Simple System over Complex System
A complex system can't scale — a big goal forces you to strip it down to one direct path.
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 88%
Hardy argues a complex system cannot scale because it runs in too many directions with too many, often ill-defined, competing goals. Citing Steve Jobs, he notes it takes hard work to make something complex simple — when Jobs returned to Apple's 350 products, no one could say which defined the company. A single big goal forces you to strip out competing goals, false requirements, and shiny-object offers until one direct pathway remains. Simplicity must then be continuously defended, because great opportunities always creep in and re-complicate the model.
Origin
Hardy illustrates the principle with Steve Jobs simplifying Apple's product line and with Lewis Howes cutting 12-20 offers down to focus solely on his podcast, a story Hardy learned from Rory Vaden.
Core principles
- 01A complex system can't scale because it runs in too many directions with too many competing goals.
- 02You have to work hard to take something complex and make it simple.
- 03A single big goal forces you to strip out competing goals and false requirements.
- 04Too many offers usually means optimizing things that shouldn't exist.
- 05Simplicity is not a one-time act — you must continuously defend it as new things creep in.
How to run it
- 1
Diagnose the complexity
Ask how many directions your current system is really going and whether it could plausibly reach your big goal.
Watch out A complex system is almost impossible to define because it has too many goals and no clarity about who you are.
- 2
Use the big goal to force simplicity
Set one impossible goal that forces you to strip out competing goals and false requirements.
- 3
Cut to one direct path
Eliminate dead-end offers and shiny objects until you have a single simple model going one direction.
Pro tip Ask of every offer: how many of these are optimizing something that shouldn't exist?
- 4
Continuously defend the simplicity
Keep the goal front of mind and hold rigorous, honest conversations as new opportunities creep in and threaten to re-complicate the model.
Pro tip Even incredible opportunities must be tested against whether they're below the floor.
In the wild
Howes had 12-20 different offers — masterminds, courses, and more — while treating his podcast as marginal. In a strategy conversation with Rory Vaden he chose to cut most offers and go all in on the podcast, then at roughly 30 million downloads.
→ Two years later his show grew from about 30 million to over 500 million downloads and became one of the biggest podcasts in the world.
Returning to Apple, Jobs found 350 products and no clear answer to which ones defined the company. He worked to strip the complexity down to a simple, defined identity.
→ Simplifying the product line gave Apple clarity and a scalable focus.
Common mistakes
Carrying too many offers
Multiple competing offers often optimize things that shouldn't exist and cannibalize each other, diluting the business.
Treating simplification as one-and-done
Complexity always creeps back in as opportunities arrive, so simplicity must be continuously and honestly defended.
Is it for you?
Best for
Creator-entrepreneurs and companies with many offers who need to focus to scale.
Not ideal for
Early exploration where multiple bets are still being tested.
From the transcript
“a complex system by nature can't scale. Because it's going in too many different directions”
“you can do incredible things with a focused simple system and a focused simple model”
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