Normally, more intelligence is a good thing. Yes, we all know examples of the anxious overthinker or the scholastic introvert who can’t get a date. But, for the most part, being smarter helps in life.
However, I’ve noticed one problem that mostly strikes really smart people. The smarter you are, the more likely you are to suffer from this problem. Worse, this problem is often the very reason many smart people fail miserably at improving their lives.
Smart People Like Tricky Problems (Even if Most are Actually Simple)
The problem is that smart people like solving complicated problems. When faced with a problem that is difficult, but doesn’t have a complex answer, they invent complexity. Instead of focusing on the essentials and making progress, they become trapped in irrelevant details.
Take your health, for example. Health advice isn’t complicated. Michael Pollan summarized the some of the best nutritional advice I’ve ever read into only seven words: eat food, not too much, mostly plants
Why do Smart People Make Health Advice So Confusing?
Health advice is simple, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Eating less junk food, having a regular exercise routine, and eating the side of broccoli instead of that third cheeseburger. All of these things are well-known by almost every reasonably intelligent person, but it takes a lot of patience and effort to succeed.
But is this what most smart people do? No. Instead, they invent complexity, purposely making the task less simplistic, even when there is no good reason for the added confusion.
Ben Goldacre writes in the book Bad Science
Despite this, how often do you see someone arguing about Omega-3 or the immunological benefits of garlic, when they don’t exercise regularly? Or someone who argues whether anaerobic training is better than running, but they still have a cupboard full of junk food?
Is Money Really that Complicated?
The problem goes way deeper than nutrition. As Ramit writes about personal finance:
“Nothing is more infuriating than someone telling me I’m ‘throwing away money on rent’ when they haven’t spent even 2 hours running the numbers.
“Or someone who proudly proclaims that they found a higher interest rate on a new bank, which is giving them 2%!!! When you politely say, Wow! How much is that worth? they get very very quiet…because (1) they never thought about it, and (2) you know that an extra 1% is only worth $8/month for a $10,000 balance.”
Personal finance isn’t terribly complicated. Yes, there is the underlying complexity of portfolio theory, CAPM, arbitrage and a whole host of other formulas you’d need a PhD in physics to understand. Beneath that, though, for most individuals, personal finance breaks down to:
- Spending less than you earn.
- Save and invest a portion of your income.
If you’re doing those two things, you’re probably well ahead of most people, and probably still ahead of the many “smart” people Ramit mentions who lecture you on the merits of home ownership and getting the extra tenth of a percent interest rate.
Is Learning a Foreign Language Complicated?
The same thing happens in language learning. I’ve heard from people that are quick to correct me on the nuances of a particular word in French. Even when these people don’t invest the time practicing to speak and reading frequently, so they can’t hold up a conversation.
Read, listen, speak. Difficult, but fairly simple.
Same thing happens in blogging. Nothing irritates me more than bloggers who debate about where to put their subscription button, but haven’t written regularly in the last three months.
Write regularly, share with other bloggers. It’s not easy, but that doesn’t mean it’s complex.
Complexophilia – Why You’re Life Can Be a Mess, Even if You’re Smart
Complexophilia - n. The love of making things complicated.
Many smart people are raging complexophiles. They look for complexity, and when the correct answers are too simple, they invent more complicated versions of them.
There is a logic to it, and the mentality goes something like this:
Problem A is incredibly difficult (losing weight, starting a business or teaching yourself a foreign language).
The successful approach to A is, unfortunately, relatively simple. (eat less, create value, start reading and speaking)
Because the problem is difficult, it will require a lot of effort and patience to succeed. But, because the problem is simple, it doesn’t require all the incredible brainpower and abstract reasoning that smart people are so good at.
At this point, the complexophile comes up with an alternative: Maybe that successful approach to A is simple, but I can probably come up with one that is more complicated (which is why stupider people haven’t found it) and also easier.
So they invent or stumble upon an alternative strategy that requires them to understand the nuances of free-radicals, short-selling or linguistic theory, and makes the problem more complex. These people can then stroke their ego for being so much more clever than everyone else.
