I struggled with whether this topic should be the feature article for December or January. I decided on this month because I think it is important to use these next few weeks to start developing a plan as to how you will handle your finances in the New Year. This way you will be able to start 2007 actually utilizing new strategies, rather than playing catch up all year.

At Abundance Bound, we begin each of our live seminars by asking participants to stand up if they truly want to change their financial picture and actually build wealth. Of course, every person is always on their feet. The next question, and the one I would ask you all to think about as you read this newsletter, is: What active steps are you taking to achieve this? If you’re counting on winning the lottery or solving your money problems with a trip to Las Vegas, this isn’t the right place for you. Lottery thinking is a totally different mindset from what we teach. This may seem obvious, but we’re amazed at the number of people we talk to – smart, educated people – who make statements that betray their own version of lottery thinking. “We’ll just hang in there and everything will turn out somehow.” Or “As soon as I land that next role, I’ll be on top of things.” Building wealth is absolutely no different than building an acting career. Unless you’re pro-actively, consciously working according to a plan, don’t count on anything turning out on its own. Success is never an accident.

Personally, and professionally, we aren’t interested in luck, lotteries or get-rich-quick schemes. We’re interested in getting, and then giving you, the tools to get out of debt if necessary, and then the skills to acquire wealth, protect it and accelerate its growth in a predictable, yet aggressive way.

The reality is that most actors don’t become wealthy. We work day in and day out, (usually not in acting jobs) struggling to pay bills, stay out of debt and just get ahead for at least one pay period. Many of us can barely afford our rent, let alone acting classes, headshots, reels, audition clothes and all of the other things it takes to really pursue an acting career.

If this describes you, this isn’t the time to get depressed, it’s time to change your game plan. The potential to build wealth is available to everyone, and that includes actors and artists. Stop using the excuse that “I’m too focused on my acting career to think about anything else.” Nothing will thwart your acting ambitions faster than financial desperation. It is extremely possible to create financial security and independence while simultaneously and aggressively pursuing acting. Once you make the decision to absorb the specialized knowledge and master some vital skills, you can thrive.

So what’s on your list of New Year’s resolutions? To lose weight? To exercise more? To spend less? To stop using credit cards? Why not include a resolution to increase your financial literacy? How about one to start a cash-producing business? Or to begin investing by the end of year (even if it is only a few hundred dollars)? Really committing to improving your financial situation, and working on that commitment over the course of the year, could mean that next year your resolutions look rather different.

Maybe you are already at your ideal weight, because you now have the time and money to use a personal trainer. Maybe you aren’t worried about spending less because you’ve made so much more. And as for credit cards, you only use them to pay for business expenses because of the miles you get, and even then they are paid in full every month. So, a whole new set of resolutions: to take at least 3 long weekends away to somewhere new and interesting. To go on a 3 week trip around Europe this summer. To increase your net worth by $200, 000 (for details on net worth calculations and more, visit us at AbundanceBound.com).

The resolutions are just the beginning; they are your wealth-building starting point. What they should give you is an incentive to go out and really learn about finances. And I mean really learn, not just take an evening Learning Annex course. And that is not to say anything negative about evening courses: they can be incredibly valuable, if they inspire you into actually taking action beyond attending the lecture. Otherwise all you have is motivation without direction, which is never a good idea!

So, make this the year that you really change your financial picture. Make your resolutions and stick to them. Decide what, when, how and from whom, you are going to learn. Then apply it. Because knowledge is not power: applied knowledge is power. So what you need to do is apply the knowledge you gather to your financial situation in order to gain power over it.

Adam Martin is an active Assistant Director (most recently on "Transformers", to be released summer 07), Producer and Director based in Hollywood. With his wife, Miata, he also started Abundance Bound, Inc, (Abundance Bound - Financial Education and Planning for Actors & Artists) and their mission is to develop a community of artists able to pursue their creative goals free from the crushing weight of financial stress. Adam and Miata are coached by Loral Langmeier, author of the best-seller "The Millionaire Maker", and apply what they learn with her to their clients within the artistic community.