Simplicity is Effortless

How do you know when something is as simple as it can get? At first you probably won't be able to tell.

Simplicity has been achieved when using the new product becomes effortless. Think of signs that lead you without requiring you to stop and read them or devices that you can use without reading the manual.

This is the beauty and the downfall of simplicity. It's beautiful because by simplifying we can make our lives easier and happier. The downfall is that because of this effortlessness, people don't notice when something has been simplified. It's a hidden benefit and something for which people usually won't congratulate you on.

Despite the small downfall, it's always worth simplifying. Even if people don't notice, you will be able to make someone's life better, and that's worth all the effort.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

The Void

What do you do when you are faced with a void? An empty canvas, page, screen, document or space. Our instincts tell us that we need to fill it up, not leave any space empty. We think that by this we are creating more value and communicating everything that is important.

This is far from reality. The more things we put in the empty space, the more crowded it becomes. It's usually easy to realise this when we are looking at a physical space, like an empty room. When it comes to two dimensional spaces and non-physical spaces we feel that hoarding is a good thing.

The reality is that the more things you put into something, the more complicated and crowded it becomes. As a result, people won't be able to understand what is important and what you are trying to communicate. 

Treat an empty space with great care and be very careful about what you put in. Be selective with the ideas that you want to communicate and the items you put into it. You need to create something that is simple, easy to understand and communicates clearly your thoughts and ideas.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Say it Simply

Because of my interest and studies in computer engineering, I learnt from a young age, that if I wanted people to engage with me I had to talk about my interests simply and in a language that people understand.

Having studied in a field that is full of technical terms, jargon and acronyms, I know how difficult this can sometimes be. The way that universities studies are structured actually makes this worse, since you always have to write using all the possible terms and in a language that is not easy to understand. As one of my old lecturers told me a few days ago "Academics write for academics". As a result, when the time comes for us to talk to people about our passion, invention, innovation or product we start using terms that people don't understand.

Of course using terms and jargon when speaking to your peer group and people in your field is fine, as they will understand you. However, when you speak to the general public and people outside your field you need to be able to express your knowledge in common language and terms. If you do this, you will have people's attention and they will engage with you.

Here is an example that I came across on Apple's website:

Integrated memory controller.
With faster access to memory, each core can get straight to work on your data, rather than waiting for it to arrive. That’s why the new Intel Core architecture uses an integrated memory controller to connect fast 1333MHz memory directly to the processor. Together with up to 8MB of shared L3 cache, the integrated memory controller helps your applications run at peak performance.

Here is how the same controller is described on Intel's website:

Feed more data to the processor with the integrated memory controller
The Intel® Core™ i7 processors incorporate an integrated memory controller which handles the data flow between main memory and the execution engine. This means faster access time to memory and less latency for requests. Now applications can feed more data to the processor and you can spend less time waiting for results.

Do you see the difference? The first explains the technology as simply as possible, so people can understand why this makes a difference. In the second example, and because the intel website is not consumer focused the technology is explained in more technical terms.

We know you have the knowledge and that you are good at your job, but you need to be able to communicate this to your audience. The only way that you can grab people's attention and engage them is by speaking to them in a language that they understand. Speak as simply as possible and people will listen.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

The Lost Art of Presentation Design

If you ask most people, they will say that business presentations are boring, and they are right. The use of software like PowerPoint, default templates and bullet points has led to mundane presentations delivered in a mundane way.

The good news are that there is hope. Any presentation can be redesigned to communicate information effectively and help the speaker engage with the audience. One of the most valuable tools when redesigning a presentation is simplification.

The first thing you need to do when redesigning your presentation, is to identify your core message. You need to gather all the thoughts and ideas that are in your slides and then simplify to understand what the core message is. Once you have it, this needs to be used as the theme for your presentation and you need to keep coming back to it.

When it comes to changing your slides, remember that simplicity is king. Having a lot of information on a slide confuses and forces people to read instead of listen and engage. You need to keep your words to a minimum, use graphics and images whenever possible and never EVER use bullet points.

If you just apply the second part and change your slides to be clean and with less information, you will already have made a great progress. It's important to understand that the audience has come to listen to you and not read a few slides. If it was for the latter, you could have sent them as a PDF and not do the presentation at all. Using simplicity will help you deliver your message effectively and engage with your audience.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis 

Note to Self: "Keep it Simple"

When working on any project, there is one thing that we always keep in mind and constantly tell ourselves "Keep it Simple". It's in our nature to hoard and to complicate our work, so keeping this in mind is essential.

It becomes even more important when you work with visual elements, presentation of information and visualisation of data. When working on these you need to be very careful about what you add and to keep only the essential.

It's ok when you are working on it to add whatever comes to mind and create complexity so you can then simplify. Starting with a blank canvas and trying to add only the essential is very difficult and needs a lot of practice. To make it easier, start adding everything that comes to mind and once you have everything, start simplifying.

To simplify, start removing anything that is not essential and doesn't add to the bigger picture. If you still need to keep some information but it's not essential, think about other ways to present it (e.g. with groups, hiding etc.).

At the end you should be left with something that is clear, easy to understand and use.

Posted by Harry Mylonadis