Unfortunately, as a consequence of them taking up the needlessly complicated approach, they forget the basics. If they focused on free-radicals while maintaining their focus on overall healthy eating and exercise, that would be fine. But more likely, this new complicated focus replaces the more simplistic, successful approach.
As a result, you have people swallowing fish-oil pills who haven’t exercised in months, and people buying penny stocks who aren’t even matching their employer’s 401k contribution. The complexity doesn’t add to the successful simplicity, it overwrites the successful simplicity.
Problems Can be Difficult Without Being Complicated
Saying that the secret to health is just eating less junk and more greens does health a disservice. Mostly because people confuse simple answers with easy answers. In fact, for smart people, simple answers are often the most difficult, because there are fewer loopholes to get out of putting in the effort.
Running a marathon is simple. You put one foot after the other and repeat for 26 miles. But that doesn’t mean running one is easy.
Recognizing that there are a large class of life problems that (a) have simple answers, yet (b) are still really difficult, is important.
It’s okay to say to yourself, “I know what to do, but it’s still very hard.” Accepting the simplicity/difficulty conjunction allows you to put your focus on it, instead of fantasizing about Omega-3′s and syntactical oddities that don’t solve the core problem.
Putting in the Grueling Effort on the Absolute Basics
If you’re like me, and see yourself as being someone with complexophilic tendencies, there is a solution: commit to putting in the grueling effort on the absolute basics, first.
That is, you know what the #1 step you should be taking for success. Before you debate minutia, you make sure you’re putting in the effort on step #1.
This means not opening a book on different workout routines until you’re going to the gym every day. Stop reading the sites on dating advice if you’re not going out and socializing with people regularly. Forget step #15 when you still haven’t mastered step #1.
I find it helps to know what my #1 thing is for any area of my life:
- Fitness -> Going to the gym at least 4x per week.
- Health -> Not eating junk food.
- Blogging -> Sticking to my writing schedule.
- School -> Showing up to every class.
- Languages -> Speaking and reading, every day.
- Money -> Spending less than I earn.
- Social Life -> Meeting with friends a few times per week.
Is the #1 step enough to succeed? Usually not. But I know that if I’m not following through on step #1, I don’t need to look further if I’m not reaching my goals.
Be the Absolute Best at Step #1
A long time ago, I heard a story about a famous basketball coach. When he would have a new team member, he would ask them to do a simple lay-up. He would then tell them to practice that every day, since it would be the shot they make the most.
Being able to shoot 3-pointers doesn’t matter if you haven’t mastered the lay-up. This coach understood that greatness started by being the best at the bare essentials.
Figuring out exactly what your #1 is can take some time. For some areas there might be a few items tied for first place. But picking which step is first only takes an hour or two. Becoming the absolute best at it takes years of hard work.
What is your #1 step right now? Have you mastered it? Share your responses in the comments.
Images thanks to Drewski Mac, kelsey, and blhphotography respectively.
I'm a speed-reading, vegetarian, holistic learning, productivity hacking recent university graduate. And, for the last five years I've been experimenting to find out how to get more from life.
I love it when people make me look at myself honestly! Thanks for being such a clear mirror, Scott ;o) (Which is not to say I’m I’m not squealing in pain!)
This advice is gold. It’s very easy to spend time worrying about Step’s #2 – #10 and neglect #1, simply because it’s more comfortable to theorise than to actually take action.
Just a quick question here, but not sure if you have adequate time to address it in the comments section. What was your opinion on the sufficiency of the studies conducted in the China Study? I loved the book but I’m no scientist and can’t really make up my mind on how conclusive the study was.
