Small expenses can become significant when they happen repeatedly.

₦2,000 spent several times during the week may not feel serious individually. But when transport, food, subscriptions, transfers, airtime, data and other small payments are added together, the total can become large.

This is why tracking expenses matters.

For one month, write down everything you spend.

Do not record only rent and major bills. Record the small payments too.

At the end of the month, group the expenses into categories.

You may discover that a large part of your income is going to areas you did not realise were taking so much money.

The purpose is not to stop spending completely.

It is to know where your money is going so you can decide what deserves your money and what does not.

A budget becomes more useful when it is based on your actual spending rather than guesses.

Lesson: You cannot properly manage money if you do not know where it is going.