One thing I've noticed during the past 25 years of delivering innovation-sparking services to a wide range of forward thinking organizations: People in business have a tendency to get overly complicated -- equating complexity with value -- as if the harder it is to understand something, the more meaningful that something must be. (Like the image below). Not true. When it comes right down to it, things are a lot simpler than we think.

If you have 60 seconds to spare (the first test to see if you have over-complicated your life), take a look at what some very savvy people have said about the matter -- then take a moment to ask yourself how YOU can simplify your life.

"Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated." - Confucius

"If you can't explain it to a six year old, you don't understand it yourself." - Albert Einstein

"It is not a daily increase, but a daily decrease. Hack away at the inessentials." - Bruce Lee

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The more simple we are, the more complete we become." - August Rodin

"Any darn fool can make something complex; it takes a genius to make something simple." - Pete Seeger

"Beware the barrenness of a busy life." - Socrates

"Be content with what you have, rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you." - Lao Tzu

Simplify problem solving
Simplify the effort to engage your workforce
Simplify brainstorming
Simplify engaging innovation in others
Simplify understanding what we do