Opportunity Cost and Saying No
People say to pursue dreams and when you pursue a dream, you encounter many opportunities. These opportunities come in various forms: a different city, company or even a shift in your field.
But is it really good to say yes to everything? It seems fine in theory. By saying yes, we are introduced to various benefits but as they say, don’t bite more than you can chew.
In theory, we generalize terms but in reality, there are grades and a hidden cost behind every opportunity. Things are never equal and same: that’s only in theory. In reality, we even deal with situations where the opportunity looks good but the hidden cost is very high.
For example, a better job. The question of what defines a better job is a valid one. It may mean lifestyle, commute, work-life balance etc but most people don’t think this: they only consider salary as the metric whether the job is better.
This plays into a common problem the corporate world experiences: Job A is your current one while Job B pays 30% more. You instantly change jobs but only later realize that, this job is double the commute and longer working hours for just a 30% salary increase. Is it worth it? Depends but in my opinion, even someone desperate for money knows that it’s not a profitable offer.
A profitable offer where you do gain positives in almost all aspects of the job, not just salary but by paying up the hidden fees, you don’t end up with a profitable offer, just one that sacrifices your other aspects of life for your salary.
Calculating how much we gain and lose from all metrics is considered an opportunity cost.
Saying No
Saying no is similar to opportunity cost since we think what is useful but instead of a singular choice between two choices like opportunity cost, it’s about the amount of load you take.
It’s not about choice but rather strategizing on what tasks you are willing to prioritize in your calendar and since we have finite time, we can only do finite things.
Saying no may not be obvious considering hustle culture encourages to say yes to everything and there is some truth in this.
Saying yes helps as a beginner when you have no leverage, no specialized skill and are seeking help anywhere but after that point, it does far more to you to instead focus on your specific specialized tasks instead of saying yes to meaningless things.
That’s because when you don’t know what to do, you might as well try something random since when you have nothing, there’s also nothing to lose.
But when you have something and already a mastery of a skill, there comes the problem of opportunity cost. If you waste time and spend on something else unrelated, your skill just doesn’t stagnate but instead degrades.
Of course, this relates to Deep Work as well… There are tasks within the skill itself that are completely useless. These things make you look busy but have no value to it. These are zoom meetings that you attend for example.