All investments should be evaluated based on opportunity cost versus time. Are you investing for the short term or the long term? And which option would be more efficient and profitable if you invested elsewhere instead of this? The idea behind recommending long-term stock investments is that high-quality securities tend to benefit from inflation. Inflation happens when the prices of goods increase faster than the value of money. Wouldn’t a producer only make a good if its price exceeds its monetary value? However, if this gap is too large, the consumer experiences volatility. That’s why the efficiency of using money declines because you need money to buy things. This principle explains why stock prices tend to rise over time if you hold high-quality stocks long enough. Therefore, investing is often referred to as investing in time—because over time, it adds value. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”
In business, capital means business funds. A successful entrepreneur often says, "I started my business without any capital". It's partly true, but it's a lie. The entrepreneur just said that capital means only cash. However, all kinds of businesses need to be fundamentally business funds in any even not cash. The entrepreneur didn't count the founder's labor cost. No inputs, no outcomes. The uncounted labor costs are called "alternative costs" or "opportunity costs". This comes from comparative advantage. If the entrepreneur doesn't accept the uncounted labor cost as a debt, the entrepreneur is equivalent to losing the profit due to opportunity costs. Please always remember this. There is no free lunch in this world. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”