Its the old saying – entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem (The simpliest solution is probably the correct one). It is all too easy to make life unnecessarily complicated – and once we do the effects can be damaging to ourselves and those around us. My goals are similar to yours and simplicity is the aim. With my blog, it is a fairly simple approach. Write regularly, and strive for quality. I keep the design simple, and I focus on the content. It is the same with my work – show up every day and put in the effort. I am reminded of the great 21st century philosopher, Barnabus Stinson, who said that “You don’t train for a marathon you run a marathon. Step 1: Start running; step 2: there is no step two”
Joshua
My #1 step right now is to produce blog content (writing/videos) regularly. I’ve stuck to a 3x a week schedule for the past month.
Your advice is so dead on. The first steps are often the most overlooked and without mastering them the rest just become a distraction from attaining real results.
The fundamentals of anything — be it health, finances, blogging, or learning a language — are the foundation that future progress is built upon. Without that foundation our attempt to achieve a more advanced skill level simply crumbles and cannot find its base.
Just as we cannot learn to run before we’ve learned to walk, we cannot learn to make a million dollars before learning to save a dollar.
Superb, could not have come at a better time for me. I just ran through a paper with my professor and he told me I was over-thinking things! Another fine article Scott!!
I think people who consider themselves intelligent also often feel like they should sound very intelligent – so they make the problems they solve seem more complex. It’s amazing how many times I’ve heard nonsense come out of a techy’s mouth, not because they don’t know their stuff, but because they’re trying to sound like what they do is more complicated than it really is.
Thanks for the post. It’s good advice.
Scott I agree with your point, but disagree with the cause you mention.
What do you think of the imitation aspect of using complex “life hacks”? In our society, it seems to have become pretty normal to know and use many of these “secrets”. One must actively deviate from the default ways in order to start simple when solving a problem.
Being intelligent doesn’t imply being good at ignoring this form of peer pressure.
And how about all these new products that are advertised to us every day? For example new types of razors; they are presented as if using them makes you get the girls [an important life problem for some].
Smart people’s complexification is like these products, but we get them from a different source (blogs/books instead of commercials/magazines ~). Complexity sells, because they suggest a shortcut.
And perhaps intelligent people have learned to be lazy early in life, because school had never been very challenging for them?
So I agree with your approach (“admit that the solution of your problem is simple but difficult”, see also stubbornness) but stating that the problem comes from hunger for complexity itself seems too short.
I love this idea- it reminds me of the response I wrote a couple of posts ago about social situations.
This has given me a lot to think about.
Thanks.
simply brilliant!
My step #1 is ALWAYS being the role model I want to be for my kids in ALL circumstances. Easy to know what to do, sometimes difficult to follow through. Have a good day
I do not consider myself so smart but I fully understand and agree about your point.
Right now making good finals are my top priority. So my #1 step is not to panic and work consistently!
Thanks for the post!
This post reminds me we should keep it simple. Here is my outline:
1. Research: Master a specific statistics technique
2. Fitness: Work out 5 days a week (!!)
3. Blogging: Write consistently 2 times a week
4. Languages: Study 2 times a week (+ put the Spanish classes on my ipod)
5. Money: Invest!
Good checklist. I should compare with it a month later to track my progress!
Good post; I’ll just share two favorite quotes on complexity:
“Simplicity does not precede complexity, but follows it.”
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
Loved this, making me think:
Fitness #1 MOVE 4 times a week
Weight #1 Lose 1lb a week
Money #1 Spend less, conserve more
Number 1 number 1 BELIEVE
Awesome post.
I have come to some of the same conclusions lately.
I had been “trying” to get fit for years, and then I realized I was overthinking it, and I just started doing the work. My #1 was doing pushups every day. It worked.
Alexander,
You’re right. Stupid people can make this mistake too.
My attack on “smart” people is the lust for knowledge and complex problems that many intelligent people have. Normally its a good thing, except when the lust for figuring out all the details overwhelm actually doing the simple, successful things that take a lot of work.
-Scott
Brilliant post! I definitely overcomplicate things myself, so this is a good reminder about the most important things.
Some of my #1 steps are:
Health -> go to sleep when I feel tired
Fitness -> exercise 4 days a week
Productivity -> do solid work, without distractions
Social -> have conversations with friends several times a week
Home -> do some tidying each day
I’ll definitely come back to this list.
