How to Make the Last 31 Days Successful

Sarah Brumley

Sarah Brumley

As we race towards the finish line of the year, let’s turn that tempting “I’ll wait until January” mindset into a powerful push toward your goals. Whether you’ve hit a wall or didn’t set any goals to begin with, today I’m sharing five tips to help you finish this year strong and prepare for an even more fabulous new year. So, if you’re ready to make these last 31 days truly count, well then, let’s get started!

Links for This Episode

Podcast Episode Recommendations

Join the Financial Fix Up Community

Before we dive into today’s episode, I have a quick question for you: Are you on my email list? If not, you’re totally missing out!

Each week, I send out an email packed with budgeting challenges, home maintenance strategies, fun and frugal family activities, meal planning tips, and even a sneak peek behind the scenes. My goal is simple: to inspire you to take those small steps that can lead to big changes in your home and financial life.

I promise I won’t clutter your inbox—just valuable insights to help you thrive! If you’d like to join our community, head over to lemonblessings.com/news or click the link in the show notes.

Together we can transform those small actions into significant results!

How to Make the Last 31 Days Successful

Well hey there and welcome back to another episode of the Financial Fix Up Podcast. I’m your host, Sarah Brumley, and today we’re jumping into some tips to keep you on track with your goals as we navigate the last 31 days of this year.

And as the end of the year approaches, I know better than most how easy it is to think, “I’ll just handle this in January”, but this mindset can be toxic not only for your wellbeing, but the well beign of your finances as well. So, rather than creating situations that will require loads of clean up in the New Year, I wanted to offer some suggestions to help keep us on track as we plow through the final month of this year.

Side note: if you’re coming into this episode and you’re thinking, I failed at my goals this year or I didn’t set any to begin with so this doesn’t apply to me, you’re wrong. So, definitely stick with me here.

Suggestion #1: Track Your Spending

Alright, so let’s go ahead and start with my favorite topic, which is your financial situation. I’m well aware how tempting it can be to postpone financial goals in December. After all, a new year is right around the corner and it’s easy to think you can just add these goals to your January resolutions, right?

Don’t do it. Don’t let yourself undo the progress – no matter how small – you’ve made this year, only to end up deeper in debt or having zeroed out your savings. Instead, take a moment to look back on your financial goals for this year or even this month, and remind yourself why sticking to your budget and tracking your spending matters, even if it means saying no to an extra gift or holiday party or whatever it might be.

To keep this simple, I recommend the following steps:

  1. Set a daily check in with yourself to track each purchase you make throughout the month. This might seem a little overkill, but there’s something to be said for taking a few minutes to sit down and embrace the reality of the situation. And not only will this keep you aware and mindful as you shop, but you’ll be a lot less likely to overspend because you’ll have that constant reminder of your goals.
  2. Break down your holiday budget by category. And I did a whole episode on how to create a successful holiday budget so I’ll link to that in the show notes, but simply put: separate what you plan to spend on gifts, events, dining out, and any other expenses you might have so you can clearly see where each dollar goes.
  3. Choose accountability: You can do this by sharing your budget with a friend or partner. And more often than not, just knowing that someone else is aware of your goals can help you stay committed. In fact, if you don’t have someone you can share with in your social circle, feel free to send me an email at sarah@lemonblessings.com and I’ll be happy to keep you accountable this season.

Whatever you do, don’t neglect those financial goals this close to the end of the year. Okay?

Suggestion #2: Embrace Gratitude

My second suggestion for these last 31 days of the year is to embrace gratitude. It’s just the reality: sometimes our holiday seasons become gift-centered and when that happens it’s often necessary to shift our focus. Take a moment to appreciate everything you already have, including the people in your life and the things you’ve achieved this year – even if they aren’t directly related to a goal you set for yourself. Because I know you – you achieved something awesome this year, whether you’re willing to admit it or not.

The truth is that when you’re mindful of the blessings, you’re less likely to feel the need to accumulate more “stuff” and can focus more on quality time and meaningful experiences.

You might even consider adding a gratitude ritual to your day by taking a few minutes to write down three things you’re thankful for. This simple act can re-frame your focus, especially during this season that often pushes materialism.

Suggestion #3: Prepare for a Clean Start

The 31 days we are given in December can move the needle in several different ways. For example, if you’ve been working toward a personal or business goal, you have 31 more days to meet or exceed that goal if you set your mind on using those days well.

On the flip side, you can decide to take the next month off from your goals in anticipation of January, of course, and end up needing to lose that additional ten pounds for the third year in a row.

Take the time to reflect on your goals: What progress have you made? What’s left to accomplish?

If you already achieved your goal or didn’t set one to begin with, now’s the perfect time to set a short-term goal to get you moving forward throughout the month of December. Find one small area to improve, like saving an extra $50 or preventing the addition of holiday debt.

Like I mentioned before, an accountability partner can make a world of difference in keeping you motivated as you wrap up the year. So consider that, too.

Remember, any progress is better than none. Don’t aim for perfection – instead celebrate the small wins along the way because it’s those small wins that lead to big success in the future.

Suggestion #4: Keep Your Health in Mind

My fourth suggestion is to make sure you’re keeping your health in mind throughout this season. And I know that balancing everything during the holiday season is hard enough, especially if you have out-of-town family members visiting or you’re planning to travel, but make sure you’re prioritizing you physical health, too. Schedule short, daily walks or attend a weekly fitness class to make sure you keep active because staying physically engaged not only keeps your body healthy, but it helps you make smarter decisions in other areas of your life, including your finances.

And when it comes to holiday treats, a little planning can go a long way. You might even map out your meals ahead of time. This has really helped me over the years. I just sit down the night before and think about what I plan to eat the next day to stay on track with my health goals. Of course, there are always times when you can predict what might be served at an event or gathering, but the nice thing is that if I plan out the majority of my food during the day, then I know at least those meals were healthy and nourishing to my body.

Additionally, you might want to consider setting boundaries around specific foods that lead to trouble. It could be that one cookie leads to the entire plate or one drink leads to an entire bottle. If that’s the case, keep those items out of reach and practice the “just say no” mantra.

Just these small adjustments can make a huge difference.

Suggestion #5: Prepare for January with a Year-End Review

My final suggestion today is to take some time this month to assess and celebrate what went well this past year and to identify some areas for improvement. I’m going to go into greater detail with this as we get closer to January, but it never hurts to put a little thought into it ahead of time. It might even help you add additional things to your thankful list.

So, to do this you might:

  • Write down any progress you’ve made this year, big or small.
  • Take note of habits you’d like to change in the new year, like reducing impulse spending or building a better savings habit

Once you know those things, you’ll be in a great position to set specific, actionable goals for the upcoming year.

Make the Last 31 Days Successful

So, as you approach the final days of this year, my question to you is: how will you use this month effectively? Are you still working on achieving a goal? Will you set a new, short-term one? Remember, any step forward counts. You don’t need to overhaul everything – small, intentional actions add up. But they do have to be intentional.

And if one of your goals involves putting a budget in place for the upcoming year, make sure to grab a copy of the Financial Fix Up Planner. You can download it immediately, print off the pages you need, and you’ll have all the steps necessary to set up a budget that works for you and your family so that you can achieve your version of financial freedom, whatever that might be. You can grab your copy at lemonblessings.com/planner or by following the link in the show notes.

Whatever you decide, just know that I’m cheering you on! You’ve got this! Have an amazing day and I’ll chat with you again next time!

More
articles