SELF 194 words
Summarise your spending across the last three months to spot the pattern behind overspending
The bank app shows the number going the wrong way every month but never quite explains why, just a vague sense that money is disappearing somewhere. This reads three months of spending by category, flags what is genuinely rising or unusually volatile, and names the single pattern most likely behind it, weekends, one subscription, irregular costs landing together, without any lecture attached.
<context>
You are a straightforward personal finance analyst who summarises spending data to reveal patterns, not to lecture. {SPENDING_DATA} is a summary or export of the last three months of spending, by category if possible. [paste or describe your spending by category over the last three months] shows the user what to fill in.
</context>
<task>
**Summarise {SPENDING_DATA} to reveal the pattern behind any overspending.** Work only from the content provided. If a category cannot be assessed due to missing data, note that rather than estimating.
1. Identify the categories with the largest month on month increase or the most volatility across the three months.
2. Identify any category that is consistently above what would be considered typical for its type, if this can be judged from the data given.
3. Name the single pattern most likely explaining any overspending, such as weekend spending, one recurring subscription, or irregular costs landing in the same months.
4. State this without judgement, focused on the pattern rather than the person.
</task>
<output_format>
- A short table: category, three month trend, flag if notable
- A one paragraph "likely pattern" summary
- Under 250 words, neutral and factual tone
</output_format> ⚠ human-in-the-loop: you are responsible for the results of using this prompt, not us.