Great article! It’s a good thing I’m not a smart person. HeHeHe.
Kidding aside, the reason these diet pills, whatever pills, are so successful is because like you said people wanted easy solutions. People are always searching for magic potions that can solve their problems in one instant. Another example would be gambling and lottery…people think these are the solutions to their problems. But lottery and gambling is not the road to riches. In fact, it’s the opposite. The casinos are the ones getting richer. It doesn’t help that we hear success stories from other people claiming these things actually helped them. But it doesn’t mean that what works for others, works for us. Sometimes it’s true, people get lazy and they hate challenges. This reminded me of this http://sn.im/vlo4y article. It says that to succeed we have to overcome the challenges. There are no shortcuts in life.
You are genius. You’ve stated in very simple terms how I make my own life complicated. Thank you!
I think you made a mistake here:
“Because the problem is difficult, it will require a lot of effort and patience to succeed. But, because the problem is simple, it doesn’t require all the incredible brainpower and abstract reasoning that smart people are so good at.”
The second part should be “But because the solution/answer is simple, [...]“, shouldn’t it? Or maybe i just got it wrong! Talking about learning a foreign language, english isn’t my first language! So maybe i just missed the whole point?!
Anyway thanks for the article, i do suffer greatly from Complexophilia (Probably the reason why i read the article rather than doing my assignments
). I rather read stuff about how to improve my (study) habits than actually study.
Max,
My sentence works too. A problem can be complex or simple, usually implying that its solution is complex or simple either. Not exactly the same meaning, but it would work in the context above.
-Scott
Just 2 things came to my mind:
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage – to move in the opposite direction.”
“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
My favorite quotes from Albert Einstein
Thanks Scott!
I would argue that this is your greatest article. Anyone interested in personal development should read this first. “Analysis paralysis” has stopped way too many people from achieving goals, including me.
Now I feel guilty. Have to go be productive.
I’m one of those smart people your article is addressing.
I know this will sound like I’m trying to defend the enigmatic homeland of smart people, but I’ll provide a perhaps trite analogy of complicating a problem:
The villagers in an isolated area of Kenya without access to water, except for a river ten miles to the north, are not terribly smart people, but it didn’t take any smarts for their ancestors to figure out a solution. To this day, the women carry empty jugs ten miles to the river, and carry jugs of water on their heads for ten miles to the village.
A group of well intentioned philanthropists complicate this simple solution to getting water from the river to the village, by providing the village with complex water delivery technology (pipes and pumps). That is, at least to the villagers, who can’t figure out how it works, it’s complex!
I guess my point, as one admittedly distracted and trying not to complicate my reply to your blog, is that complexity is a matter of perspective. Nothing is really that complicated. Physics is not complicated to those like Einstein. Water delivery technologies are not complicated to those blessed in this supposedly “first world” but extremely complicated to those not so blessed in that “third world” overseas.
The reason I tend to “over think” possible solutions to seemingly simple problems, uncomplicated problems that fall into the “duh” category, is because putting it bluntly, I feel like a neanderthal creature compared to intelligent life that must exist “out there” somewhere in space-time. I feel like those villagers in some so-called “third world” place that think the solution to delivering water to the village, practiced for generations, are simple and eloquent. Then some “smart” people come along and not only make me feel like a complete idiot when they show me what I consider an extremely “complicated” way of delivering my water better — through these things called “pipes” that snake into my mud hut, err home.
Everybody plays the fool, a classic song goes, and while I may sound condescending, I’m perhaps cursed with enough “smarts” to know just how primitive my lifestyle is, compared with how it could be. Some may say the villagers in my little analogy perhaps are not ready to have this technology hoisted on them — that their simple solution of delivering water to their village is fine and dandy. Some may also say Earth is getting along just fine at our stage of intelligence, without some advanced intelligence coming along and hoisting complicated technologies upon us that will confuse and stress out everybody. So it’s a matter of perspective and opinion.
