February 11 -
One of my clients, the CEO of an international agriculture business, said, “The price we pay for making things too complicated is immeasurable. It slows us down, makes for bad decisions, and scatters our efforts.”
Think about those three parts of the “price we pay” for making things too complicated:
1) Making things too complicated slows us down.
In today’s world, if we don’t move quickly opportunities disappear in the blink of an eye. The inability to focus and simplify means we will overthink our decisions, going back and forth with pros and cons and new considerations that we continue to add to the pile. Simplicity and focus enable us to make decisions more quickly. That’s a competitive advantage.
2) Making things too complicated makes for bad decisions.
In your experience, which solutions are the most effective? Which ideas are most likely to create success? The complicated ones? Or the simple ones? I ask that question of my audiences and the answer is unanimous. Everyone agrees simple solutions and ideas are always the best. When we make it complicated we increase the likelihood of failure. As we simplify we increase the likelihood of success.
3) Making things too complicated scatters our efforts.
This is a very steep price that can make the most ambitious and wonderful of dreams and aspirations come to absolutely nothing. Because we lacked focus and made it all too complicated, our efforts were watered down and weakened in their effect.
As the great inventor Alexander Graham Bell said, “Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.”
Note: This tip is provided by Joe Calloway, a performance coach and advisor who helps great companies get even better. For more information about Joe’s keynotes and workshops, go to www.joecalloway.com.