The more I work with software, the more I think of it in economic terms.  I recently gave a presentation to my team that included an introduction with a strong economic emphasis.  From the feedback I got, it was thought providing, but not “to the point” enough - too much talk about economics itself.  That isn’t surprising, because I tend to go on about academic things, and because I love the subject.

But I am left with the impression that us software folks, on average, would greatly benefit from more of a grasp of economics than we have.  I think everyone would benefit from a deeper understanding of economics.  Why?  Because it describes how the world actually works.  It doesn’t concern itself with intentions, but with outcomes.  It deals with the realities that we would often rather not think about - but must.  “You can have everything, and certainly not now.”  It is the central tenant in the all-important engineering reality of trade-offs.

While often associated with money, economics is primarily about the use of resources - of any kind.  The fact that you are reading this now is an economic reality.  You could be spending your time doing something else, but you choose to be doing this.  Your time is scare, and it has alternative uses.  The loss of the alterntive use (like reading a better blog) at this moment, is an opporunity cost.

So, can we as software practioners benefit from a better undersanding and practical application of economics?  Absolutely.

More to come.