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Simplicity Is Great but There’s a Key Lesson in This Genius Complexity

Balancing our desire for more with the potential for destructive distraction

Ellane W
4 min readMar 31, 2025

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photo of white knitted mittens showing a knitted QR code sewn on the back of them
Self-replicating mittens, by web-goddess

The simple option will usually be the more effective choice, but complexity can be truly wonderful when executed well.

First, let’s consider the benefits of simplifying.

Simplicity is (usually) best

Do you need every word in that 3-line sentence you just wrote, or all those bottles and do-dads on your bathroom and kitchen counters? And do you really, really need all those files and app shortcuts on your computer desktop?¹

Constantly visible items silently but persistently remind you of what they are for, what they can do, and inviting you to interact with them. Unless you have the memory of a senile goldfish, they don’t need to be in plain sight.

Consider the effect that the distraction potential — or lack thereof — of your visible digital and physical possessions can have on your ability to focus on just one thing at a time.

Okay, okay…

I will now graciously about-face and say that as long as you’re being deliberate…

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Ellane W
Ellane W

Written by Ellane W

Designer and educational publisher for 30 years+. Plain-text advocate. Still using paper, but less of it. https://linktr.ee/miscellaneplans

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