Every so often, Simon Fraser University student Jesslyn Aurelia Pandjan checks her bank balance and thinks, “Wait… how did I spend that much?”
Usually, it isn’t one big expense. It’s a matcha before class, her monthly Spotify subscription, an Uber, drinks with a friend, or a birthday gift. “I wish I paid more attention to how all the little things add up,” she says. “I used to think anything that didn’t hurt the first digit of my bank balance was fine. Girl math.”
Her fix? A regular Sunday money reset. Twenty minutes is enough to look back at what you spent and ahead at what the next week might cost. We asked Jesslyn and Vancity Wealth Advisor Josephine Machira what’s worth doing in those 20 minutes, and what you should be looking for along the way.
What to do during your 20-minute Sunday reset.
You don’t need a spreadsheet, a new budgeting system, or your entire financial life figured out. You need 20 minutes, your banking app, and a rough idea of what you’ve got going on next week. Here’s how to get started.
1. First five minutes: Scroll your accounts for anything that looks off.
Start by opening your banking and credit card apps and taking a quick scroll through the past week’s transactions. Do you see anything that makes you go, “Wait, what?”
Maybe it’s a subscription you forgot about, a charge you don’t recognize, or three small purchases that somehow added up to much more than you expected. Spend the rest of these five minutes looking a little closer at whatever catches your attention.
Jesslyn learned quickly that what she thought she spent and what she actually spent weren’t always the same.
“I used to budget $50 every month for iced drinks, but after tracking my spending for a while, I realized I only spent around $30,” she says. “Being able to adjust my future budgets based on what I actually spend makes me feel way more in control. It’s like I’m finally understanding myself and my patterns instead of guessing.”
As you scan, check for three things:
- Transactions you don’t recognize. Flag them so you can investigate them later.
- Unused subscriptions or memberships. Consider whether they’re still worth paying for.
- Expenses that were higher than expected. Maybe groceries, takeout, or a night out cost more than you planned.
Josephine says opening the app can be the hardest part. Some clients put off looking at their finances because they’re worried the numbers will confirm what they already suspect.
“Sometimes it isn’t as bad as my clients thought, and only minor changes are needed,” she says. “Other times, it is as challenging as they expected.”
And remember, an expensive week isn’t automatically a bad one. When Josephine reviews expenses with clients, she often looks specifically for the periods they spend the most. “That reveals what you like to do when you’re happy and excited,” she says, “and saving works better when your budget includes the things you enjoy.”
Tip: Before you close the app, write down your total spending for the week in one place, whether that’s a note on your phone or a notebook you use every Sunday. After a month or two, you’ll have a much better sense of what a typical week looks like, and which weeks are the exceptions.
2. Next five minutes: See what’s coming up.
Next, open your calendar and scan the next seven days. What’s on there that costs money? A subscription renewal, a bill, maybe a concert you bought tickets for months ago. Even predictable expenses can sneak up on you. Jesslyn pays $75 a month for MSP as an international student. “Sometimes I forget it’s coming up,” she says.
Then there are smaller social plans. “A casual hangout, like happy hour, grabbing a drink with a friend, or buying a birthday gift… Those things are usually $30 to $50 each, but they add up,” Jesslyn says.
Josephine spends a lot of time talking to clients about this social side of spending. “We as human beings value connection, and connection is important,” she says. “But we still need to approach it intentionally.”
That doesn’t mean cancelling your social life to make up for one expensive week. Instead, Josephine asks clients what their friendships look like in practice. Do they eat out together? Travel? Go to events? Those are real expenses, and she would rather see someone plan for them than pretend they won’t happen.
There is a limit, though. “It doesn’t make sense to go into debt to finance a dinner or a trip,” Josephine says. “If you can’t afford the trip, be honest.”
Tip: Find the biggest expense on next week’s calendar and work backwards. If the weekend is going to cost $100, what does that leave you for the rest of the week? Five minutes now gives you time to change the plan, move some money around, or decide the expensive thing is worth it.
3. Last 10 minutes: Do something about it.
You’ve looked back, and you’ve looked ahead. Now, pick one thing to actually do.
Jesslyn usually ties this step back to a bigger goal. “One thing I always do as a university student is set a savings goal for each term,” she says. “Since I’m in co-op this term, my goal is to save at least $5,000.”
Having that number in her head helps her decide what she can do that week to get a little closer. “If I get ready earlier and take transit instead of Uber to an event, I’ll think, ‘Okay, that’s a few dollars saved. I’m getting closer to my $5,000,’” she says. “It sounds small, but those little choices add up.”
Your one thing might be:
- Cancelling the subscription you spotted earlier.
- Setting aside money for next week’s biggest expense.
- Dealing with the transaction you didn’t recognize.
- Moving some money toward a savings goal.
And if your one thing is something you’ll probably do again next week, you may not need to keep doing it yourself. That’s where Josephine is a big fan of automation.
“You’re in control of how your paycheque is used,” she says. “If you’re intentional, if you can automate how your paycheque is disbursed across the different goals you have, that’s the best thing you can do.”
In other words, if you’re moving money into savings every payday, automate the transfer. “The best savers use existing systems to build the life they want through automation,” Josephine says. “It reduces the stress.”
Tip: You can set up recurring transfers and scheduled bill payments in a few taps in the Vancity mobile app, and real-time alerts can flag unfamiliar charges between resets.
Your Sunday money reset in a few simple steps.
- Review your bank and credit card transactions.
- Flag any unfamiliar charges or subscriptions you no longer use.
- Look ahead at next week’s bills, plans, and upcoming expenses.
- Decide whether you need to move money or adjust your budget.
- Complete one or two financial tasks while your apps are still open.
- Look for one task you can automate.
Finding your own financial routine.
Twenty minutes a week won’t solve every money problem. But simply paying attention to where your money is going can make a difference. Research from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) has found that people who use a budget tend to report better financial outcomes than those who don’t.
For Jesslyn, the biggest difference is knowing what she’s working with. “It’s like I can finally breathe and face the week knowing exactly how much I can spend and on what,” she says. “There’s something really calming about seeing everything organized, like, ‘Okay, I’m good. I know what’s happening.’”
Sunday works for Jesslyn. Yours might be Monday, Wednesday, or Saturday. The day matters less than actually looking at your finances. If you’d rather not figure it all out alone, a Vancity advisor can help you look at the bigger picture and build a plan around it.
Mutual funds and other securities are offered through Aviso Wealth, a division of Aviso Financial Inc. The information contained in this article is from sources believed to be reliable; however, we cannot guarantee that it is the information contained in this article was obtained from sources believed to be reliable. This information is for informational and educational purposes and is not intended to provide specific advice including, without limitation, investment, financial, tax or similar matters. Please see our Terms of Use.
