Give future you a Christmas present: Set yourself up for financial success in 2026

Real Money, a free weekly newsletter giving expert tips on how to save, invest and make the most of your money, is sent every Sunday. You’re reading an excerpt − sign up to get the whole newsletter in your inbox.

You’ve only got a few weeks to wrap up your final loose ends at work, start planning your Christmas/New Year celebrations, and pick up whatever presents you need for your family, friends and other loved ones.

The good news about the latter is that it’s currently Black Friday, so you should still be able to snag a bargain either in-store or online (and let’s be honest, the sales basically last all of December these days so you’ve got loads of time).

But how about adding one more thing to your pre-Christmas list? Something that might take you a couple of hours, but will pay you dividends (possibly literally) over the long term? Something your future self approximately 12 months from now will be thanking you for?

Because not only is the end of the year a great time for Christmas shopping, it’s also a great time to sit down and review your finances for the past 12 months, and plan for 2026.

What’s the problem?

Around half of the country are considered financially illiterate, and a massive 86 per cent of us admit we don’t know our monthly expenses, let alone our expenses over the course of a whole year.

Obviously, that’s no good, and while I hope most Real Money readers are a little more attuned to their finances, sitting down at the end of the year to get a plan in place for next year can be extremely valuable in helping you get an accurate picture. It can also help you budget for Christmas presents!

What you can do about it

Here’s where to start:

• Reflect on the year that was: Before you start thinking about next year, Gemma Mitchell, head of advice and money coach at Rask, says you should take a minute to reflect on the year that was. “What parts of your financial year are you proud of? Where did you feel stretched, stressed or off-track?” she says. Writing these areas down in a notebook or even just on your phone can help solidify them and help hold yourself accountable. “Getting honest with yourself helps you see patterns and celebrate wins that aren’t always visible in the numbers. It will also help you highlight the habits, or areas of stress, you’d like to work on next year.” Once you’ve done this, start thinking about some goals for next year, which Mitchell recommends should be bite-sized and achievable. “Small steps, done consistently, are what get you to the finish line.”
• Start tracking your net worth: Knowing your net worth feels like something limited to the Elon Musks of the world, but it can be an easy marker of your financial performance that is relatively simple to calculate and keep updated over time. “Write down everything you own, minus everything you owe, then update this at regular intervals – eg. 1 Jan, 1 Apr, 1 Jul, 1 Oct,” says Lexi Smith, financial coach at Moneyvine. This can be as easy as scribbling some numbers down on a piece of paper, but make sure you cover all of your assets and debts, including the value of things like furniture and electronics, and any buy now, pay later or personal loans. “This helps people see progress even if they feel they are just treading water on a day-to-day basis,” Smith says.
• Do a complete cashflow audit: How much do you spend on takeaway each month, or on groceries, or alcohol? While I’m sure some savvy budgeters are all over these numbers, many people – even those who pay attention to their finances – are probably off in their estimations. To get across this, Smith suggests a full cashflow audit, which while daunting, she says is comfortably the best way to find areas you can improve on in the year ahead. Some apps exist that can help you do this, such as Frollo, and Smith also says a financial coach can help. However, she prefers just downloading your last year of banking transactions and sorting it all manually. “From my experience, people think they know how much they spend on certain categories, but the numbers tell a different story,” she says. A full cashflow audit might take the better part of a day, especially if you do it manually, but there’s no comparison for getting a complete picture of where and how you’re spending your money.
• Don’t forget your super and insurance: Did you really think I was going to get through this without mentioning superannuation? The start/end of the year is the perfect time to do a bit of housekeeping for some of the biggest expenses and assets in your life, that being your insurance and super. “Check whether your super contributions are on track, if you’re in the right investment option for your age and stage, and whether your beneficiaries are up-to-date,” Mitchell says. “It’s also worth reviewing your key insurances, like life and income protection, and any cover you hold inside your super, to make sure the level of cover and the cost still make sense for where you are now.”

Advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions about investing or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice that takes into account their own personal circumstances before making any financial decisions.