“Technology has made our lives more full, yet at the same time we’ve become uncomfortably “full”.”
–John Maeda

I just added The Laws of Simplicity (Simplicity: Design, Technology, Business, Life) by John Maeda to my Bookshelf. John argues that technology and life only become complex if you let it be so. Even then, as he highlights in law #5, we can’t have simplicity without complexity. With that, here are his ten laws and three keys:

• Law 1 Reduce: seek thoughtful reduction to achieve simplicity
• Law 2 Organize: achieve illusion of few through organizing many
• Law 3 Time: give a sense of simplicity by reducing time
• Law 4 Learn: drive simplicity through wisdom
• Law 5 Differences: realize, simplicity and complexity are the yin and the yang
• Law 6 Context: simplicity with no regards to situational meaning is meaningless
• Law 7 Emotion: don’t cast aside your feelings in the search for simplicity
• Law 8 Trust: in simplicity we trust
• Law 9 Failure: remember, not everything can be made simple
• Law 10 The One: simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful
• Key 1 Away: distant things looks smaller and less complicated
• Key 2 Open: simplify complexity through openness
• Key 3 Power: less is more

I don’t necessarily agree with all of John’s conclusions. Does openness really promote simplicity? I have dealt with few open source packages, and it is definitely a mix bag out there. Is it knowledge or wisdom that drives simplicity? As the world get more complex, and people get wiser, can we get away with the illusion of simplicity without delivering something more substantial? Yet, he does stir the bag with valuable insights, especially with Law 10 – The One. At the end, I would recommend the book for any product managers and developers who are looking to simplify their offerings and establish their own philosophy for simplicity. Here are some of his insights that you should add to your product development checklist:

• Did I lessen what I can, and hide/distance/organize everything else without loosing sense of inherent value?
• Did I follow the rules of organization: What to hide AND Where to hide AND What to hide with?
• Did I remember the 80/20 rule of focus on the vital few?
• Is my new design creating an instant sense of familiarity?
• Did I make cultural assumptions that may not be true?
• Does the customer have an emotional connection to the product/service/… ?

And for when I think I repeat myself little too much, here is a holistic approach from John:

“BASICS are the beginning.
REPEAT yourself often.
AVOID creating desperation.
INSPIRE with examples.
NEVER forget to repeat yourself.”
–John Maeda

For more of John Maeda, check out the following blogs:

• Laws of Simplicity blog
• Our (and Your) RISD
• Maeda’s blog on MIT’s Technology Review

Technorati Tags: John Maeda, The Laws of Simplicity, design

“Where some see control freakery, others see a desire to craft a seamless, end-to-end user experience. Instead of perfectionism, there is the pursuit of excellence. And, instead of screaming abuse, there is the passion to make a dent in the universe.”
–Leander Kahney

Yes, the book is repetitive. Yes, it is an extrapolation of compiled sources in an attempt to explain what might be going on inside Jobs’ head and how it has shaped Apple. Regardless, it is an interesting read as the author has pulled together various aspects of Jobs’ style, drive, passion and obsession in order to give us a hint of what makes Apple tick.

I don’t believe I would get any arguments by stating that Steve Jobs has molded Apple in his image. Jobs’ core value of developing easy-to-use technology for individuals, coupled with his love of design excellence (where design is the function), has shaped Apple’s innovation strategy: shape the technology to the customer’s needs, instead of forcing the user to adapt to the technology. By owning hardware, software, online services and everything in between, Jobs successfully controls the end-to-end customer experience, and thereby delivers on his core value: products that work seamlessly together and seldom break down.

Throughout the book, one also gets a sense of the product and business development style of Jobs. Such as building a learning organization through numerous product prototypes (with Jonathan Ive and others in the development team); his mantra of focus and simplicity; the evolution of Apple stores; the progression of Apple products; as well as his keen business sense. All of this contributes to Apple’s brand: “Apple is about people who think outside the box, people who want to use computers to help them change the world, to help them create things that make a difference and not just to get a job done.”

