The new year can set the stage for new beginnings. If you are looking to better manage your finances – and, specifically, anxiety about your finances – here are three strategies rooted in behavioral science. These methods can help you feel safer, more secure and happier in 2027 and beyond.

With the potential for volatility and further uncertainty in the future, it’s a good idea to equip yourself with the tools to manage your financial goals and outlook. This way, you can stay on top of things regardless of how the market performs.

Strategy 1: Focus on what you can control

Market swings have the power to impact our outlook dramatically because that experience can feel like a loss of control. Indeed, money influences many emotions because it represents things that are important to us – taking care of our family, lending a sense of safety and providing the means to achieve our aspirations, for example. The thought of losing those things is scary and can send our emotions into a tailspin.

The standard advice is to accept that uncertainty and sit with any discomfort. And while learning to wrangle your emotions may help, it can also be rather hard to do. So here’s some supplemental advice: Focus on your personal goals, not just your finances.

Take just 10 minutes to review your most important “buckets” of needs and hopes for next year. To help with this, ask yourself a few key questions:

• What are the essential expenses you can’t ignore and that must be accounted for in your financial strategy?
• What important milestones and events can you already foresee?
• How much financial “slack” (i.e., for emergencies and unexpected expenses) will make you feel mentally and emotionally secure?

Then take each of these buckets and translate them into individual financial goals. Consider four fundamental components for each goal, including a desired dollar amount, time period, priority level and description.

A financial strategy can help you achieve what’s most important to you, so if you’re stuck, work with a financial advisor to develop a goals-based plan that’s customized to your unique situation. Your advisor will spend time getting to know you, working to understand your needs and desires, overall financial situation, and what you want to accomplish with your money. Then they’ll help you create a strategy that’s aligned to those intentions. A financial advisor’s priority is to help you take intentional steps toward the future you envision despite market conditions – and together, you’ll build in space for unexpected ups and downs and change the strategy as your needs evolve.

Whether with an advisor or on your own, you may have more peace of mind – and may be more poised to achieve your priorities – by making sure you’ve thoughtfully accounted for your personal goals.

Strategy 2: Develop habits and routine

Not knowing how things will pan out is scary, but creating structure and taking small, attainable, automatic steps toward your goals can be a powerful driver to keep going. For example, automating important or unenjoyable financial tasks – like saving for retirement or paying bills – can free up your mental space to focus on other things. Using technology may also help you save more efficiently and advance you even further toward your goals.

Think about how you automatically transfer a portion of your paycheck each month to a 401(k) account. You researched before making a decision – then “habit” took over. A significant benefit of this model is that your current self doesn’t have to determine with each paycheck whether and how much to save; your past self has already done that for you.

Similarly, by taking certain repetitive actions, you can establish routines to achieve important goals. Even something as simple as purchasing a daily coffee can provide a sense of normalcy and agency; that feeling can become even more powerful when it involves financial goals that have a broader impact on your life.

Strategy 3: Write it down

After considering what you and your family want to achieve in the coming year, write it down. Putting your collective resolutions on paper while being as specific and detailed as possible makes it more likely you’ll pursue that vision with a sense of shared purpose and accountability.

As behavioral science explains, creating a document that all family members share clarifies ambiguity, creates impartial accountability and eliminates the challenge of repeatedly having to conjure up everything to which they’ve agreed.¹ The easier a plan is to remember, the easier it is to achieve.

The key is to stay focused on small, doable steps. Following a routine and articulating a plan to achieve your goals can help you and your family create a sense of stability, especially in uncertain times.

The bottom line

These three strategies will help you carve out the time and mental space to focus on yourself and to better manage your finances in the future. Time is scarce, and after a year like this one, it’s good practice to take stock of what matters to you. Happy New Year!