Your 2026 new year money reset
If you've ever googled "New Year's financial planning checklist," you've probably found articles with a dozen steps, color-coded spreadsheets, and enough tasks to make your head spin. Yeah, we've been there too.
Last year, we created our own ambitious checklist for January. We looked at it again recently and thought... nope. It all felt a little too complicated and overwhelming.
So this year, we're doing something different. We're stripping it down to one simple exercise that you can actually complete in about 30 minutes — and it'll make a real difference in how you approach your money in 2026.
⏰ Episode highlights
[0:00] Why we ditched last year's complicated checklist
[2:00] The one thing that actually matters (and why it's not what you think)
[5:00] Step 1: Name your money pain point
[7:00] Step 2: Name how you want to feel instead
[9:00] Step 3: Brainstorm small ways to ease the pain
[10:00] Step 4: Name the roadblocks (and plan for them)
[12:00] Step 5: Pick your January experiment
[13:00] Why progress beats perfection every single time
The one thing that actually matters
Here's what we learned over the past year: the best financial plan isn't the most detailed one. It's the one you'll actually stick to. And you're way more likely to stick to something when it feels manageable, specific, and directly tied to what's actually bothering you right now.
That's why instead of overwhelming you with a massive checklist, we want you to focus on one money pain point — the thing that keeps tapping you on the shoulder. Not the thing you think you should care about (your financial advisor says retirement is important, so that must be it), but the thing that's actually loud in your head on a daily basis.
Maybe it's:
Your debt feels heavy and impossible to face
You're scared to open your bank app
You don't have a financial safety net and that scares you
You know you should be saving for your kids' future, but time keeps slipping by
Retirement feels important but too abstract to actually tackle
That one thing? That's where your energy goes.
The 5-step exercise
We've put together a downloadable guide that walks you through each step, so you don't have to take a million notes. Just listen (or read along) and absorb.
Step 1: Name your pain point
Pick the ONE money thing that feels the loudest right now. Not ten things — one. The thought that keeps replaying in the back of your head. This is the thing that, if you could ease it even a little bit, would help you exhale.
Step 2: Describe how you want to feel instead
Here's where most people get stuck — they jump straight to goals without thinking about the feeling underneath. Don't do that.
Instead, separate the goal from the feeling. If your pain point is "I don't have a financial safety net," your feeling might be "I want to know that if something big happens, we'll be okay." Or if it's "I'm behind on saving for retirement," the feeling might be "I want to feel calm and competent with the basics."
Write down what you want to feel. Not what you want to achieve — what you want to feel.
Step 3: Brainstorm small ways to ease the pain
No judgment here. Literally no bad ideas. Just dump your thoughts on paper. Some things big, some small, that might help ease this specific pain point.
Examples:
Setting up automatic transfers to savings
Listing out all your debt in one place so it feels less scary
Booking a one-time financial checkup with a professional
Asking that money question you've been avoiding
Step 4: Name the roadblocks (and plan for them)
This is the part most people skip, and it's actually the most important.
Life is gonna happen. You're gonna get busy, or tired, or discouraged. Instead of pretending that won't happen, let's plan for it now — before the resistance shows up.
Ask yourself: What usually gets in the way when I try to work on my finances?
Common ones:
Fear of doing it wrong
Shame or avoidance
Comparing yourself to others
General life chaos (work is crazy, kids need you, you get sick)
Once you've named them, create a tiny plan. When this roadblock comes up, you'll do this.
Example: "When my income dips, I'll switch to my low-spend plan" or "When I feel overwhelmed, I'll review my notes instead of doom-googling."
Step 5: Pick One experiment for January
You're not committing to a forever plan. You're not overhauling your finances. You're picking one small, specific, time-bound experiment for January.
If your pain point is "I don't have a financial safety net," your January experiment might be: "I'm finding two expenses to cut and redirecting that money to savings."
If it's "My debt feels heavy," your experiment might be: "I'm making a list of all my accounts, interest rates, and amounts before the end of the month."
If it's "I know I should be saving for my kids' future but time keeps slipping," your experiment might be: "I'm getting clear on what saving for their future actually means — college? Inheritance? Something else?"
The whole point is to pick something so small that it feels doable, not daunting.
Why this works
We know, we know — this feels almost too simple. But here's the thing: progress is better than perfection. Curiosity is better than judgment. And one focused first step is way better than ten half-baked plans.
When you zoom in on what's actually bothering you — instead of what you think should bother you — you're way more likely to take action. And when you plan for roadblocks ahead of time, you're way less likely to beat yourself up when life gets messy.
Also? If your experiment doesn't go perfectly (spoiler: it probably won't), that's not a sign you've failed. That's the whole point of calling it an experiment. You refine, you adjust, you keep going. You approach it with curiosity instead of judgment.
TL,DR:
Skip the 12-step financial checklist when it comes to financial resolutions — it's overcomplicated and you won't stick to it.
Pick one money pain point that's actually loud in your head (not what you think you should care about).
Name how you want to feel instead of just chasing a goal (calm, confident, secure, etc.).
Brainstorm small ways to ease the pain and plan for roadblocks before they show up.
Pick one small, specific, time-bound experiment for January — nothing huge, just something doable.
Progress beats perfection. One focused first step is way better than ten half-baked plans.
Ready to work through this exercise? Download our free guide that walks you through all five steps. It takes about 30 minutes, and we promise it'll help you start 2026 feeling a little bit better about your money.
Questions?
Email us at hello@thefinancegirlies.com if you have follow-up questions about HSAs or want us to dive deeper into anything we covered.
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