"This is the year I'm going to get out of debt." "We just have to get in control of our money this year." "I've got to make more than the minimum payments on my credit cards."

How many times have you promised to get your personal finances in order as part of a New Year's resolution? Seventy percent of 100 clients surveyed by Consumer Credit Counseling Service last month claim to have made financial resolutions in past years.

Out of those setting financial resolutions, 77 percent said they lost their focus of those goals after one to six months into the New Year, and all eventually contacted CCCS for credit counseling.

"The beginning of a New Year is a great time to commit yourself to improving your financial life," said Suzanne Boas, president of CCCS-Atlanta. "But it's easy to become overwhelmed by money matters as the months wear on. If folks make a resolution to conquer debt, they need to put some serious muscle behind it in the form of a realistic action plan."

The counseling service offers these tips to help get your personal finances in order:

· Keep a record of daily expenditures for one month. Track your family's spending habits for 30 days to assist in identifying where your money is going. Specialty coffees, vending machines and meals eaten in restaurants can drain your cash flow.

· Create a spending plan. Determine monthly living expenses, periodic expenses and monthly debt payments. Compare expenses to monthly net income. Don't allow expenses to exceed your income. Keep your total indebtedness clearly in your mind.

· Set specific financial goals. Determine short, middle and long term goals. A secret success is to make goals realistic. Another secret is to keep them simple. If they are too complicated, the details may become obstacles.

· Paying off debt. You will get out of debt faster if you increase your monthly payments to creditors, even $5 to $10 more each month added to each credit card can make a noticeable dent in your debt over time. Subtract your essential expenses from your income and see what may be available to increase payment amounts.

· Start saving more. Begin to save for periodic expenses, such as car and home maintenance. Save five to 10 percent of your net income. Try to accumulate three to six months salary in an emergency fund.

· Be patient and reward yourself. We develop habits over a period of time. It requires more than a casual approach to modify, improve or change behavior. Research indicates that it takes about 21 repetitions in order to change a habit.