Opportunity Cost

Opportunity Cost — It Might Be Time To Hire a Professional

Decisions Come with a Cost

Each decision you make — be it in your professional or personal life — comes with a certain cost. The price you pay, maybe inconsequential or life-altering depending on the scenario. Take a simple decision you make every day: the choice between two lunch options. Let’s say the menu includes only a protein power bowl and a hamburger combo meal. You choose the combo meal for taste and a sense of comfort. What have you given up? What value does a protein power bowl possess?

Trade-offs

Selecting the combo meal, the cost may be the hours you’ll spend working it off at the gym. Giving up the power bowl means you have to compensate for your time and energy. The value of a healthier option is more time, less sweat, and better nutrition.

Economics – Opportunity Cost

In economics, the value of the thing you give up is called opportunity cost, and it applies to more than lunchtime decisions. When there are greater stakes at hand, it is worth considering help from expert sources. This is especially true when the activities are unfamiliar. Imagine the cost of installing your own bathroom pipes instead of hiring a plumber!

Career Experts Can Help

Home repair and improvement experts are not the only knowledgeable professionals whose value makes up for their monetary expense. If you are searching for a new job or narrowing possible career options, there are experts who can help shave away the high opportunity cost you may otherwise incur.

Navigating the job market can be intimidating and time-consuming. Applications can take an hour or more to complete — and that’s if they are standard forms that require little customization. Are you tailoring your documents to the specific company and position? Add on another thirty minutes or longer per application. It doesn’t take long for career exploration to become an overwhelming drain on your valuable time.

Weigh Time Commitments

What you could be doing with those hours spent submitting résumés or composing cover letters is your opportunity cost. Maybe it could have been spent actually earning an income doing something you enjoy. It could have been used for something unrelated to work, like spending time with family or friends. Perhaps it’s the missed opportunity to work off that earlier combo meal on the treadmill. In any case, you’ve lost out on the chance because you’ve been stuck in front of the computer, uploading information again.

As with plumbers and electricians, there are professionals who can help curb this cost. Under their expertise, your résumé’s verbiage will ping keyword scanners; your cover letter will highlight your accomplishments and skills clearly. If your applications result in a string of rejection letters, it may be time to seek assistance from someone who knows the job market, as well as a plumber, knows your pipes.

Before you rack up a mountain of missed opportunities, reach out to people who know what they are doing, and are eager to help! You can contact the experts at Vision to Purpose by calling 757-716-5220 or by accessing Career Services on their Website.

About the Author:

Tristina Marx is a blog contributor for Vision to Purpose providing self-help, business, and career-focused topics.

About Vision to Purpose:

Vision to Purpose is an organization dedicated to helping individuals and businesses succeed through the offering of tailored career, life, and business solutions.

Need a resume writer? How about a career coach? Perhaps a business consultant? Look no further, Dr. Bennett and the Vision to Purpose team can help! You can learn more about Vision to Purpose by visiting www.visiontopurpose.com.