Running a business comes with hundreds of moving parts, and often, the financial ones are the easiest to overlook. Many small business owners believe they’ve got a decent grip on their numbers, but here’s the truth:
It’s not the big expenses that sink you; it’s the blind spots!
In this post, we’ll explore the often-missed costs quietly eating into your profit, the role that emotion plays in financial decision-making, and simple ways to regain control, visibility, and confidence in your numbers.
What is a financial blind spot?
A financial blind spot is any cost, habit, or behaviour that affects your finances, but doesn’t appear on your radar until it’s already caused damage.
These aren’t always obvious:
- Some are hidden in plain sight (like low-value subscriptions you’ve forgotten to cancel).
- Others are the result of emotional decisions made under pressure.
- And some are systemic, caused by the lack of tracking or oversight.
Left unchecked, they can lead to:
- Shrinking margins
- Cash flow issues
- Unnecessary borrowing
- A general feeling of being “busy but broke”
6 Common financial blind spots in small businesses
1. Subscriptions and tools that you don’t actually use
Think you’re only paying R299/month for your customer relationship management software? Check again, you might also be paying for design tools, team communication apps, scheduling platforms, and software trials that auto-renewed.
What to do:
Review your bank statements monthly and list all recurring charges. Cancel anything you haven’t used in the last 90 days.
2. Overtime pay that creeps in
In service-based businesses, staff overtime can become a silent profit killer, especially when timesheets are vague or not monitored properly.
What to do:
Track hours more rigorously and identify bottlenecks or inefficiencies. Are people working late because of poor planning or insufficient delegation?
3. Unused or slow-moving inventory
Products that sit on shelves for months are quietly tying up cash. They don’t just take up space, they cost you money in storage, shrinkage, and opportunity.
What to do:
Conduct a quarterly stock take and identify what’s not moving. Mark it down, bundle it, or stop reordering entirely.
4. Emotional spending
We all do it. You panic during a sales dip and hire a marketing agency without checking if you’re ready. You buy the latest business tool because a webinar said it would “10x your revenue.” Sound familiar?
What to do:
Create a 48-hour “cooling-off” period for any spend over a set threshold (e.g., R5000). Talk to your accountant before you commit to a major new cost.
5. Discounts that aren’t measured
Giving discounts can feel like a way to close deals fast, but if you’re not tracking the margin you’re losing, you’re doing more harm than good.
What to do:
Add a “discount impact” line to your monthly reports. What’s the total value of the discounts you gave last month? Were they worth it?
6. Owner withdrawals that don’t go through payroll
Many small business owners take money out casually; petrol, dinners, personal purchases etc, without recording it properly. Over time, these add up and cloud the true profitability of the business.
What to do:
Separate personal and business spending. Pay yourself a structured salary, and track it like you would for any other employee.
How emotions distort financial decisions
Your spreadsheet may be objective, but you are not. Emotional spending can take many forms:
- Fear-based decisions: Hiring too quickly, overstocking, over-marketing in a panic
- Guilt spending: Giving raises or perks you can’t afford to “keep the peace”
- Comparison spending: Buying tools or investing in trends just to keep up with competitors
- Avoidance: Ignoring the numbers altogether because they’re “too stressful”
Your emotions are valid, but they shouldn’t lead your financial decisions.
3 Tools to improve financial visibility and control
1. Cloud accounting software (e.g., Xero)
See real-time data, track cash flow, and generate reports instantly. Chat to us about this. We are a proud Xero partner and can get you set up quickly and probably at a lower cost than you expect
2. Receipt management tools
Capture and categorise every transaction. No more “guessing” at year-end.
3. Monthly management reports
Work with a finance partner like aXia Consulting to review your numbers monthly. We’ll help you spot blind spots, track performance, and stay in control.
If you can’t see it, you can’t fix it
Financial blind spots are normal, but they’re not harmless. Identifying and correcting them can unlock thousands of rands in profit and peace of mind.
At aXia Consulting, we help business owners bring their finances out of the dark and into clear view because when you know where your money is going, you can make decisions with confidence.
Book a free consultation with our team to uncover what you might be missing and how we can help you fix it.
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