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NEW YORK (AP) -- As the end of 2025 approaches, a viral TikTok trend is helping people achieve their wellness goals: "The Great Lock In" encourages participants to finish the year strong by fully focusing on their life goals from Sept. 1 through Dec. 31.
Many people focus on exercise or eating healthier. But the trend can also help you achieve your financial goals.
There are no set rules for "The Great Lock In." The phrase "lock in" is popular on social media and it means to focus intensely on a task.
"Something I like about this particular trend is that it's like New Year's resolutions' little sister," said Lindsay Bryan-Podvin, financial therapist and founder of Mind Money Balance, a financial wellness podcast and blog.
For Julissa Mercedes, 28, one of her lock in goals is to build an $2,500 emergency savings fund.
"Having some liquid cash will make me feel a little bit safer," said Mercedes, a San Diego resident who works in finance. Aside from building an emergency fund, Mercedes has three other goals: making a new friend, creating a morning routine, and picking up a new hobby.
"The Great Lock In" is meant to help people achieve New Year's resolutions that might have fallen by the wayside. If you started your year planning to pay down debt by cutting unnecessary expenses, and have yet to follow up on that, this challenge might help you with that goal.
"I think that's appealing to a lot of people who are just tired of feeling stuck and like they haven't been able to make any progress," said Ben Markley, personal finance educator and host of Sketchy Advice by YNAB, a budgeting app.
If you're thinking of participating in "The Great Lock In," or if you're already doing it, here are some expert recommendations to make your financial goals stick:
Review your finances
To build a goal that will benefit you, it's essential to review your finances, Bryan-Podvin said. She suggested that you review your bank account and spend some time figuring out how much you earn each month, as well as what you spend it on.
If you made a New Year's resolution around finances, this could be a good opportunity to check on your progress and see if you need to reassess your approach.
Set attainable goals
When participating in a challenge, it's best to set attainable goals, Markley said. Sometimes online challenges inspire people to make significant changes, but they can also lead them to create unattainable goals.
"A lot of people can't sustain that at all, so they drop off," he said. "Or, they do sustain it, but then they go back to their normal life after the challenge, and their spending habits haven't fundamentally changed."
Setting a goal that is realistic in relation to your budget and lifestyle is the best way to make sure you can achieve it by the end of the challenge. Bryan-Podvin recommends looking at "The Great Lock In" as a 5K race rather than a marathon.
Focus on habit-building
To continue achieving your financial goals into 2026, Markley recommends centering some of your lock in goals around building new habits or skills.
For example, if your goal is to stop spending on takeout, focus on building a habit that's related to cooking.
"Find easy meals that you could cook at home with your skill level so that when you want to eat out, you have that to fall back on," Markley said.