Modern life makes it easy to spend money without noticing. With card taps, shopping apps, and “one-click” payments, a few rand can slip away every day. Sam Beckbessinger, in her book Manage Your Money Like a F**ing Grown-Up, calls this: “automatic leakage,” the small, everyday expenses that quietly add up over time.

A coffee on the way to work, a gym membership you never use, or a quick ride instead of walking might seem harmless. But together, they can drain your savings. Spending just R500 a month without thinking adds up to R6 000 a year, or R60 000 over a decade, before counting the interest you could have earned by saving or investing it.

Beckbessinger’s advice is simple: automate your good habits first. Set up debit orders for savings, debt repayments, or investments so they leave your account before temptation strikes. For bad habits, add small barriers by deleting stored card details from shopping sites, cancelling unused subscriptions, and paying for extras in cash so you can see the money leaving your hand.

The goal is not self-denial but awareness. Real financial freedom comes not just from earning more but from spending with purpose instead of convenience. Every rand you save from automatic leakage brings you closer to the life you actually want.