Simplify vs. Multiply
Follow Your Natural Instinct
Things Learned From…
Simplifier Multiplier Collaboration, by Dan Sullivan
Are you a Simplifier or Multiplier?
Every great entrepreneur is primarily one or the other, and identifying which you are adds deeper insight and meaning to the way you instinctively create value.
Once you know who you are, you can find the perfect collaborator: your opposite.
In the past, it was most likely just you doing everything that was needed, both the simplifying and the multiplying.
But now you’ve broken it down into two distinct categories:
making something better through simplifying,
and then making it bigger through multiplying.
You simplify complexity, and then you multiply the simplifier. […]
You’ll improve your business by asking yourself questions like, “What can be made simpler?” and “What needs to be multiplied?” […]
It’s not necessary that you do both activities, simplifying and multiplying, yourself, though both are necessary.
What’s important is that you focus on what you’re best at and team up with someone who’s great at what you’re not.
What Our Education System Gets Wrong
Our education system tends to instill in us that every individual needs to be good at everything, and that each of us needs to have all the skills necessary for projects to be successful. But that just isn’t true.
...if you’re a Simplifier, you can count on being able to find someone else to do the multiplying, and if you’re a Multiplier, you can be sure there are Simplifiers out there who need you to make their simplifiers bigger.
You can focus only on simplifying or only on multiplying as long as you recognize that the one you don’t do is still essential.
Being One or the Other
Your best strategy going forward, in relation to every kind of complex situation, is to decide right now if you’re a Simplifier or a Multiplier.
Do you simplify complex problems or do you exponentially multiply others’ innovations?
Whichever you are, you’ll start stockpiling individuals who have the other capability with whom you can collaborate.
Sullivan’s Personal Approach as a Simplifier
My very first thought is always, “Where’s the center of this, which, if I find it, will let me ignore everything else?” […]
Say there are ten factors that seem to make up a complicated situation.
What I do is see if it can be enormously simplified by figuring out if one of the ten factors should be focused on first. If so, then nine of them can be completely ignored for now.
Multipliers Collaborate With Their Own Too
The best Multipliers—those who are truly into collaboration—make deals with each other; they don’t compete with each other.
And that’s one way great Multipliers grow; linking up with other great Multipliers.
Follow Your Natural Instinct
When you had a painful experience, what was the activity?
You were probably doing something that wasn’t your natural instinct, and so it was doomed to be a negative experience from the start.
Now that you recognize that you’re either 100% a Simplifier or 100% a Multiplier, and you give up 100% responsibility for the other capability, you’ll be amazed by how much you can get done week after week without feeling like you’re putting in a lot of effort.
Avoid Chasing Status
When someone knows they’re a Simplifier or a Multiplier but does the other capability anyway, it’s usually because they’re going for status.
Status is the fastest way to forget the rules.
Just remember what you’re good at and what other people find valuable in you.
And no matter how much success you have, don’t forget the collaboration formula that got you there.
In the past, you’ve probably worried about performing a necessary capability that isn’t yours, but you don’t have to do that now that you understand that you’re a 100% Simplifier or Multiplier and that you’ll always be able to find someone to collaborate with who has the other capability.
The ability to focus on what you’re great at without worrying about what the other side is doing isn’t just twice as good, but exponentially better and more efficient.
The Golden Rule of Collaboration
Recognizing your side of the line and staying on it involves humility and respecting your own uniqueness.
There’s a golden rule here: Treat your collaborators uniquely, letting them do their part in their own way, and they’ll grant you the same respect.
Thanks for reading! Hope you have an excellent day.