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I have just read a book called, ‘Think Simple’, by Ken Segall. In it he proposes simplicity as key to business success. At the same time as I was finishing this book, I received a sermon on the importance of simplicity in the spiritual life. Simplicity seems to be the order of the day.
Segall claims that, “simplicity is one of the most deceptive concepts on earth.”He goes on, “It is arguably the most potent weapon in business – attracting customers, motivating employees, outthinking competitors.” Ken worked with Apple where simplicity is at the heart of business and close to the secret of their success.
Simplicity is key to the spiritual life also – we are urged “to become as little children – become as wise as a serpent and as simple or as innocent, as a dove.”
As we grow up we tend towards complexity and this happens in organisations too. As we mature we return to what Richard Rohr calls, ‘a second naivete’, a simplicity which is calm, patient, inclusive and self-forgetful. The goal of religion is to lead us back to this blessed simplicity of heart.
In business and in the spiritual life, simplicity takes work.