Simple is Complex

How many times have you said or heard - "It is so simple". Well, maybe it is !

Have you ever wondered how complex it is to make things simple? When I say complex, I mean the engineering involved in making an entity simple.

Take the example of the iPOD. MP3 players existed before the iPOD. However, they were complex things to use and operate because they did not show the song being played (as an example). What did the engineers at Apple do? They put a highly complex piece of hardware and software which made using a MP3 player simple. Let the team who developed this product tell you - was it complex or simple?

So how does one go about creating something simple?

There is no cookie-cutter template that will help. However a simple set of checks does help the team focus on creating / developing something simple. It is called KISS - Keep It Simple and Stupid

Want to design a new business process? A new piece of software? A new project plan? For every box in the process flow or for every line item on the project plan - ask yourself just two questions
1. Does this add any value to the end product and if the answer is YES ask yourself another question
2. Will you need more than one statement to explain this value add? If the answer is YES then you are not designing anything simple

Think about it !