Today, in doing a part of the huge amount of reading that I have to do (for school, naturally), I’ve learned quite a few interesting things about the economy and how it works. I’m still pretty clueless when it comes to the recession that we’re facing today, but as far as how the economy itself works, I’ve learned quite a bit today.
One of the most interesting things that I learned was how our economy today, being a ‘market economy,’ as my book defines it, is self-balancing. The cost of goods and their supply is largely regulated not by any person or organization, but by their mere existence. The fact that an item exists and is in demand results in a process of price changes until it eventually reaches a ‘price equilibrium,’ where the buyer and the seller are both equally willing to sell it for that price and to purchase it for that price.
What’s more, with this type of economy, both the consumer and the retailer are benefited by the purchase of goods. It provides the ability to specialize work and therefore allow much more efficiency in the work and the yield produced by said work. With that said, I realized that I need to focus more on specializing what it is that I do. I tend to enjoy keeping my options open – being able to do many different things. I like a good many things, but it has become clear that having an effective career involving all of my interests is nearly impossible. It becomes more effective on both a personal and economic level to be more specialized, to be more specifically involved in one profession. Separation of labor is incredibly effective.
That just makes it awfully difficult for me – because deciding on a profession where I will be content is a difficult thing. And though I’d like to experience all avenues, time is not always so kind. I guess that in the end I’ll have to realize that I don’t have to be personally involved in every aspect of what pertains to me.
To conclude, I hope that made sense. If it didn’t, please disregard it.