🦃 This Thanksgiving, Try a Gratitude Ledger for Your Money

Start with appreciation around the table, finish with a focused plan.

There’s something about Thanksgiving that forces a pause. For many high earners, that pause carries a mix of gratitude—and low-grade stress about year-end to-dos. Here’s a quick system to capture the gratitude and convert it into calm, confident action. If you’re new here, you can explore past issues on the Making Sense of Your Money newsletter, watch the latest on YouTube, or listen on Spotify. For everything in one place, here’s my social media hub.

💚 The Gratitude Ledger: a new year-end habit

No spreadsheet required. Sometime between Thanksgiving and the weekend, write down your answers to three prompts:

1. What money-related thing am I most grateful for this year?
   Steady income, vesting equity, a growing business, a partner who shares the load, healthy family—name it.
2. What lesson did this year teach me about money, work, or risk?
   Cash reserves matter; diversification isn’t optional; a plan that travels beats a plan that assumes stasis.
3. What one decision will I make in the next 90 days to honor that blessing?
   Raise contributions for 2025 limits, diversify concentrated stock, or set up a donor-advised fund; schedule a year-end review so you’re not scrambling in December.

🧠 Why this works

• Gratitude reduces financial stress and increases perceived control, improving the quality of decisions.
• It shifts you from reactive, short-term choices to patient, long-term ones.
• Starting with what’s working makes it easier to focus on a few high-leverage fixes—without overhauling everything.

📅 After the long weekend: small moves, big impact

Many impactful tax and planning actions are calendar-year sensitive—and 2026 brings scheduled tax rule shifts you’ll want to plan for (what changes in 2026).

• 401(k)/workplace plans: 2025 employee limit is $23,500. Review your settings and consider auto-increasing deferrals with this retirement plans guide.
• Equity & bonuses: Map vests/bonuses to withholding and year-end goals. Quick primer: 7-minute equity compensation video.
• Charitable strategy: If giving is on your list, decide structure and timing while it still counts for the year—see donor-advised funds.
• Taxes: For a quick overview of the current landscape, watch The 2025 Tax Overhaul Explained.

✅ A 6-step micro action plan

1. Write your three Gratitude Ledger answers.
2. Pick one 90-day decision (calendar it now).
3. Confirm contribution settings for workplace plans (guide).
4. List remaining 2025 deadlines (equity events, taxes, giving)—use the equity video and DAF guide as prompts.
5. Block a 45-minute “money review” on your calendar next week.
6. Share your plan with a spouse/partner or advisor for accountability.

🔑 Key takeaways

• A five-minute Gratitude Ledger converts appreciation into clear next moves.
• Focus beats overhaul—one decision in the next 90 days is enough to shift momentum.
• Year-end windows matter; a few timely actions can save on taxes and stress (2026 rule shifts).

👉 Stay connected

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