Why simplicity wins in a world of complexity

It’s 7.00pm and I’ve just landed in Shanghai.

The sun has set and the air is thick and muggy. I’ve been stood for the last 30 minutes in the customs queue marked ‘Aliens’. 

This is exactly how I feel as I remember that I can’t read the road signs, can’t use Uber, Google Maps or any of the other apps I would usually rely on thanks to the Great Firewall of China.

It dawns on me how lost I am without them.

The following morning I set out to explore the city. Priding myself on being 'a bit of an explorer’, I decide I’ll just walk around, and see what I find…

TEN sweaty miles later, my feet are aching, and I’m frustrated to say the least.

The museum I finally find is closed, and the famous gardens I raced to get to are shut by the time I arrive. 

My phone is dying and I’m desperately dehydrated. To top it off, I’ve found myself in the middle of nowhere. No one speaks English or understands my attempts to mime ‘water’!

I can feel my brain going into overdrive, desperately searching for something that looks familiar, amongst countless signs that I don’t understand.

And then I see it, glistening in the distance… the faint, beautiful lights of a Häagen-Dazs store!

I realise I’ve found the oasis I was looking for; I know that Häagen-Dazs sells food (or mainly just ice cream), and so I hope and pray that means they’ll also sell water.

I feel myself practically tearing up as I unconsciously shove a local out of my way in attempt to the get through the front door. 

I take in the familiar smell of toasted waffles and the sight of a menu in English, and I gradually feel myself beginning to relax.

The thing is, our brains go through this process all the time.

Maybe not in such a dramatic way, but we are constantly searching for the known and the safe, in a world where we are constantly bombarded with new ideas and products - the unknown.

Why our brains crave simplicity

Studies prove that our brains are wired to be drawn to things that make sense, and to shut down when presented with confusing information. 

Otherwise, our brains are literally wasting calories trying to process it.

In ‘The Tipping Point’, Malcolm Gladwell points out that when children are watching a TV show, they ‘don't watch when they are stimulated and look away when they are bored. They watch when they understand and look away when they are confused.’ 

As adults we mask our confusion, but the notion is the same; we don't take information in when we don't get it. 

It is essential to remember this when you are putting together a presentation or pitch because as Donald Miller describes in 'Building A Storybrand', ‘you are in a race to communicate… and it’s not necessarily the best ideas that will win, but the ones that people understand the fastest.’

How to use simplicity in your pitch

So here’s my top tip: when you are trying to get an idea or message across, cut the jargon. 

When explaining a new idea, use language and images that the brain already understands and is familiar with.

Use stories, prioritise simplicity and cut anything that will require the brain to work harder than it needs to.

Here’s the thing, there were probably ten other stores nearby which sold water in my moment of desperation. The reason Haagen-Dazs won? It was the only store I recognised.