How ‘Scary Hour’ Helps Me Stay on Top of My Finances

We all have those money tasks that make our stomachs churn. You know the ones—checking your credit card balance after a spendy month, finally opening that medical bill, or diving into your retirement account settings. Enter “Scary Hour,” a trending productivity technique that’s helping me transform financial anxiety into actionable progress.

What is Scary Hour?

The concept is beautifully simple: set aside one hour to tackle tasks you’ve been avoiding due to anxiety or fear. While the term is trending on TikTok (RIP), it’s a fresh spin on established time-blocking techniques. But there’s something powerful about naming this dedicated time for facing our fears—it acknowledges that these tasks are indeed scary, and that’s okay.

My financial Scary Hour approach

I started implementing this Scary Hour for my finances after realizing I had a growing pile of “I’ll deal with that later” money tasks. Hey, there’s nothing like writing about personal finance all day to make you procrastinate your own personal finances. Here’s how I structure my financial Scary Hour:

• I schedule it for Tuesday mornings, when my energy is high and my mind is already in productivity mode from starting the work week

• My phone goes on Do Not Disturb

• I make my favorite ginger tea (a small reward helps!)

• I keep a physical notepad handy for action items

• I set a timer for exactly 60 minutes

What I actually do during Scary Hour

In my first session, I tackled the immediate anxiety-inducing tasks:

• Reviewed all account balances

• Categorized last month’s “miscellaneous” purchases

• Called about an incorrect charge I’d been avoiding (I had accidentally overpaid my credit card and created a negative balance)

• Finally calculated my true monthly restaurant spending (ouch!)

You can work on your deeper financial planning, too:

Why this productivity hack works

The beauty of Scary Hour lies in its constraints. Knowing I only have to face these tasks for 60 minutes makes them feel manageable. Plus, the timer creates a sense of urgency that helps overcome analysis paralysis—a common obstacle I know I face in all things financial decision-making.

Most importantly, this approach creates a dedicated space for financial self-care. Not only do you get to reduce anxiety by making scary tasks routine, but you can actually turn scary tasks into small wins. If you’re looking to transform vague money worries into concrete actions, this is the hack for you.

Tips for your own financial Scary Hour

Begin with quick wins like unsubscribing from tempting retail emails, making that one phone call you’ve been avoiding, checking the balance on a neglected account, or filing away important financial documents.

From these bite-sized action items, you can build yourself a little momentum. As you get comfortable, tackle bigger tasks, like creating a new budget, consolidating debt, or maybe even researching estate planning.

Make this habit sustainable by keeping a running list of tasks for future scary hours. Celebrate your progress, no matter how small, and be easy on yourself if you miss a week. After all, I find the real magic happens outside of Scary Hour. By regularly facing financial fears in a controlled setting, you’ll likely find that money matters become less scary overall. I’ve noticed myself making quicker financial decisions, feeling more confident in money conversations, and experiencing less anxiety about day-to-day money management.

The bottom line

Money doesn’t have to be scary all the time. By dedicating just one hour a week to facing financial fears, you can transform anxiety into action. Remember, the goal isn’t to eliminate financial stress completely—it’s to build the confidence to handle it effectively.

Start your own financial Scary Hour this week. Your future self will thank you for facing those fears, one hour at a time.