Reboot
Two of my clients completely fell out of their budgeting rhythm. Month after month after month of successful budget execution and tracking, followed by complete failure. There are several reasons this can happen, but sometimes, life gets in the way, and the money stuff gets put on the back burner.
Here's what I recommend people NOT do: Try to catch up for the month(s) they missed. Trying to do so will most likely exacerbate the problem. Sometimes, people don't need a catch-up.....they need a reboot.
Here's what that looks like. Let the past be the past. Even if it means having blank months and unallocated transactions, just let it be. Don't try to rebuild last month, and don't even try to catch up on the current month, which is already halfway over. Instead, set your sights on the month to come. Recalibrate, negotiate what the future should look like, and get yourself ready for the new month. Then, once the first day of the next month strikes, execute well!
The idea of a reboot is so important. It requires us to give ourselves grace, forgive ourselves for the past, and focus 100% of our energy on the future. It's hard to drive forward when we're staring in the rearview mirror. Sometimes, a reset is just what the doctor ordered!
This applies to budgeting, for sure, but it also applies to so many other areas of money and life. We need to stop perpetually beating ourselves up for every mistake and failure, and instead give ourselves a reboot so we can practice excellence in the next season.
Sure, ideally, we wouldn't ever screw up or get behind. In a perfect world, we would continually stay on track forever. We don't live in a perfect world, though. We all live complicated, stressful, busy, and surprising lives. It's almost inevitable that life will kick back at times. When it does, practice the art of the reboot. I hope you find freedom in it. I hope you find relief in it. I hope you find a renewed energy in it.
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