Beyond Quick Wins

Mindset
Written By Eleanor Burke

Following on from our Imbolc Resolutions post yesterday, these are some suggestions for resolutions which will take a little longer, either to think about or simply to carry out. Yesterday’s were quick wins - worth doing for the mood boost and because they’ll move the needle but these are the habits which are going to compound over the year to start boosting your finances in a deeper way.

Take your time deciding on these - thinking about your reasons for doing them and how your’re going to evaluate if they’re working for you and when they’re done.

Remember, ‘it was too much for me to cope with so I just didn’t do it’ is very valid feedback. That simply means you need to work out whether the end goal is the problem (in which case sack it off totally) or whether the goal is still right for you but the means of getting there needs to be adjusted. 

Longer-Term Resolutions

1). Plan to Max Out Your ISA This Coming Year

You’ve got £20,000 to put in for the 2026/27 tax year, that’s £1,666-ish a month.

What could you do to use every single last drop of that tax-efficient goodness? Sell stuff? Side hustle? Upskill? Get a promotion? Shift some pennies out of savings and into investments? 

2). Track Your Spending For a Month

Every last penny. What’s going out and what’s coming in. You’re looking for money leaks (easy places where you’re losing money) but also whether your money is going where you want it to go - is it aligned with your values and goals?

If you never ever use cash you could do this by going through your statements anyway, but tracking day by day allows you to include your thoughts and emotions which are absolute gold when working out if your spending is aligned with your aims.

3). Commit To Reading a Finance Book

Not necessarily with the goal of doing everything in there but of widening your understanding and how everything fits together.

Three which I’ve read and enjoyed:

I’ve heard really great things about:

*These are affiliate links so I’ll make a little bit of money for each book you buy through there. I’d be just as thrilled if you borrowed them from your library or bought them from your local indie book shop though!

4). Get An Accountability Buddy

Speaking about money is powerful. It’s not easy and it’s not ‘normal’ but it is world-changing.

Finding the right person, who shares your values but who thinks differently enough to challenge you and offer insight, is imperative which is why this isn’t an evening task. You will want to build trust and boundaries and you’ll need to push yourself to be your best self for them.

The aim is a friendship where you can check in on goals, offer support and guidance, ask questions, ponder and even simply enjoy little things with. Find you somebody who will open a cashback credit card so that you can each enjoy a holiday together from the proceeds!

It’s well worth doing.

5. Organise Your Financial Documents

One file or folder is absolutely plenty! Or maybe a real life folder and a digital folder.

Get rid of old stuff, and put what’s left into some sort of order. You want contracts, agreements, statements and information that pertain to current issues and accounts or that you have to keep by law - and really nothing else. 

Include passwords in this - but do that securely of course.

Tell somebody about it. The aim is to get on top of it for yourself, but also so if the worst should happen, whoever is left has a broad overview of everything they need.

What Do You Need To Focus On?

There’s some powerful stuff in here isn’t there? There were a hundred other things I could have put in here, perhaps I chose these based on what I actually need myself…

I’d be so interested to hear any other longer terms plans you lot have put in place or plan to?



Tomorrow, we get into much wider ranging Lifestyle and Mindset Resolutions. It’s fun!

Love Eleanor. xxx

Eleanor Burke
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Financial Wellness Beyond the Bank Balance
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Forget New Year’s Resolutions