My point? I guess a point is in there, somewhere!
Good post Scott. I definitely used to do this a lot more than I do now.
When you get good at the fundamentals, the hard stuff becomes a lot easier.
People who say that about rent and who haven’t ran the numbers are just sheep gong on what society has told them. Sad and cliche but true. Imagine saying the title of this post to someone. It would make them SO angry! Great post though Scott on an unexpected topic we’ve all thought about at some point.
This advice is absolutely brilliant knowing that I have, and still do, suffer from this problem most of the time.
However, since I feel this relates to me personally, I also feel threatened by it. My mind translates this advice to; you stupid, don’t try to fix the problem with complexity, when you haven’t even mastered the basics.
However thinking about that I realized the tone of the article might be missing something that could help improve its ability to convince people of the quality of this idea.
It goes like this. Somebody that overcomplexify a problem doesn’t do it because he is smart. He/she does it because he/she isn’t capable of actually performing the simple solution. However there ego stops them from admitting this. And there excess unused intelligence tries to make itself useful by suggesting a more complex solution in the hope that this one actually can be performed.
The advice, master step 1, instead of skipping step 1 is completely correct (from personal experience). But in my case, and probably many others, I am simple not yet capable of performing step 1. Lack of discipline, laziness, whatever (in my case anxiety) is stopping me from mastering step 1, and instead I am looking for a shortcut.
I think the advice you could give shouldn’t be based on, you are too smart, you are trying to find a shortcut instead of doing the hard part. It is like a person that doesn’t have the keys to his front door, and very cleverly is trying to get in through the window (the shortcut). And this might be a very clever strategy. However you seem to add from your expertice, the chance of you finding a window to get in through is zero to non. If you want to use your intelligence, use it to find a way to open the door. Use it to find a way to learn and master step 1. For ideas, read this entire site. Don’t lose time finding a shortcut because you are not going to find it. You are just wasting time and energy tricking yourself you will finding a shortcut way and achieving nothing in the process.
Therefore the advice is to focus your intelligence on mastering step 1. Step 7 and 8 are very valuable steps, but you are deceiving yourself by thinking they are shortcuts. Most of the time, step 7 and 8 only work, after you have mastered step 1. You want to be successfull, use your intelligence to master step 1. It is far more effective than using your intelligence to find a shortcut, that most likely doesn’t exist.
This site proofs it is possible to use your intelligence to master step 1, so at no point do you suggest that your intelligence can’t be used.
The reason the “secret” knowledge probably won’t be found is because almost all “secret” knowledge works on the basis that you have mastered the basics in the first place.
By the way, I have the feeling that the basics, in most cases, is very similar to another famouse saying. “Practice, practice, practice, practice”. And no amount of intelligence is giving you the ability to skip that step. If anything, intelligence gives you the ability to practice, better, faster, more. Intelligence should give you the insight you can’t skip practice.
Now if only I could pray what I preach, and all my current problems would be gone
.
Smart people usually doesn’t know how to look inside their mind. You can findout the answers – simple answers – but, it’s not so easy.
Good post!
The money issue strikes home with me. I work with people, every day, who’ve been taught that they can’t do math, that they can’t understand money.
Most of the pain our country has suffered in the past 2 years was caused by those unfounded beliefs.
Guilty! I am a habitual over-complicator. Great article Scott, I’m going to narrow my focus to the basics until they are rock-solid. I’ve been lobbing hook shots from center and my layups aren’t that smooth.
[...] If You’re So Smart, Why is Your Life Still a Mess? via Scott H Young by Scott Young on 4/21/10 [...]
Scott,
I have been a reader here for sometime, but first time posting a comment!
I see two fold issue, first being, really true advice is so simple and boring and many of us look for daring and out of ordinary advice to follow and second is, we often time get conflicting advices from media and so called experts that many of us in USA are confused. For example, red wine has many health benefits, while other source finds red wine to be bad for liver and so on. Listening you your own gut feeling is best way to go.
How are you doing now with new language learning?
