October is National Financial Planning Month

Level Up Your Finances This Season

While most of us know autumn as a season of change, with pumpkin spice lattes and festive holidays around the corner, autumn is also a time of renewal and even rediscovery. So, what better time of year to work on our finances? October is National Financial Planning Month; for those looking to set new financial goals, learn new or better habits, or just improve their finances overall, now’s the perfect time!

While there is no set agenda for Financial Planning Month, and many people and institutions practice it differently, there are several common elements that go into thinking about finances during the month of October.

For example:

• Are you worried about your debt or credit score? Take the month to focus on that, with strategies and goals to help you alleviate your debt or learn better skills for managing and paying it off in a way that works for you.
• Got the budget blues? Make your reason for the season a reevaluation of how you set a budget and stick to it.
• Want to open a savings or checking account? Use this opportunity to prepare for your long-term financial future by looking into options for your savings or other accounts.
• Need to change your insurance coverage? Take this time to review your options to find what would work best for you and your family.
• Planning for the holidays? While Thanksgiving and Christmas are festive and fun, they also come with costs and expenses that can quickly add up. October is the perfect time to prepare for the holidays with a focus on financial tidings.
• Thinking about retirement? National Financial Planning Month can be the catalyst that finally gets you saving or increasing your allocation for retirement.

As you can see, there’s no shortage of topics to focus on. National Financial Planning Month comes down to this:

• What are your most important financial goals?
• What do you want to work on, and what could use a revamp?
• What will be the best ways to set yourself up for success during October and beyond?

Make a Holiday of it

While many people might not be familiar with National Financial Planning Month or what it entails, its simplicity is what makes it applicable to everyone who has ever pinched their pennies or balanced their budget. Thinking about your financial future doesn’t have to be a nerve-wracking thing – in fact, there are many ways to make it fun.

For instance, if you’re struggling with budgeting, use October to find a new app or software to help you track and optimize your spending. We don’t need to think of financial planning in strict terms – make a game of your budgeting by setting up a points system for yourself to try and better your progress each day, or each week.

If your October financial project is to prepare for tax season, think creatively: What are some fun or interesting ways that will help you come filing time? Think about what you’ve done in the past and why it did or didn’t work for you. What can you do better this time? What healthy habits can you learn that will make your process smoother and more fun?

Additionally, you could:

• Involve family or friends in your month goals and focus on group activities for some competitive but friendly fun. Build a leaderboard and keep each other on track with points or challenges.
• Additionally, you can build quizzes for yourself or others to test what you’ve learned and practice applying it.
• Fantasy football meets fantasy finances: Think about ways to make your finances better by examining your interest rates, debt, and payment schedules, and consider how they work together. Then, see how they “play” together. What system or methods can you put in the game, and which should be benched?
• Set weekly challenges for yourself. If your goal is to learn more about insurance, set a goal of reading one book per week. Feeling leveled up? Make it two books a week.
• Find the rewards! If your goal was budgeting better, reward yourself at the end of the month with the money you saved from better saving and spending habits. Just remember not to undo all your hard work and progress!

Make the Month Work for You

Financial health and optimization are big topics, with many different possible goals and focal points for each person. The most important changes you can make are the ones you will remember to do consistently. No matter your financial goals, take the opportunity of this season to build practices that will last you a lifetime.