WHY SHOULD YOU LEARN ECONOMICS?

What is Economics? What does the term "Economics" mean to you? Why should you learn it?

"Simply said, economics is a necessary skill in our daily lives. Much like how math is a requirement when learning accounting, science, and marketing,Economics is an essential knowledge necessary to our lives. This is how I approach economics", Dhananath Fernando, the COO of Advocata Institute and a self-taught economic analyst in the industry, begins by sharing some vital facts about economics and why you should learn it.

What is Economics?

"Economics is a science," Dhananath says, "and I learned this interesting field through a practical approach. Regardless of what you learn, be it science, management, accounting, IT, or any other sector, Economics is a must-learn topic". Most foreign countries study economics to gain 'MORE from LESS' because of the scarcity of resources. The simple idea of a person being able to generate more benefits with fewer resources. This is something that must be mastered. If one understands this, they will have no trouble progressing in their business and day-to-day chores.

You might be wondering how I learned Economics? Right!?

"Well, I did not learn Economics by attending university or pursuing a first-class degree. It was purely based on practical experience and research, motivated by a desire to learn and comprehend it. And I believe that is the ideal approach to learning Economics because when someone tries to understand something and experiences it firsthand, it results in a higher degree of knowledge than studying and reading from books". Dhananath believes that the most incredible way to learn is by hands-on experience, competition, making mistakes, comparing, and finally realizing the ideal technique.

One such way that he learned economics was through Marginal Revolution University (www.mru.org).

Today, some frequently asked questions are what's happening with the dollar rate, how's inflation, why the cost of living is suddenly rising, etc. To understand such topics, comprehend economic challenges, and manage your assets and investments, a person must have a solid understanding of economics.

Economics is more than just a list of desires and needs from a book. It's a balance of historical and social contexts and their compatibility while keeping the political situation in mind. These three components are regarded as the most significant aspects of economics, and understanding Economics requires understanding these three factors. Otherwise, there would be economists who would merely understand the theory but struggles to put it into practice. Thus, when economics is viewed as a science, it is critical to strike a balance between history, social context, and global and local political perspectives. However, when learning it, the most important thing to remember is how to produce the best results with the least number of resources.

Why should everyone learn Economics?

Many businessmen and people in Sri Lanka, in my opinion, are having significant challenges and are facing substantial difficulties due to a lack of understanding of economics. One of the critical causes of Sri Lanka's current economic issue is that no one making decisions today anticipated the situation becoming a long-term economic catastrophe.

Even though Sri Lanka is known for having an abundance of valuable resources, its lack of economic literacy is the cause of its inability to become a prosperous country. Although literacy has improved in countries like Sri Lanka, economic literacy remains relatively very low.

Sri Lanka, as we all know and are frequently depicted as a poor country, but we will undoubtedly emerge from this condition as a nation if we understand Economics and its underlying facts. We have not approached Economics as science but instead as a political perspective, and we have been short-sighted about it all these years, which is why we have not been able to move forward and progress. We couldn't make the best use of the resources we had. At least now, if we could figure out how to get more out of the few resources we have, I'm sure Sri Lanka would fly to new heights! Says Dhananath from his expert knowledge and practical experiments.

How can you learn Economics?

If you are interested to learn economics, don't worry about which stream you've been pursuing; whether it's science, math, or anything else, don't think understanding Economics will be challenging. Economics is a simple subject that can be learned quickly.

Dhananath shares an exciting story of how the man who came to clean his roof educated him about economics. When Dhananath asked how his life was these days, the man replied, "Sir, the day I receive my wage, that 500 rupees is like 5 rupees, and the days when I don't get a pay, even the 5 rupees is like 500 rupees." We can see from this basic example that the value of money is determined by how much money we have at a time. So, economics is something that we see all around us, and when we look at it closely, we may discover a more profound significance to it. We just need to approach it from that angle and understand it as a science. If we practice seeing things this way, we can enhance our investment and knowledge, make more money, save more money and manage our own money appropriately, then we can move forward as a country, says Dhananath.

So, if you haven't studied economics, don't worry; you can learn it quickly using simple ways. It is critical to understand this regardless of your field. Just like how we can't do anything without Math, we can't see the actual depth or underlying causes of any incident in our lives without Economics.

Therefore, don't panic or be terrified when you hear the word Economics; instead, learn without fear, read without boundaries, relate it to the world, and compare it with what you know without fear, and I'm sure you'll be able to do Economics! To sum up, whatever field you are in, don't even consider moving further without Economics. Knowing Economics will improve your life, and the time you spend learning it will never be wasted.

"Dear Readers, therefore, don't fear! Simply read, observe and write because today, learning something traditionally from a university is no longer necessary. The learning opportunities are immense. There's a wide range of resources and information right in front of you, at your fingertips, just like Elon Musk, who learned to launch a rocket into space solely via reading rather than going to university. So, if such a gigantic task can be accomplished, you can certainly master Economics! All you need for this is dedication and deep thinking. If you can master these two, you can master economics and succeed in your life!" Dhananath, whose words were so profound, concludes.

Written by Bavisha Maheshwaran