Tunde is 42, married, and lives with his family in Lagos.

For years, he thought he understood borrowing.

He wasn't reckless.

He worked, paid bills, looked after his family, and tried to build a small business alongside his regular work.

Like many households, some months were comfortable.

Other months were mathematics.

Rent. School expenses. Food. Transport. Electricity. Family responsibilities. Business expenses.

Something always seemed to be waiting.

Then came a period when several expenses arrived almost together.

His business needed working capital.

Household expenses needed attention.

Another major payment was approaching.

Borrowing appeared to offer the quickest solution.

That thought brought immediate relief.

He checked how much was available.

He checked how quickly the money could arrive.

Then he looked at the monthly repayment.

And he thought:

Notice the words:

Should be able to.

He had not written down every existing obligation.

He had not calculated what would remain after repayment.

He had not tested the decision against a bad month.

He was concentrating on the money coming in, not everything that would have to go out afterwards.

He Compared Lenders by How Much They Would Give Him

One offered less.

Another offered more.

Naturally, the larger amount looked more attractive.

But he wasn't comparing the complete obligations.

He was comparing access to money.

He Focused on the Monthly Repayment

If the instalment looked manageable, he felt comfortable.

But “manageable” existed mostly in his head.

A repayment does not exist alone.

It lives beside food, rent, transport, school expenses, existing debt, business costs, savings, emergencies and every other demand placed on income.

He Assumed Future Income Would Cover Everything

He evaluated the debt using a normal month.

But what if a client delayed payment?

What if business slowed?

What if another expense appeared?

He had evaluated the debt using the month he hoped to have, not necessarily the month he might experience.

He Assumed Business Borrowing Was Automatically Productive

“At least this money is going into business,” he told himself.

But using debt for business does not guarantee that the business will generate enough additional cash, quickly enough, to service the obligation.

Then One Conversation Changed the Questions

One afternoon, Tunde met an old friend named Kunle around Ikeja.

Kunle had spent years working in banking.

Tunde explained the loan.

He explained how much was available and how quickly he could get it.

Kunle listened.

Then he asked:

Tunde repeated the monthly instalment.

Kunle shook his head.

Tunde did not have the answer immediately.

Then Kunle asked:

Again, Tunde did not know exactly.

Then came the question that stayed with him:

That distinction changed everything.

The lender decides whether to lend.

You still have to decide whether to borrow.

Tunde went home and began writing questions.

Four questions became six.

Six became ten.

Those questions eventually became the 10-Point Borrowing Risk Check.

The framework does not decide for you.

It does not predict the future.

It does not guarantee that a loan will work out perfectly.

It simply helps bring the questions that urgency can push into the background back into the centre of your decision.