Erinez T.

Espedido Economic Development

PCBEA-01-501E

With millions of people around the globe, there are also an equivalent unlimited needs
and wants that would satisfy their demands, with that, it is possible that these would not be met
because of limited resources one has. In economics, this is termed as "scarcity". Scarcity is
when the resources are not sufficient to satisfy the infinite needs and wants of individuals, thus
scarce resources. This connotes that the supply of the natural resources that are used to
produce goods or services are, however, unsustainable in usage for the long run. This is why in
every choice to where one will allocate these resources is necessary in order to make the best
use of them. The scarce resources are the economists' existing challenge in carefully evaluating
and weighing in choosing decisions, because in every choice we choose, no matter what it is,
will always have a subsisting cost. This, on the other hand, is called the 'opportunity cost'.
Opportunity cost is the value of the thing or option you have to forego in order to create a
choice. This opportunity cost and the evaluation of scarce resources is crucial in maintaining
sustainability to meet the infinite needs and wants of people. These are used not by economists
but also in business,production and investment decisions. In business, a potential investment
on expanding more might be given up because of one wrong decision.
Moreover, this concept of opportunity cost and scarce resources are unconsciously being
applied in everyday lives of even common individuals and inside households. For instance, in
budgeting the family's income, one would secure funds for necessary expenses like electric,
water, internet bills or groceries and would weigh in the remaining budget for other expenses.
This is how we would allocate the limited budget we have to the regular needs of a family and
with that, we have to forgo the other wants like buying your favorite snacks, watching movies or
going to malls to administer your budget on to the things that matters the most. We apply
opportunity cost into almost every day that we make decisions. The time that is spent partying
with friends instead of going to work is opportunity cost. You have to give up going to work and
bear with deduction into your salary to be able to get time with yourself and friends. That is why
carefully measuring decisions are necessary because it equates to things or opportunities that
we might miss. This is not new to learners like me, with how many times this was being taught
during junior and senior high school years, it already emphasizes the importance of this concept
in our lives, in industry and in our economy.
 When opportunities are missed, something that could lead to a greater change could also
be missed. Chances are always given to people everyday and it's on them to value those
windows of opportunities because it will not always guarantee that those chances would happen
again. You missed it and it might lead to a much better outcome or either regret it in the end,
and regret is the thing that people certainly cannot take back. You cannot take back the time you
have wasted nor the supposed productive days you could have spent and so, take every
decision seriously as these decisions could define what would be your tomorrow or the days
ahead.

References:
● Scarcity.(n.d.).StudySmarterUK.https://www.studysmarter.co.uk/explanations/microecono
mics/economic-principles/scarcity/
● indeed. (2022, July). What is scarcity in economics? Indeed. Retrieved October 8, 2023,
from https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/scarcity-examples