"....but we insist on making it complicated."  - Confucius.

One of my favorite weekly reads is The Economist. A couple of years ago they announced they wanted to be the first publication to lay down some new rules: "Henceforth, genius will be measured not by how fancy, big or powerful somebody makes something, but by how simple.'

The editorial was prompted by concerns over wide-ranging complexities, including technology with features we can't or don't know how to use, incomprehensible software messages, inexplicable tax policies, nightmarish healthcare paperwork, and cell phone pricing plans. (They also took issue with British plumbers' insistence on using two water faucets - one for hot and one for cold - which, although I don't see as an issue of unnecessary complexity, is incredibly daunting.)

First Resource accepts The Economist's premise and wants to be the second publisher to embrace these new rules. We're committed to following Einstein's belief that "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."

The work of most of us is not rocket science, but of course there is a degree of complexity. You can insure the right balance and optimize your performance by always stopping to clearly define your objectives and the associated metrics.

Ask yourself, "What is the customer-driven objective and how do we measure it?" Sound simple? It is. And it works.

You've probably heard E. F. Schumacher's saying: "Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex... It takes a touch of genius to move in the opposite direction."

You have the touch - use it.