What Is Economics and Why Should You Care?

(Spoiler: yes, it has to do with your snack, your future, and your impulsive Shopee purchases)

Picture this: you’re at the school store with 8 for a burger that literally looks like a sponge in disguise → economics, again.

Every small choice is like voting for what you value. Instant satisfaction or long-term goals? Satisfaction or regret afterward? Money or likes?

And why should you care?

Good question, my dear Watson.

Because economics is like wifi: you don’t see it, but it’s in everything.

• It affects how much your school supplies, clothes, and food cost.
• It influences whether you find a job easily or end up becoming a low-budget influencer.
• It has to do with how you choose your career (spoiler: not all of them pay the same, and not all of them survive automation).
• It even affects whether you’ll be able to live on your own at 25 or keep living at your parents’ place sharing the WiFi with your aunts and uncles.

Understanding economics is like having a GPS for real life. It helps you avoid getting lost in a world full of decisions, misleading deals, financial bubbles, and yes… buy-one-get-one promos that seem irresistible until you realize nobody wanted the second product.

Basic concepts you use without knowing it

Supply and demand

If there are few tickets for the Bad Bunny concert and thousands of fans screaming “I WANT ONE,” the price rises like your expectations with a crush. That’s high demand and low supply. Economics 101.

Opportunity cost

When you choose to watch TikTok for an hour instead of studying, the real cost isn’t just the time, it’s the 10/10 on the test you could have gotten (but didn’t).

Scarcity

You want to do EVERYTHING, but you only have 24 hours a day (and a human battery that lasts less than your phone’s). Welcome to scarcity, the main drama of economics.

A story (more real than it seems)

Let’s say Carla, 16 years old, wants to save up for a trip. She gets 60 saved, she’s also started a homemade tea micro-business and sells it at recess!

Did economics help her? Well… yes. It gave her a different view of the world and of herself.

Economics isn’t just money: it’s values, decisions, and priorities

Would you rather support a clothing brand that pays fair wages?
Would you like to start a business with a positive environmental impact?
Are you interested in understanding why there’s so much inequality in your country?

All of that is economics. It’s not just learning to make money, it’s learning to think critically about the world you live in.

And what does it have to do with your future?

A lot. Because if you don’t understand how the economic world works, the following can happen to you:

• Spend more than you earn and become a slave to your credit card starting at 18.
• Choose a career without knowing if it has demand or a future.
• Let others make all the important decisions for you (ouch!).

But if you learn, even just the basics, you can:

• Save, invest, and reach real goals.
• Create your own business or project with impact.
• Be the person who understands the news without having to Google “what is inflation and why does my lunch now cost $5?” every week.

Final thought: thinking like an economist without dying trying

You don’t need to memorize a thousand theories. You just need to start looking at your decisions with curiosity:

• What am I choosing?
• What am I giving up?
• What would someone who really wants to achieve what I want do?

And right there, you’re already thinking like an economist. No tie. No stress. Your favorite snack in hand and the whole world to explore.

“Economics isn’t about money. It’s about choices. And the best choice you can make right now is to learn how it works.”

Feeling up to exploring this world further? Don’t worry, we promise more examples with food, TV shows, and ridiculously real decisions. Because that… is economics too.