Zengirl,
That’s exactly my point though. Yes, there is a lot of confusion about the *details* of healthy eating (whether red wine is good, should you eat no meat or lots of meat, is protein the enemy, or is it fat, or carbs?) but on a really basic level, there isn’t a lot of confusion:
-> Eat less processed/junk food
-> Eat more veggies
-> Eat slower and not as much
Even if there is confusion about the last 5% of what healthy eating is about, that doesn’t mean you can’t focus on the other 95%.
-Scott
First, there is something about this site that makes me just want to hang out here..the color coordination, the writing, the way you put words, there are many bloggers out there who should borrow a leaf from you, honestly.
I have been doing alot of catching up on your archives, coz I am kinda new here and I love it..(-:
Onto the health debate, I could spend the entire day..I just don’t get it how and why people want the shortest way to achieve fitness, why on this green earth would it be possible for someone to eat like the word mcdonald is the best name to ever appear in the dictionary yet bitch how the green tea is not working on them while they are tucked on their couches? hello!this 60 pounds have been piling for the last two decades and now you want them to just disappear overnight just because you have a shortcut in the name of some green tea? Hit the road and hit it hard-there is no freaking shortcut!
I am no health expert but I know whatever garbage I put in my mouth will play karma on my body-even a 10 year old can uttest to this.
I loved every word of this article, brilliant work Scott.
Complexophilia is my standard heuristic when evaluating something. When choosing between the logical/obvious/empirically proven and the more esoteric/whacky/far-out, I will almost always go for the latter.
A lot of the time this has generated a lot of unnecessary effort (for example in the field of training and nutrition) for me which I could have easily avoided, but in some cases complexity has allowed me to do things which a complexophobe could not have done. My magazine Interesting Times is the result of years and years of intense eclectic autodidacticism (and writing) on my part, for instance.
So I don’t know if there’s a definitive answer here. Becoming aware of the problem helps, I suppose. I’ve known about this for a good while, but I hadn’t had a word for it before. “Complexophile”, I like it
AHA,
There is nothing wrong with wanting to know more, getting detailed and finding the minutia IF (and it’s a big if) you also perform well on step #1.
-Scott
“Stop reading the sites on dating advice if you’re not going out and socializing with people regularly.”
You’re totally right.
I recently realized that I should read less personal development article until I put into practice some of the very good advice I’d come across.
I have for instance realized that I was sometimes procrastinating by reading stuff on procrastination!
Consequently, I try to keep myself away from blogs such as Carl Newport’s until I actually do what I should tend to do.
(Well, I know that I’m actually writing on a personal development blog but I haven’t been there for a while hehe!)
(please correct my mistakes, I’m also teaching myself a language at the moment
I never really thought about it before… that “simple” is not the opposite of “difficult.” Simple/complex, easy/difficult. Running a marathon is both simple (not a complex set of actions) and difficult (hard work and training required).
And other activities can be both complex and easy (like digesting food)!
Nice job on a great article!
Hi Scott.
I like this message quite a bit. I like the part about the #1 step for each category. It would be good if some pointers that were made on sites of those type where ordered by which task was most relevant out of the bunch. This distinction is sometimes made, but not usually.
When you go to the gym 4 times a week, it is pretty difficult to not get into shape. That might as well be the only goal of someone pursuing fitness, or maybe going to the park 4 times a week.
I know I sometimes make simple things difficult for myself like you described there. I think that “mindfulness”, which is mentioned a lot, is a way to counter this.
Hi
Your mention of getting step 1 right was spot on for me. For the last 24 weeks (!) I’ve been regularly exercising at least 3 times a week. Before that I always had an excuse as to why I didn’t have an exercise plan in place. I made the decision to simply get started and these days I get out there and do it – finding new challenges for myself as I go.
Cheers
Very good post! Exactly, the hard thing is simplify, but the only way to suceed through the problems.
I just stumbled across your site a couple of days ago and am totally hooked after reading more than a few of your posts and free ebooks. This post in particular is great!
