The Simplicity Paradox

Modern society is structured around competition for your attention. Our jobs, social interactions, entertainment and vast swathes of the economy are built around algorithmic delivery systems that reward interaction. It may be fiscally lucrative and sensorially gratifying, but our minds are being forced to operate in a manner that defies their natural architecture. Humans are not meant to juggle 50 tasks at one time, living a never-ending context switching nightmare. We are built to creatively solve problems with intricate nuance.

The typical knowledge-working millennial (nice to meet you) always has 30 browser tabs open. They field incoming chats and emails while working, then switch to the deluge of social media apps and iPhone notifications once they log off for the day. In between, they may cobble together a few spare minutes to chip away at their never-dwindling to-do list. We have become switchboards that respond instinctively and reflexively to the inputs we are fed. Too often, our success is measured by the number of items we close out.

Anxiety is on the rise in America, especially amongst young adults[1]. I cannot help but believe there is positive correlation between our information culture and that statistic. Personally, I’ve noticed that my own bouts of anxiety manifest when I am attempting to manage the cacophony, consciously or not. I am neither present nor fulfilled when being pulled in many directions simultaneously. The literature concerning productivity and knowledge work, I would wager, owes its popularity to this burgeoning phenomenon.

It doesn’t have to be this way. The alternative is difficult and requires intentionality, but ultimately it is more natural and rewarding to focus on fewer things with greater intensity. Admittedly, in our current culture it often feels counterintuitive to embrace the notion that less equals more. We must decouple our propensity for equating quality and quantity, even if algorithmic forces push us in that direction. Less equals more only when we conceptualize “less” as a reduction in quantity for the sake of quality.

There is nothing groundbreaking about this idea, either, as philosophers and authors have waxed far more eloquently than I when expounding these principles. However, the utility of this line of thinking stems from its brevity: focusing on fewer things leads to greater outcomes. Such outcomes can include mental health, work product, creativity—or all of them.

So, how does this work in practice? It’s well and good to proclaim an edict to simplify your life, but applying this requires the right lens. It takes practice to understand when the concept is salient versus when it strays into overfitting. Are you identifying organizational principles? Limit it to five or fewer. Are you setting personal priorities? A list of twelve is likely to lose traction quickly. If you are planning your day, strive to eliminate lists and instead focus on two or three primary lines of effort.

There is nuance to this—it is not an inflexible rule. However, if you find yourself constantly stressing about the demands of our informational milieu, perhaps some trimming is warranted. Ultimately, we are all striving to do better, not more.