Subtract More To Extract Value

As in mathematics, so too in life; I feel it is easy to add but far more difficult to subtract.

Buying more stuff for the home, adding more clothes to an already overflowing wardrobe, reading more books, adding more features to the product, adding more processes, more tasks in the day, and more everything else-Adding is easy.

Try eliminating what you have accumulated, and it is way more complicated. Ask me about it. Last week, I tried to reduce the clutter in my wardrobe by getting rid of some old clothes, and it took me forever. Deciding what to keep and what to take out meant exercising choices, and it was not easy. But, once the task was done, waking up to a less cluttered wardrobe was a relief.

If this is true for my wardrobe, I am sure it is also true for other domains of our work and life. Subtraction is at the heart of simplicity and effectiveness.

Lao Tzu, the famed Chinese philosopher, is supposed to have said “To attain knowledge, add things every day. To attain wisdom, subtract things every day.”

This may sound paradoxical, but the act of subtraction is actually the act of addition in some other form. When I eliminated the clutter in my wardrobe, I added space and order, making it easy to get to the clothes I wear regularly. 

The same logic would apply to other facets of our lives, too. 

We create space for speed and convenience when we eliminate unwanted processes or controls. 

We become less burdened and comfortable when we downsize and reduce our assets. 

Similarly, when we eliminate tasks and, in the process, multitask less, we become more focused and productive, operating with more clarity.

Bottomline- when we stop doing many things at a time, we create room for more effort/focus on a few essential things.