Many people take pleasure in solving complex problems. However, over time, you can get used to constantly exercising your intellectual muscle and become “addicted” to it. Then you’ll start seeking out another challenging task that provides the same satisfaction from the work done, regardless of whether it was truly necessary or not.
A better idea is judo. It’s an approach that maximizes results while minimizing effort. All judo solutions are based on achieving as much as possible by doing as little as possible. Whenever you encounter obstacles, consider applying judo against them.
Partially, this approach is applicable in understanding how to negotiate with the problem itself. Suppose you want to see the land from a bird’s-eye view. One way to tackle this task is to climb Everest. That’s an ambitious approach. However, you could simply press the button for the top floor in a high-rise building. That’s not exceptional. It’s acceptable. It’s judo.
Usually, problems tend to be solved with simple, everyday methods. This means that there’s no need for any glamorous solutions. You don’t have to showcase your impressive skills. You just do something that resolves the issue and move on. This approach may not earn you the adoring gazes of fans, but you will have a solution that satisfies you.
Take a look at the campaign videos. For example, when a serious issue arises, politicians immediately air videos referencing that problem. The production quality is low. They use collages instead of live footage. The text is static and appears on the screen without any visual effects, and the audio is just a voiceover from some narrator. Despite all this, these videos are still quite effective. If they waited a week for designers to create a polished piece of advertising, the video would air too late. This is exactly the situation where speed of execution is more important than quality.
If there is an acceptable solution that addresses the problem “cheap and cheerful” — go for it. It’s better than wasting resources or, even worse, doing nothing at all if you can’t afford a complex solution. And remember: you can always turn an acceptable solution into a great one later.