As I read through the book, which is a quick read, I had various thoughts…

• If the CEO does not push for the fusion of technology, design and marketing, who does? Nobody else has the span of control required to successfully pull this off.
• Driven by his core values and vision, Jobs influenced areas throughout the entire value delivery chain to achieve excellence. Similarly, Sony, HP and others have the potential to influence design of complementary assets (TV stands, living room furniture, picture frames, …) and to integrate themselves into a lifestyle beyond what we currently experience. But, who defines a firm’s operational boundaries and why?
• Where would Apple be today if it wasn’t for Microsoft “training” people that crappy, hard to maintain products are acceptable, or even desirable? What if all customers understood that success is measured in quality, not quantity?

I wish the author spent more time sharing his perspectives on how Jobs changed during the time he was away from Apple (1985-1996). After all, it is rare for a successful founder to also be able to effectively grow her company, as the required skills and experiences are usually not transferrable. Yet, when Jobs returned to Apple, he clearly was ready (and able) not only to turn the company around, but to grow it beyond imagination.

Let us know your thoughts and insights about the book.

Technorati Tags: Inside Steve’s Brain, Leander Kahney, Apple, Steve Jobs

Ellis Jones compiled an easy to use quick reference guide that can help us steer businesses towards becoming more environmentally conscious and socially responsible. The author shares key information and tips for each area where we spend our money, as well as highlighting how companies are doing relative to one another. Though it is not a comprehensive list, it is a great start. Here are some unfortunate tidbits from the book:

• Here is another good reason to switch to fair trade and/or organic chocolate and coffee: child slavery is involved in the production of up to 40% of all chocolate in the industry, and coffee farmers are on the brink of starvation. Nestle is the corporate villain, which is also #6 in the top 10 worst companies.
• Wal-Mart is #3 on the top 10 worst companies list. Their bad deed includes documented exploitation of child labor, and major toxic waste dumping fines.
• General Motors is #1 polluter in the auto industry. I wonder if they would have maintained that #1 position, if they instead invested the $50M in their operations rather than paying the lobbyists.
• You may have noticed the cigarette industry is heavily targeting the developing countries. If you have to smoke, try American Spirit. They use 100% additive-free tobacco, along with other socially conscious activities.
• Who would have thought vitamins and animal welfare would be related? Centrum (Wyeth) is a corporate villain due to numerous federal ethics violations.

You can check out the better world shopper for more top 10s, sources used for compiling this information as well as a downloadable version of this list for your iPod.

So, what does this have to do with Helvetica, a documentary on typography? Before I jump to that, Helvetica is a delightful movie. The documentary gives a different perspective into something we tend to take for granted everyday: fonts and our emotional connection with them. It is all about the world that Helvetica (Neue Haas Grotesk) was created in, how it appealed to modernists, post-modernists and captured the interest of creatives that continuously push the envelope with design.

A company’s brand is its one of most valuable asset. Brand is a set of intangible values, such as beliefs and attitudes, that differentiate a firm’s product or services from another firm’s. For customers, brand highlights the additional value that they will receive from that firm.

Finally, here is the connection. During the documentary, Helvetica was referred to as the font of choice to give brand image the illusion of having social responsibility and accountability, even if that may not be the case. I know I am now paying more attention to the typefaces used in corporate communications. What do you think, is there a connection?

Technorati Tags: the better world shopping guide, Helvetica, brand

Seth Godin’s book The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick) is short and effective. It certainly made me question the wisdom of “Never give up, never surrender!” In many ways, I followed Seth’s logic when I left Amazon.com after 5 months of employment. Quitting is an emotional process, otherwise my decision would have come 2 months earlier!

Seth’s book doesn’t offer a recipe for determining if something is worthwhile to quit. That is a process of self-reflection where you ask yourself: will it/I be remarkable, will it/I be best in the world, or in my case “is this what I want to be known for?” You have to determine those questions for yourself, based on your definition of success.

Strategic quitting is key to aligning yourself towards success, but making sure not to quit too early while in The Dip is also Seth’s message. Yes, getting through The Dip is hard, and that is the point: “The Dip creates scarcity, scarcity creates value.” And, value is created when you lean into the Dip, where you push harder and change the rules. Not when you just chug along…

Quit the wrong stuff.
Stick with the right stuff.
Have the guts to do one or the other.

PS. Seth referred to The Magic of Thinking Big as influencing his thoughts about success. I haven’t read it yet, but it has received good reviews. So, I am adding it to my book list.

Technorati Tags: book review, The Dip, strategic quitting