Opportunity Cost Quotes

“The opportunity cost of an unlived dream is not only that dream, but also the dreams the dream was meant to inspire.”
― Ryan Lilly

“Development means a capacity for self-sustaining growth. It means that an economy must register advances which in turn will promote further progress. The loss of industry and skill in Africa was extremely small, if we measure it from the viewpoint of modern scientific achievements or even by the standards of England in the late eighteenth century. However, it must be borne in mind that to be held back at one stage means that it is impossible to go on to a further stage. When a person is forced to leave school after only two years of primary school education, it is no reflection on him that he is academically and intellectually less developed than someone who had the opportunity to be schooled right through to university level. What Africa experienced in the early centuries of trade was precisely a loss of development opportunity, and this is of greatest importance.”
― Walter Rodney, How Europe Underdeveloped Africa

“When the options are few, we can be happy with what we choose since we are confident that it is the best possible choice for us. When the options are practically infinite, though, we believe that the perfect choice for us must be out there somewhere and that it’s our responsibility to find it. Choosing can become a lose-lose situation: if we make a choice quickly without fully exploring the available options, we’ll regret potentially missing out on something better; if we do exhaustively consider all the options, we’ll expend more effort (which won’t necessarily increase the quality of our final choice), and if we discover other good options, we may regret that we can’t choose them all.”
― Sheena Iyengar, The Art of Choosing

“There is an opportunity cost for everything we do. This is why we must have the awareness to ensure that what we are pursuing is really what we value, because the pursuit leaves countless lost opportunities in its wake. We choose one experience at the sacrifice of all other experiences.”
― Chris Matakas, The Tao of Jiu Jitsu

“Think about all the time, brainpower, and social or political capital you continued to spend on some commitment only because you didn't like the idea of quitting.”
― Steven D. Levitt, Think Like a Freak

“INTENTIONALLY misbalance life in order to lean in the direction of your most important objectives and goals and by owning up to the opportunity costs of every choice you make.”
― Richie Norton

“There is nothing easy about the path of least resistance when you consider the opportunity cost.”
― Richie Norton, Anti-Time Management: Reclaim Your Time and Revolutionize Your Results with the Power of Time Tipping

“For greater freedom and joy you must 1) be self-aware, 2) have intent to create and choose high-value experiences, 3) be equipped to measure opportunity cost accurately.⁣”
― Richie Norton

“Whenever we choose an alternative (whether it is taking a new job or moving to Des Moines for month), we are automatically rejecting every other possible choice. All those rejected alternatives are paths to possible futures where things could be better or worse than the path we chose. There is potential opportunity cost in any choice we forgo.”
― Annie Duke, Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts

“There is always opportunity cost in choosing one path over others. The betting elements of decisions—choice, probability, risk, etc.—are more obvious in some situations than others. Investments are clearly bets. A decision about a stock (buy, don’t buy, sell, hold, not to mention esoteric investment options) involves a choice about the best use of financial resources. Incomplete information and factors outside of our control make all our investment choices uncertain. We evaluate what we can, figure out what we think will maximize our investment money, and execute. Deciding not to invest or not to sell a stock, likewise, is a bet. These are the same decisions I make during a hand of poker: fold, check, call, bet, or raise.”
― Annie Duke, Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts

“What is the opportunity cost of choosing between the heaven on earth and the heaven afterlife ? Think hard and be wise in this transitory life.”
― Munia Khan