The amateur covers up their ignorance with complexity. The expert communicates their knowledge with simplicity. Choose simplicity today.
"Stupid people think complicated things are clever."
Those were the words of Dave Trott, a marketing veteran in the UK.
Let's say you publish 100 pieces of content -- be it tweets, blog posts, YT videos, or podcasts. Imagine only 4 of those are remember positively, 7 are remembered negatively, and the remaining 89 aren't noticed or remembered at all.
That would suck, wouldn't it?
Guess what? That's the advertising industry. Ten of billions of dollars are spent on advertising but almost 90% of ads aren't remembered.
Which means: the biggest problem in marketing is getting noticed in the first place.
('The Secret to Getting Noticed'. That sound like a spinoff article for the future. )
But let's go deeper. How did subpar advertising get published in the first place??
Think about it: the problem can be traced back to the drawing board.
Most of the money and effort are spent on ineffective strategies.
And how do we fool ourselves into thinking a plan is more effective than it really is? By covering it up with fancy BS.
That's why I'm talking about simplicity today. We're gonna cover:
Complexity bias: the tendency to prefer complex solutions over simple ones; to assume the former is more legitimate or effective than the latter.
When someone uses big technical words, we assume they know more than we do, which means they must be smarter than us, which means we should do whatever they say. Right?
Wrong. But that's the illusion. People want to appear knowledgeable. That's why amateurs talk big to seem more competent than they actually are. And what we end up with are boardrooms full of crappy thinkers publishing crappy thinking.
We believe that complexity is a sign of depth and sophistication, that the more complicated and idea is, the more valuable it must be.
We may also overcomplicate our ideas due to a lack of confidence or clarity in our own thinking, trying to add extra layers to cover up the holes.
It's also a sign of ego. So stop flexing and start speaking forthrightly. You'll be more powerful and effective.
This might sound contradictory to my first point, but here's the thing:
The world is very complex. The more we learn about life, the more we see that things aren't always black and white. One thing we might see as good could have unforeseen negative effects that would make it not good at all. Plus, it's part of the beauty of the world -- it's complexity.
It's why scientists dedicate their lives to hyper-specialized studies. It's why the philosopher has countless books on the single topic of happiness.
But our brains filter out excess complexity because we just can't handle it.
So how do we simplify? How can it help us deal with the innate complexities of the world around us?
Photography can teach us a very important lesson.
By it's very nature, photography is subtractive: you have to decide what to leave out of the frame. (As opposed to painting -- which is additive -- where you decide what to put on the canvas).
When you take a photo, you are prioritizing the subject over everything else. That's what simplicity helps us do. It's the process of ordering the complexities of the world into a comprehensible hierarchy, whereby we know where to invest our time and energy.
So grab a pen and paper and start prioritizing.
But we can't prioritize well when we cover things up with bull crap. Simplicity is honesty. Brutal honesty.
We have to kill ideas that are ineffective, to stop projects that are not working, to let go of attachments that are more harmful than helpful.
You can't find the North Star in a thunderstorm. You can't save a sinking ship without throwing cargo overboard.
If you need clarity, get a roadmap. The roadmap simplifies chaos into a path you can follow.
Some ways to gain clarity:
Sometimes we try to gain clarity by consuming as much information and advice as we can. That's just adding to the chaos.
Pick your sources of wisdom carefully and receive intentionally.
Think you're an expert?
Teach it to a 10 year old.
Can't? Then keep learning, 'cuz you're not an expert yet.
Can you teach database management to a non-techie? Can you explain how economics work to someone who's not naturally interested in the topic? Can you distill the art of photography into the top three most important rules/principles?
Sometimes knowledge or skill are instinctual without ever being talked about, so when we actually have to articulate them, we get stuck. But the process of distilling an instinctual skill into words is simplicity. Master the skill of this process and you'll unlock another level of expertise in your field.
Another way we see the relationship between simplicity and mastery is in mental models.
Mental models like the 80/20 principle and the biases principles are frameworks that simplify complex ways of how the world works into atomic, digestible rules that we can work off of.
If you can create frameworks, that's a sign of competency.
Let's return to the boardrooms where 89% of advertising money is spent on stuff that won't be noticed or remembered.
Where billions "are spent by 'experts' who use long words to cover up crappy thinking," said Dave Trott.
So if complicated words are used to cover up crappy strategies, then using simple language exposes them.
Which means we spot where things aren't working or are just plain stupid.
Which means we hone in on strategies that actually work.
Let me make this concrete for you:
In marketing, it's so easy and tempting to spend 80% of the time throwing vanity metrics around. "So and so many views, such and such trend is 'in' right now, this and that in the algorithm." All such things are red herrings.
What actually matters?
Simplicity is power.
Focus on the core message. Eliminate unnecessary details.
Drop the ego and see if you can explain your knowledge to a 10 year old.
When creating online -- clear, straightforward, no BS communication is very refreshing. And extremely powerful.
Now go forth and do your good work!
Multi-passionate creative and cultural philosopher. I love talking psychology, culture, education, and anything else that deals with living as better people.