$20-note decisions

Before the world went cashless, I noticed something interesting about how I spent money. When I had a large bill—say $100—it stayed in my wallet much longer than smaller bills of the same value. If I carried one $100 note, I would hesitate before using it. But if I had five $20 notes, I would spend them more freely—and end up parting with the same $100 much faster.

Paying $10 with a $100 bill felt like losing $100, even though the real cost was only 10%. Paying $10 with a $20 bill, however, felt easier—less of a loss. That’s when it struck me: humans don’t make decisions purely with reason, but with emotion.

The amount may be the same—$10—but the feeling is very different. And today, even though I pay almost everything by card, the pattern still shows up. Looking back at my transactions, the small, almost invisible expenses—coffee, eating out, transport—often add up to more than the bigger purchases I resisted with such care.

That made me realise: the real turning points in life often come from these $20-note decisions. Small actions we barely notice accumulate. Five $20 bills become $100. Daily habits stack into meaningful change. Progress is rarely about one big leap—it’s about the $20-note decisions we make every day, quietly adding up to something much greater.