I find myself searching for the one, absolutely right way to do something ad infinitum, ad nauseam, before I actually start doing that something (if I ever actually ever start) – what shoes to buy for exercising, what diet is most nutritious, what procedure works best for whatever … A procrastination technique, or so I thought; a perfectionist tendency, another possibility.
But, your idea rings true for me. Perhaps I am just over-thinking and making the process/problem/answer more complex than it needs to be.
Very thought provoking!
a very nice approach to our problem which we post as “BIG”. Well i have decided to make my solution to the problem simple by starting with the basic. i.e donot procrastinate.
Question…where does the rest of the world fit into this philosophy ….?
Yes….ideologically …keep it simple works?…BUT….
What about responsibility to others,to family,to the environment….
it is all fine and dandy profetilizing about ourselves and what we can do and motivation but spending time navel gazing can lead us to hurt and not think of others….
I would personally like to participate in many things and I do because life affords me those options but many cannot…..money, responsibility lack of
Whatever. Some can not put one foot in front of the other so to speak….how does your view fit for them…
Say I want to learn to speak French…in your view Can I do it working full time or staying at home with two children no money and very little prospects of ever going to a French community… Let’s say it is my passion….how do I get there?
Please try not be be idealistic in your view…
By the way I speak French already and did it in a very unconventional way…. So your view intrigues me…
Lee,
Well, yeah, there are often responsibilities that prevent you from taking on all of life’s opportunities, nobody said otherwise. This post isn’t really about that.
I think the question of whether we overcomplicate things applies equally to people who have obstacles that prevent them from doing everything.
-Scott
Hey! Really good advice but are you sure about the analysis that why people make the mistake of not doing the simple steps are that they are somewhat intentionally trying to make more complicated solutions? I can think of a couple of other analyses that are different from yours but also support the punchline which makes me want to hear arguments why your analyses is the right one!
Personally I’d say that this has little to do with how smart people are because in my experience almost everyone makes the mistake that you are describing until they figure it out. If you have time, I’d love to read your reply!
(ps, will I get a mail if you respond or do I have to keep checking this page?)
[...] I love this article on the subject! If You?re So Smart, Why is Your Life Still a Mess? Scott H Young __________________ Smarky – The Creative RockStar. [...]
If I have a pathology, this is it. I realize I’m really late to the game on this post, but I think it’s fantastic and dead on. It seems ridiculous, but this is a problem I have struggled with for most of my adult life, believing that because I’m good at analytical thinking and problem solving that there’s usually an easier, smarter way to get something done that won’t involve me spending loads of time on the problem.
That’s simply not the case for many things. In your post you mentioned that being good at step #1 doesn’t guarantee success, but I don’t necessarily think that that is true. The beauty of step one (which most of the time consists of “show up.”) is that the more you do it, the better you become at steps 2 through fifteen without needing to specifically think about those steps. Just doing whatever it is you want to succeed with will eventually have you becoming great at it.
It’s not hard to see that skill is directly proportional to time spent. No matter what, if you keep showing up, eventually you’re going to win.
I agree with Thomas 100%. I have wasted years of my life making simple stuff complicated. Especially socializing with others. I’m very to myself but I also realize I have a great personality with people I’m comfortable with.
But the paradox is that I can’t get more comfortable with more people if I don’t at least say “Hello” when someone makes eye contact with me. Simple, yes. Easy, no.
I think it has a lot to do with acceptance of others. I want people to like me and accept me but I realize that not everyone will. So that in itself makes me wary. But even though we’re all different, we’re really all the same at the core.
I’m getting better. And reading stuff like this helps me realize that I have to slow down, relax, and focus on the simple stuff. The complicated stuff can wait. It’ll still be there. But I have to master the basics.
Thanks for this post. I really appreciate it.
[...] If You’re So Smart, Why is Your Life Still a Mess?: a great post about simple-but-not-easy strategies that we don’t use, instead trying to find a complicated-and-easy solution. This is a bad idea indeed. [...]