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This is the time of the year when many of us make New Year's resolutions. Along with the list of usual suspects, such as losing weight, reading more and spending quality time with the family, my recommendation is to include some financial goals to your list this year.

A new year is a great time to start fresh and revisit your financial plan. If you don't currently have a plan, it is also a good time to consider putting one in place.

Without a clear financial roadmap, you can very easily get off track and fall short of achieving your goals.

You must know where you are going and how you are to get there; otherwise, you are bound to encounter problems, or even get financially "lost" along the way. With a well constructed financial plan in place, your chances of success will be much greater. You will also be better able to adjust to changing circumstances and implement a predetermined contingency plan should the unexpected happen.

Fortunately there are many competent financial advisors who would be happy to sit down with you and help you create a personalized financial plan. Make it your No. 1 New Year's Resolution to visit with a financial advisor in 2012 to begin the process.

There are many components to a financial plan. A comprehensive plan addresses short and long-term savings objectives, considers proper risk management strategies as well as estate planning and succession planning if applicable.

Depending on what stage you are in your financial life cycle, some components may be more important to you at this time. Also, a plan needs to consider the cash flow available to make it happen. Eventually though, each step will assume equal importance. Here's a quick glance at some of the more important considerations:

Personal finances. Planning your day-to-day finances is an important first step in overall money management.

Without a firm grip on your daily finances, you may impede your ability to meet long-term financial targets. Analyze your cash flow to ensure you are not spending more than you earn. If you find that you are underwater each month, you will need to reduce expenses, or start considering ways to increase your income. Ignoring the problem will not make it go away. Once you feel confident about your short-term financial picture, you can start to look at more long-term goals.

Debt management. Not all debt is created equal. Make a list of your liabilities and organize them by interest rate. Those with the highest rates (probably your credit card debt) should be paid off immediately. It does not make any sense to invest money while you are paying 19 per cent interest each year.

One recommendation may be to sell some of your investments to pay down this debt. Another may be to restructure the debt with a low interest credit card or a personal line of credit.

Personal savings. One of the building blocks of your financial plan is your ability to save. If you save diligently, you will increase the chances of meeting your personal financial objectives.

Whether you are saving to buy a home, start a business, fund a child's education or secure a worry-free retirement, putting money aside on a regular basis is a critical first step in solidifying your future. I recommend setting up an automatic savings plan.

Don't wait until the end of the year to see if you have money left over to save.

Pay yourself first and arrange to have money go automatically from your checking account into your investment account on a regular basis. Treat your own savings with the same respect that you treat your mortgage payment or power bill.

Insurance planning. Without adequate life and disability insurance coverage, how would your family survive financially should you suffer an untimely death or disability? To protect your family's future, this question should be addressed when you begin to establish a long-term financial strategy. Equally important to growing your net worth, is protecting what you have already worked so hard to build.

Have a professional review your coverage to ensure you are adequately protected and that you are spending your insurance dollars wisely. For example, if you took mortgage insurance from your bank when you bought your home, you may be better off investigating the coverage and price of personal insurance.

Also, take a close look at the group coverage you have with your employer, many are surprised to learn than some of the benefits they have are not as generous as they thought.

Education funding. Tuition costs for schools and universities are rising dramatically even outpacing inflation. If you have children and plan on them achieving some sort of post-secondary education, consider saving for that now. The current estimate of the cost of a four-year university degree for a child born today is over $100,000. That amount will be very difficult to fund without some advanced savings.

The sooner you start putting money aside, the longer your savings have to work for you. In Canada, we have the benefit of generous government incentives to help us save for post secondary education with the Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) - why not take advantage of the free money?

Retirement planning. The retirement landscape has significantly changed over the last number of years. Today, people are living longer than ever and are spending more in retirement. The future value of government benefits is uncertain, company pensions are rare and retirement plan funding responsibilities increasingly rest on the shoulders of the individual. In addition, taxes and inflation can gradually erode savings. Therefore, retirement assets need to work harder to meet retirement funding objectives. The good news is that a wide variety of options are available. With this growth in selection comes a vast amount of financial information that requires careful consideration and evaluation. Start now - you will never look back and wish you had waited.

Estate or inheritance planning. Transferring assets to future generations in a tax-efficient manner (i.e., more in their pockets and less in Revenue Canada's) could mean significantly more left to your heirs.

There are various planning strategies that can be implemented to achieve this such as using family trusts, proper beneficiary designations, well designed wills and life insurance. In some cases the complex nature of estate planning may require a team of trusted advisors, including a lawyer and tax professional to help ensure your plans are properly designed. Typically your financial advisor can assist in quarterbacking this team.

There is a lot to think about when planning your financial future but why not take control of it now and design the future you want, instead of letting circumstance control the outcome. If you have not begun planning your future, today is a great day to start.

I wish everyone a safe, happy, healthy and prosperous 2012!