Sparks: 3 tips to stick to money resolutions & more

A Thrivent survey found most people make resolutions—but fewer follow through on them.

Goal: 89% of Americans were confident they could stick to their 2025 resolutions
Vs. Reality: 59% followed through on their 2024 resolutions

1. Stay the course. Set a specific, measurable and realistic financial goal—such as saving $5,200 over the next 12 months by setting aside $100 each week—that you can stick to all year.
2. Write it down. Articulate your goals by putting them in writing. Statistically, you’ll have a better chance of achieving them if they’re written down.
3. Share with someone you trust. Telling a friend, family member or accountability partner can increase your motivation and sense of responsibility.

Staying in regular contact with your financial advisor can help you create and stick to your financial goals. Here's how.

January is National Financial Wellness Month. These tips can help improve your financial well-being:

• Create a budget: Start by tracking your income and expenses.
• Build an emergency fund: Aim to save at least three to six months’ worth of living expenses.
• Invest in your future: Educate yourself about investment options; seek advice from a financial advisor.
• Declutter your subscriptions: Review recurring charges for services or memberships you no longer use and redirect that money toward your goals.

The 2026 Games, cohosted by Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, promise a February and March full of outstanding sportsmanship.

This slow but thrilling sport has existed since at least the 16th century and was played on frozen lochs and ponds. The first official club was founded in Scotland, and curling made its Olympic Games debut in 1924 in Chamonix, France, with wheelchair curling following in 2006 in Turin, Italy. The stone itself, averaging 42 pounds, is made from a dense granite mined in Scotland.

Snowboarding made its Olympic debut in 1998 in Nagano, Japan—but its roots can be traced to at least 1917, when a 13-year-old Minnesotan boy modified a sled that he rode down a hill in his backyard. Almost a century later, after years of campaigning by disabled athletes, para snowboard debuted at the 2014 Paralympic Games in Sochi, Russia.

With its roots in Norway, Alpine skiing has been an Olympic sport since 1936. Austria holds the most Olympic medals by far with 129, followed by Switzerland with 75. Paralympic athletes compete in one of three categories: standing, sitting or vision impaired. Both Games feature five events: downhill, super-G, slalom, giant slalom and team combined.

The biathlon comprises two events: rifle shooting and cross-country skiing. Athletes travel courses up to 20km long (12.4 miles) and must hit shooting targets at intervals throughout the race. Paralympic athletes competing in the vision-impaired category use a device that helps them aim the rifle using their hearing.

A tax return is the form you or your tax professional submits to the state and federal tax authorities each year. It lists your sources of income, your expenses, the taxes you paid throughout the year, and any deductions or credits you’re taking. Your tax return determines whether you’ll receive a tax refund, which is the money you might get back from the state or federal government if you paid too much tax during the year.