By Katie Stanton
Social Media & Online Engagement Manager, YWCA USA

Happy new year! We hope that your 2014 has gotten off to a great start. We know many of you are making resolutions, so we thought we’d put together some great articles and blog posts with advice and inspiration for women and their families this new year.

Need some help sticking with your resolution? Here’s a great tip: don’t take it too seriously. Let your resolution inspire you and help you take a moment to reflect. Then, in a few months, look at it again and see if you’re still on a positive track. There are also some great mobile apps to keep you focused, like Lift, DailyCost and MyFitnessPal. Good luck!

1. A key skill for women is financial literacy. Knowing how best to handle your finances can mean personal independence, family security and a better future. Many local associations offer programs and events to help women achieve this goal, but there are steps you can take every day to get started.

Realistic Financial Resolutions for 2014, by The Wall Street Journal

“This new year, commit to paying your financial knowledge forward by sharing your best and worst financial moves with someone younger whom you care about.

Unlike other areas of our life—fitness, nutrition, parenting, etc.—our financial well-being isn’t a topic that many of us talk about socially with our family and friends. As a result, many young people head out into their work lives with unrealistic expectations around spending and savings.”

2. Balancing work and family life can be hard for everyone, but in particular for mothers. When it comes to your career, finding a sense of balance and a strong support system will be helpful for the future.

10 New Year’s Resolutions for Working Mothers, by Liz O’Donnell, Hello Ladies

“2. Build your power network.

Next time you are at the office, the PTO meeting, the grocery store, or on the commuter rail, look to your left and your right. See those women? They are a wealth of support and information. Network with them. Rather than trying to connect with Sheryl Sandberg or Hillary Clinton via your neighbor’s sister-in-law’s coworker, use your energy getting to know the power players in your everyday life. These are the women who can refer clients, financial planners, babysitters, even hairdressers. They are all around you. Get to know them.”

3. As you set 2014 resolutions, are your children setting them too? Here’s an important one for their personal and emotional safety.

A golden New Year’s resolution to promote sexual health and safety, by Janet Rosenzweig, Philly.com

“And here’s the golden opportunity for a New Year’s resolution that can pay dividends for years to come: Resolve to make the Golden Rule, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,’ a fundamental rule of your family. Strange as this may seem to healthy adults, young children yet to develop an ego have no concept of the fact that they can have an impact on others.”

4. It’s more important than exercise or dieting, and the majority of people aren’t getting enough of it. This year, have your health resolution be to sleep more.

Health Resolution: Here’s How to Get Better Sleep in 2014, by Melissa Ford, BlogHer

“So rounding up to a solid eight hours to give you buffer room for falling asleep or waking slowly in the morning, how are you going to ensure that you get that full amount of sleep each night? Make it your resolution this January to commit to working on sleep for the next six months. With such far-reaching effects, it may do more for your health than any other small change you may make in exercise or eating.”

5. For your final resolution this year, think about others. A key component of the YWCA’s mission is the elimination of racism, and we want you to think this year about how you can bring racial justice to your communities. What kind of future do you envision?

A Racial Justice Bucket List for 2014, by Rosana Cruz, Colorlines

“We wanted to to know, what are some truly attainable victories for justice in the coming year? And how could any one of us help achieve them? Just reading the list we received gives me a lot of life and excitement for what lies ahead.”

If you have a story that needs to be shared, let us know! Leave a link in the comments or send us a Tweet at @YWCAUSA.