Why the Simplest Path is Most Often the Best
Think back to a time in your business when you realized something wasn’t working, or at least wasn’t working as well as you wanted it to work.
What solution did you ultimately come up with and implement? Did it solve the problem? Did it continue to work indefinitely? Or did it frustrate you? Did it make you want to pull your hair out because in theory it works? It’s right there! I do this, then this, then bam!
Except the bam is more like a bleh.
More often than not, I bet it’s the second scenario. And. That. Sucks. There is not much worse than going down a rabbit hole to figure out a problem, coming out the other end with the world’s greatest solution, only to realize a week later it doesn’t actually get you the results you want. Or you stop doing it altogether because it takes so much effort or too many steps to actually do it.
Congratulations. You’re officially a human being. We’ve all done this.
Finding the Simplest Way to Do Something
One way I’ve found both in my business and in my clients’ business to combat this frustration is to start with the solution that is the simplest way to get to the desired outcome. And how I phrased this is key. It is about getting to the desired outcome. If you focus on the outcome when you’re building the solution, you can avoid building something just to build something. Instead, you create something that not only gets you to the desired outcome, but probably also makes life a lot easier, makes your company more revenue (or more profit) and keeps your team from mutinying against you.
Too often, I speak with business owners who are focusing so much on the new shiny system or the process of getting to build something, that building the system becomes the thing. They lose focus on the fact that the point of the system is to make getting to a desired outcome more efficient and effective.
Listen, I get it. Building stuff is fun. I like shiny objects just as much as the next entre…Squirrel!
But write this next part down and put it up somewhere you or anyone on your team who is thinking about creating a new system or process for the company can see it.
The more complicated a system or process is, the less likely it is to be adopted by you or your team.
“Cool, man. This all sounds great in theory. But how do I actually do it?”
Great question!
How to Build Simple Systems
First, clearly define the problem. Get specific about what’s not working and why it matters. Don’t just say “our sales process is broken.” Say, “leads are falling through the cracks between initial contact and follow-up, and we’re losing roughly thirty percent of interested prospects.”
Second, clearly define the desired outcome. What does success actually look like? Be concrete. If you can’t measure it or observe it, you haven’t defined it well enough.
Third, clearly define what would need to happen right before the desired outcome would be achieved. Then work your way backwards each step of the way until you get to the problem. This reverse engineering helps you see the actual path rather than the path you think should exist.
Fourth, clearly define what would need to happen in between each step to make progress from one to the next. Fill in the gaps, but resist the urge to add unnecessary complexity.
Fifth, walk away. Seriously. Go get coffee. Sleep on it. Let your subconscious do some work.
Sixth, come back later (an hour, a day, whatever feels right) and try to find as many steps as possible that can be removed. You’ll be amazed at how much you can cut when you look at it with fresh eyes.
Seventh, build and test. Don’t wait for perfection. Get the simplified version working and see what happens in the real world.
Eighth, after testing, reflect on what felt clunky and where you felt or encountered resistance. Pay attention to these friction points. They’re telling you something important.
Finally, keep removing, tweaking, and repeating the building and reflecting steps. Simplicity is a practice, not a destination.
The Beautiful Thing About Simple Business Systems
Here’s what nobody tells you about simple systems: they’re harder to build than complicated ones. Anyone can add steps. It takes real thinking to take them away. It takes discipline to resist the temptation to account for every edge case, every possible scenario, every “what if.”
But simple systems have a kind of elegance that complex ones never achieve. They’re easier to explain, easier to remember, and easier to follow. When something breaks (and something always breaks), they’re easier to fix. When you need to train someone new, you can do it in minutes instead of hours. And simple business systems adapt without needing to be completely rebuilt when the business changes.
Most importantly, simple systems actually get used. That over complicated workflow you spent weeks designing? It’s gathering dust because nobody can remember all seventeen steps. The simple one you sketched out in an afternoon? Your team is using it right now, and it’s working.
So the next time you’re tempted to build something elaborate, pause. Ask yourself: what’s the simplest version that could possibly work?
Start there. You can always add complexity later if you need it. But I’ll bet you won’t.
Because once you experience the power of simple, you’ll never want to go back.
Visit: https://simpleandsteady.com/
