October is National Financial Planning Month
It’s that time of the year to focus and lock-in on your financial goals.
Spooky season has officially begun. Amid the trick-or-treaters, pumpkin carving, horror movie marathons, and haunted house fun, October serves as a yearly check-in time to evaluate your budget and financial goals.
If you’ve ever experienced financial avoidance or the ostrich effect, you know how difficult it can be to sit down and review bills, bank statements, and credit card balances, or to engage in necessary financial conversations.
The same goes if you are running on financial autopilot. With the conveniences of direct deposit, recurring bill pay, and automated savings, it’s easy to stop checking in on your money situation. This oversight can lead you to miss opportunities and overlook small issues that could turn into bigger problems.
Routine check-ins are important because they act as a psychological anchor, prompting your mind to shift into a state of self-awareness and reflection. Having a routine can help reduce stress and promote mood stability by increasing a sense of control and predictability.
Routine financial check-ins can prevent both obsessive tracking and complete avoidance of your cash flow. They are also considered a part of self-care and are a proactive way to protect your future.
Financial stress is one of the most common sources of chronic stress. According to a survey of 1,200 U.S. adults by the National Endowment for Financial Education, 88% reported feeling financial stress heading into 2026, and 77% experienced at least one financial setback during 2025.
Your Financial Wellness Check-In
Here are 9 things to consider when reviewing your personal finances:
Review your budget and see where you can possibly reduce spending and/or increase savings. One common formula is the 50/30/20 rule, which divides your after-tax income into three simple categories.
50% for needs (examples: housing, groceries, utilities, and insurance)
30% for wants (examples: dining out, entertainment, travel, and hobbies)
20% for savings and debts (examples: emergency fund, investing for retirement, paying off personal loans, or high-interest credit cards)
Review recurring expenses to eliminate hidden subscription creep. Have any unused subscriptions, forgotten free trials, or duplicate apps on your phone? According to a CableTV.com survey of 1,000 participants, 48% forgot to cancel free trial subscriptions, with 9% of people reporting they have spent over $100 on accidental subscriptions.
Some common recurring subscriptions include:
Cloud storage plans
Gaming subscriptions
Meal delivery services
Subscription boxes
Streaming services
Fitness memberships
Software licenses
Review your debt and consider paying down any high-interest debt. According to Experian, any account with an interest rate of 8% or higher is generally considered high-interest debt.
Assess your insurance needs, depending on where you are in life, make sure you have proper coverage with life insurance, health insurance, pet insurance, auto insurance, etc.
Check your investments and make sure they support your financial goals and are risk tolerant appropriate for where you are in life.
Review your savings goals as priorities in life often change. Ensure that your emergency fund is where it needs to be. According to the Vanguard Emergency Savings and Financial Well-Being Study that surveyed 12,400 Vanguard investors, 51% of people who had no emergency savings reported an increase in financial stress year after year, compared with only 15% of people who had at least $2,000 in savings.
Review your tax situation and consider any end-of-year tax strategies that could be beneficial.
Set a holiday spending budget because here comes the season of gift-giving, seasonal celebrations, travel for gatherings, and high-volume shopping that includes Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
According to Bain & Company’s 2026 Holiday Shopping Outlook article, U.S. holiday sales are projected to surpass $1 trillion for the first time. But it was noted that more than half of that growth is due to inflation increasing prices as opposed to consumers buying more.
While an increase in holiday sales is expected for 2026, there are factors of significant financial concern, like high gas and diesel prices, tariffs, geopolitical uncertainty, and a challenging “low-hire, low-fire” job market, that can dampen the holiday cheer and spending.
Review your financial goals and ensure they align with your life goals, whether that’s reflecting on what has recently happened or what is soon to come. Did you buy a house? Are you planning for a wedding or maybe a baby? Did you change careers? Are you going back to school? Did you move to a new city? Are you planning to retire soon? Major life events have the potential to impact your budget and financial priorities.
Halloween time is meant to be scary, but looking at your finances doesn’t have to be. Before the busy holiday shopping season begins, now is as good a time as ever to evaluate where you are financially. Take this month as an opportunity to support your future financial well-being by reviewing your accounts today. Your future self will thank you.
If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading!!!
I hope today you’re met with kindness, especially from yourself.
💚💚💚
References
Bono, O. (2025, October 10). How many Americans have forgotten to cancel a streaming free trial? New study shocks the experts. CableTV.com. https://www.cabletv.com/news/streaming-free-trial-cancellation-survey
Cheris, A., Grichel, K., Rigby, D., Koszyk, S., & Vargo, L. (2026, September 3). 2026 holiday shopping outlook. Bain & Company. https://www.bain.com/insights/2026-holiday-shopping-outlook-infographic/
Costa, P., Martino, M., & de la Fuente, M. (2025, April). The relationship between emergency savings, financial well-being, and financial stress (Vanguard Research). Vanguard. https://corporate.vanguard.com/content/dam/corp/research/pdf/relationship_between_emergency_savings_financial_well_being_financial_stress.pdf
Hayes, M. (2025, December 22). What is considered high-interest debt? Experian. https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/what-is-high-interest-debt/
Jacobson, K. (2026, May 24). The ostrich effect: Understanding why we avoid financial stress. YourMoneyCounselor. https://yourmoneycounselor.substack.com/p/the-ostrich-effect-understanding
Verasight. (2026, January 13). National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) quarter 4 survey report. https://reports.verasight.io/r/nefe-q4
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