Why We Should Strive for Complex, but not for Complicated

I loved this Gapingvoid cartoon by Hugh McLeod. Remember first why Complex is not the same as Complicated.

According to him,

Complex is intrinsic. Something is complex if it involves a lot of moving parts, even at its most basic.

Complicated is extrinsic. Something is made complicated by external factors, made complicated by stuff that’s non-essential.

Even the most simple of lives are complex… so much that can go wrong, so much needing taken care of. That doesn’t give one an excuse to make things more complicated than they need be. In fact, the opposite is true, especially in business.

Add to this that in a complex world, good (and bad) surprises and discontinuities can appear that can be exploited as opportunities.

So, when do you ditch Complication for Complexity in your life?