We often think of economics as numbers, charts, and markets. But economics is simply the study of how people make choices under constraints — and life itself is nothing but a sequence of those choices.
We envy because everything is relative. We cling to shame like liabilities on a balance sheet. We feel “late” because our timeline looks worse compared to others. These aren’t just emotions — they’re economics in disguise.
My goal is to uncover these hidden connections. To take ideas like opportunity cost, incentives, or production frontiers, and show how they explain ambition, love, fear, and growth. Not as dry theory, but as living principles.
If economics teaches us how people allocate scarce resources, then life is where we see it played out with time, energy, and hope. By learning to see through this lens, we gain clarity, power, and sometimes — liberation.
This is the journey I want to share: life, as economics disguised.
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Post 2: Ceteris Paribus: A Stoic Economic Principle
In Economics 101, we teach students how agents make decisions: choosing between coffee and books, producing X instead of Y — always under the assumption of ceteris paribus.
Ceteris paribus is Latin for “all other things remaining equal.” It’s a simplifying assumption: when we analyze one variable, we treat others as fixed.
For example, in utility maximization it means: given the actions of others, the agent optimizes his own choices.
🌍 In Life
But in real life, people often try to change others’ behavior. An economist would smile and say: that’s like fighting the model itself. Unless you’re in a cooperation or coordination game (where strategies truly align), the rational move is to treat others’ choices as given — and optimize around them.
💡 Why This Matters
Disappointment comes when we try to “rewrite” other people’s preferences.
Ceteris paribus offers peace: accept others’ behavior as fixed conditions — like gravity or the weather. Your power lies not in changing them, but in adjusting your own strategy within the constraints.
✨ Takeaway
Ceteris paribus isn’t just an economic assumption — it’s a stoic life principle:
Don’t waste energy trying to bend others.
Recognize the game you’re in.
If it’s cooperative, coordinate. If not, treat their behavior as “given” and optimize your own.
Post 1: Most people overcomplicate decision-making.
Should I start a new path or continue studying a bit longer to become more prepared?
Should I change jobs or wait until I feel “ready”?
Jeff Bezos offers a simple but powerful recommendation — relevant not only in business, but in life:
Type 1 decisions: irreversible, high-impact → require slow, careful thought.
Type 2 decisions: reversible, low-impact → can be made fast and adjusted later.
This framework prevents two traps:
Paralysis: spending endless time on trivial choices.
Impulsiveness: rushing through critical, life-changing choices.
Economics adds a complementary idea: learning by doing.
In many cases, you only discover whether you’ve studied “enough” after you act.
If the downside is small → start. You’ll learn in the game itself.
👉 Practical rule I keep coming back to:
Move fast on reversible decisions.
Slow down on irreversible ones.
And when in doubt, act — because inaction has its own cost. Economists call it opportunity cost.