Complexity vs. simplicity

Another good read: Simplicity is An Advantage but Sadly Complexity Sells Better.

The quote the author starts off with:

“Simplicity is a great virtue but it requires hard work to achieve it and education to appreciate it. And to make matters worse: complexity sells better.” — Edsger Dijkstra

Where I really see this is the resistance that inevitably arises any time I try to reduce complexity.

As a designer, try removing something from the interface. Even getting stakeholder alignment to remove some old, unused feature requires an enormous amount of effort, for which you’ll never get rewarded. Promotions and praise are for new things, AI!

How about canceling a recurring meeting that has long since ceased to serve any purpose? People push back. Adding another meeting is frictionless.

Removing unnecessary complexity is a thankless job.