Autumn Reset Challenge: Money in, money out

Welcome to Weekend 1 of the Autumn Reset Challenge. This weekend we’re going to have a quick money makeover, and sort out those finances. The general theme is ‘Money in, money out.’

It can be a challenging time of year, especially if you’ve had an expensive summer, or need to get the money together for anything important. That’s why we’re keeping it simple with a short checklist.

Our quick personal finance reset includes:

• Looking at where money goes out
• Thinking about money coming in
• Simple and realistic budget for next month
• Setting specific intentions
• Monitoring and motivation

Let’s move through these in order, making sure not to overcomplicate things.

Money out

Have a quick check of your bank balance, then look back at recent spending. What did you spend money on in the last month? Do you think you might have overspent on anything?

Are there quick wins such as unused subscriptions you can cancel, or other areas for improvement? Is it time to look for a new energy provider, or switch to a different tariff? Do you have any major expenses coming up in the next few weeks?

Money in

What money do you have coming in this month? For most of us this will include wages or self employment income, and possibly benefits, child support, carers’ allowance or pension. Check you’re getting paid what you’re owed, and you’re on the correct tax code if necessary.

Can you earn a little more next month from overtime, freelance work, a second job, or selling old things you own? Do you have any gift cards, store credit or reward points you can use?

Realistic budget for next month

Make a simple budget for next month’s expenses. Include fixed expenses (rent, mortgage, council tax, insurance, loan repayments etc) and discretionary or approximate variable spending (food, drink, going out, toiletries, haircuts, treats and so on).

You might like to use a spreadsheet or download a free budgeting app to help balance your budget. Allow a little leeway if your circumstances allow, as very strict budgets can be hard to stick to. You might also want to put something towards one or more money goals, which are mentioned in the next section.

Setting goals

Think of a simple short or medium term goal to aim for over for the next three months. Make a specific plan for how you might reach your goal, such as saving a set amount each month, paying off a certain amount of debt, topping up an emergency fund, starting a summer holiday fund, or whatever else you like.

Keeping your financial head above water is a perfectly legitimate goal too! So is switching to a cheaper supermarket, or setting a no-spend goal (for example, buying no new clothes during Second Hand September).

Tracking progress

Tracking your budget, goals and targets is a great way to motivate yourself. It can also help to head off larger problems before they set in. Everybody has their own way to keep motivated, so think about what might work best for you.

Your banking app might have a user friendly display to help you track that progress without fuss. If you like physical things you can see and interact with, you could print off a free chart, keep it filled in and stick it on the fridge door. Or perhaps you’d prefer to buddy up with a friend with similar goals, and motivate each other.

What’s happening here?

I’ve had a look back through last month’s spending already, and it wasn’t too bad although I am due a couple of refunds. My ‘money out’ activity will be chasing those up, that’s for sure. For ‘money in’ I’ll be putting a few more items on eBay, Vinted and whatever other platforms I can think of. It’s good for decluttering too, as well as netting a few extra quid.

Our household budget will allow some extra money for early Christmas prep (short term goal), and writing a sensible shopping list is essential before starting to pick up any groceries. There are also other household and social celebrations to budget for. And fuel bills, of course, ack.

I’m keeping it simple with the monitoring processes, and doing a daily banking app check for balances. The short term goal’s going to be monitored month by month in the Notes app on my phone. Probably don’t need to reinvent the wheel for that one.

Enjoying this post? You may also like:

• The Autumn Reset Challenge 2026: Introduction
• Autumn Reset Challenge: Home & wardrobe reset
• Autumn Reset Challenge: Personal & social reset

Are you feeling inspired to do your own quick personal finance reset? What’s your ‘money in, money out’ going to look like?

Do you have any tricky challenges at the moment, or any interesting goals and plans? Let us know.