Options… Options… Options…

Early in my career, I worked on a system that offered users multiple ways to view the same data—grid views, list views, filters everywhere. On paper, it looked powerful.

In practice, analytics told a different story.

Users took longer to complete tasks. Features went unused. Complexity slowed them down.

Hick’s Law explains why:

The time taken to make a decision increases logarithmically with the number of choices.

The Product Trap

Adding features is easy. Removing them is hard—especially in enterprise software where every feature has a sponsor.

But more options don’t always mean more value. Often, they increase cognitive load, reduce clarity, and delay decisions. The most effective products—and leaders—constrain thoughtfully.

Leadership Insight

Simplicity is not the absence of capability. It’s the result of intentional design, hard trade-offs, and respect for human limits. Sometimes, fewer options create better outcomes.