance. Who says you have to go it alone? Managing your money is easier when everyone in the family is on the same page. Working together, family members can help keep each other interested and focused. Check out the great family and money resources over on the Believe website.

Your challenge for the weekend is to hold a financial discussion with your family or household. Set a financial goal and report it to Imagine a Happier You to be entered to win one of these fabulous prizes:

• $500 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship courtesy of Senator Pat Jones
• $200 Savings Account courtesy of Zions Bank
• $150 Utah State Aggie Cheese & Ice Cream Gift Basket courtesy of USU Extension
• $100 Savings Bond courtesy of Junior Achievement of Utah
• $100 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship (5 available)
• $100 Temple Square Hospitality Gift Card (3 available)

Tune in to KSL TV’s Sunday evening news at 6:00 p.m. for a special feature on Finance in the Classroom. Watch this story to find new and fun ways to teach kids about money and finances. KSL reporter Sarah Daloff visits schools who have bridged the gap between complex money subjects and a child’s world by using stories and song to teach dollars and cents.

Track your expenses

Have you ever wondered where all your money went? Chances are, you’re spending more money than you realize. Lots of small purchases add up fast. That’s why today’s challenge is so important and so helpful. Tracking your expenses means to keep a log of everything you spend money on. Tracking often uncovers spending surprises. If you buy a cup of coffee or a candy bar a few times a week, you might be spending more money over the course of the month than you think! Give it a shot! Track your expenses for a day, a week, or even a month and uncover those surprise expenses.

Tracking often prompts a desire to cut spending. The Believe in Your Future website offers some great resources and strategies for cutting spending or decreasing expenses. Check them out here!

Get started with tracking your expenses and share your reaction on the daily poll at Imagine a Happier You to be entered to win one of these fabulous prizes:

• $500 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship courtesy of Senator Pat Jones
• $200 Savings Account courtesy of Zions Bank
• $150 Utah State Aggie Cheese & Ice Cream Gift Basket courtesy of USU Extension
• $100 Savings Bond courtesy of Junior Achievement of Utah
• $100 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship (5 available)
• $100 Temple Square Hospitality Gift Card (3 available)

Get organized

Get ready! Get set! Get organized!

Organizing your finances might seem like a lot of work but it’s easy and once you’re organized, managing your money and meeting your goals is a snap!

There are several great resources on the Believe in Your Future website to help you get organized and create a budget —and today’s challenge is just that! Create a budget and commit to sticking to it for 3 months.

Don’t forget to share your budgeting commitment on the daily poll atImagine a Happier You to be entered to win one of these fabulous prizes:

• $500 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship courtesy of Senator Pat Jones
• $200 Savings Account courtesy of Zions Bank
• $150 Utah State Aggie Cheese & Ice Cream Gift Basket courtesy of USU Extension
• $100 Savings Bond courtesy of Junior Achievement of Utah
• $100 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship (5 available)
• $100 Temple Square Hospitality Gift Card (3 available)

Other activities today that you won’t want to miss:

• 12:00 p.m. – Visit blog.zionsbank.com to participate in a 30-minute budgeting webinar. You could win a $200 savings account just for participating live or visit the archived webinar when it’s convenient for you!
• 7:00 p.m. – KSL Radio Nightside Project / 102.7 FM – Join the live conversation with Preston Cochrane from AAA Fair Credit Foundation and Cristie Richards from Zions Bank about financial goal-setting in everyday life.

Commit to save

Commit to a savings or debt reduction goal such as opening a savings account, adding to an existing account, opening a college savings account atuesp.org, or investing in a retirement account. Visit utahsaves.org and join a large community of people who are saving money every day!

From piggy banks to bank accounts, saving money is one of the most basic and important financial concepts. Without money in savings, small financial emergencies result in significant financial stress. If you don’t have a habit of saving, start small and set easily attainable goals. Saving a little at a time is better than not saving anything at all. Once you begin saving, you’ll be surprised at how quickly it adds up.

The Believe in Your Future website is filled with resources to help you save money from activities for kids to calculators and worksheets for adults. Check out all the great savings resources here.

Don’t forget to share your savings commitment on the daily poll atImagine a Happier You to be entered to win one of these fabulous prizes:

• $500 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship courtesy of Senator Pat Jones
• $200 Savings Account courtesy of Zions Bank
• $150 Utah State Aggie Cheese & Ice Cream Gift Basket courtesy of USU Extension
• $100 Savings Bond courtesy of Junior Achievement of Utah
• $100 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship (5 available)
• $100 Temple Square Hospitality Gift Card (3 available)

Sign up for a free workshop! More than 35 free classes are being offered this week. Check out the calendar!

Check your credit

Challenge Week starts today! Are you ready to take the first challenge?

Order your free credit report atannualcreditreport.com. Yep, it’s free! Take a good look at your credit report. Check it for errors or other surprises. Many people find errors on their credit report that are harming their credit. But don’t sweat it! Errors are fixable. Check out these great credit report resourceson the Believe in Your Future website to learn how to read your credit report, fix errors, and improve your credit!

Don’t forget to share your reaction to your credit report on the daily poll at Imagine a Happier You to be entered to win one of these fabulous prizes:

• $500 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship courtesy of Senator Pat Jones
• $200 Savings Account courtesy of Zions Bank
• $150 Utah State Aggie Cheese & Ice Cream Gift Basket courtesy of USU Extension
• $100 Savings Bond courtesy of Junior Achievement of Utah
• $100 Utah Educational Savings Plan Scholarship (5 available)
• $100 Temple Square Hospitality Gift Card (3 available)

Other events happening today:

• 10:00 a.m. – Utah State Capitol, Gold Room – Governor Herbert will sign Senator Pat Jones’s resolution (SCR 02) to reinforce the need for financial literacy in Utah and engage Utahns in a week of financial empowerment.
• Republic Mortgage and Credit Plus are hosting a Credit Score Challenge. Participants will have the opportunity to improve their credit scores over the course of 60 days. For more information or to sign up for the challenge, visit thedriveto850.com.

Take the challenge!

Tomorrow marks the beginning of a week-long series of financial challenges designed to help you take control of your money. Here’s what you need to know:

• Details about daily challenges are posted here on the Believe calendar.
• You could win one of many fabulous prizes including a $500 Utah Educational Savings Plan, college savings account, scholarship!
• There are more than 30 separate classes and events happening throughout the week! Check out the calendar for details and don’t hesitate to sign up for a class. They’re all FREE!