Personal Finance & New Year’s Resolutions Survey

Each New Year, many individuals set resolutions to enhance their lives during the coming year. Top New Year’s resolutions for 2024 include improving one’s finances, fitness, diet, mental health, and relationships, according to results of a Forbes Health/OnePoll survey: improved fitness (48%), improved finances (38%), improved mental health (36%), lose weight (34%), improved diet (32%).

The National Financial Educators Council (NFEC) conducted a separate survey to better understand the role money plays in people’s New Year’s resolutions. The NFEC wanted to clarify the impact of money on the top New Year’s resolutions for 2024. To obtain this information, they asked 1,620 people across the United States these questions:

  • Will your relationships improve if your financial situation improves?
  • Will your fitness improve if your financial situation improves?
  • Will your diet improve if your financial situation improves?
  • Will your emotional health improve if your financial situation improves?

Survey Results

1,620 Respondents Between December 5th and 19th, 2023 were asked:

Will your relationships improve if your financial situation improves?

Available Choices and Results Were:

25.7%

“Definitely Yes”

26.2%

“Yes”

31.5%

“Maybe”

12%

“No”

4.7%

“Definitely No”

Will your fitness improve if your financial situation improves?

Available Choices and Results Were:

14.9%

“Definitely Yes”

25.7%

“Yes”

35.3%

“Maybe”

18.7%

“No”

5.4%

“Definitely No”

Will your diet improve if your financial situation improves?

Available Choices and Results Were:

18.1%

“Definitely Yes”

32.9%

“Yes”

26.3%

“Maybe”

17.2%

“No”

5.6%

“Definitely No”

Will your emotional health improve if your financial situation improves?

Available Choices and Results Were:

39.9%

“Definitely Yes”

33.5%

“Yes”

17.8%

“Maybe”

5.8%

“No”

3.0%

“Definitely No”

Conclusion

These data clearly show that money plays a significant role in people’s top resolutions for the New Year. With most of the questions answered in the affirmative by more than 50% of the people surveyed, it becomes clear that most Americans believe that if their finances improve, so will their other top resolutions.

The NFEC plans to leverage the survey results to encourage mandates for financial literacy instruction in schools. Currently, despite the importance of financial education, schools neglect to equip students with the necessary skills to manage their money effectively – an oversight which can spill over into important areas of students’ lives as they mature into adulthood.

“Money impacts more than just people’s bank accounts. It impacts many important areas of their life related to core human needs. The objective of this survey is to encourage adults to address their financial situation and leverage the data to encourage financial education in high schools being taught with the same rigor as other core topics.”

– Vince Shorb, CEO
National Financial Educators Council

The NFEC leads a campaign to elevate financial education mandates to meet standards of other core subjects with the goal that every student should graduate prepared to make near-term financial decisions effectively. The standards they propose are outlined in their guide, the Policy and Standards Framework for High School Financial Literacy Education.