What mix of simplicity and complexity do you want in your life?

Simple enough to be reasonably stress free, complex enough to be interesting. I don’t doubt for a second that my life would be simpler if I worked stacking shelves in a supermarket instead of doing what I do, but it would be significantly less fulfilling. I like to push myself a little, and do a variety of activities outside of work where possible. It does all depend really on how you define complexity.

Simplicity: minimal living expenses (no credit card balances)
home as a homebase to travel out of rather than a nest to hole up in

Complexity: other human beings and having as much free time as possible to allow for them

I like my life to be simple and my friends to be complex.

For me, simplicity and complexity are the same. The simpler I make life. The more opportunities cross my path.
That simple life frees me up to follow other pursuits, that eventually complicate things.
I truly live one day at a time. Avoiding worry makes my life simple, which is complicated.

I want my life to be filled with simple excitement.

@lillycoyote: huzzah!

I’m not comfortable surrounded by simple things,
The strive for the simple is too complex for me!

I’m firmly in the “strive for simplicity” camp. Things get complicated because we make them complicated. Complicated usually equates to “time consuming” and “frustrating”.

What I don’t like is having to make choices all the time. I just want one kind of milk, and one kind of bread, and don’t even get me started on how many choices of canned corn there is.

I always order exactly the same thing at the restaurant (a different plan for each kind, Mexican, Chinese, etc)so I don’t have to sit there and try to figure out what I want.

simply: eat, shit, work.

complexly: find happiness.

I want simplicity in what I must do, complexity in how I do it.

Simple or complex I don’t really care.

Now Simplex ,on the other hand, worries the hell out of me.

Why so worried, @Blondesjon? Do you have something to tell us?

Simplicity? What the hell is THAT???

@Jayne . . .you’re goddamned right i am. i heard you can get that shit from eating apples and i love me some apples.

After years of too much complexity, I’m shooting for overall simplicity right now.

Simplicity in my private life works well for me. Out of sight, out of mind (when it comes to avoiding problems).

In my career and workplace, I like a taste of complexity now and then because it challenges me to do my job well and to test myself under stressful circumstances so I can measure how well I’m doing and where I might need improvement.

Continual mediocrity serves no beneficial purpose for me so I’ve got to have the occasional complexity to keep things interesting.

My house is full of stuff which makes it complex when it comes to dusting or moving, but the stuff makes me feel good, makes my heart sing.

My life is simple on the surface but very complex when you look beneath. I live surrounded by people who are slowly but surely killing themselves and I want to help but the old “you can lead a horse to water etc.” always comes into play.

I would like that part to be more simple but I will keep the rest of the complexity.

I like to tackle complexity with simple tried and true analysis, thus breaking down complexity into its simple parts. Then what seemed complex becomes simpler the more you look at something. This can also be applied to life’s situations where many times people try and make things so complex that in fact it leads to more difficult situations, leading to more complexity. The analysis of what people say or mean and the miscommunication that can occur are sometimes a direct result of trying to listen to what people say in too complex a manner. The feedback loop starts and before you know it, confusion can reign in a situation.

I am drawn towards complexity in many ways – I want my job to be complex, I want my friendships and relationships to have many depths, I want the people I love to be complex – I don’t see any of it as negative

In many ways I live simply, my judgment is swift and without flip-flopping

Actually, simple is hard.
For example, just sitting and observing your breath is one of the most simple and difficult things to do.

The most elegant of creative solutions are “simple” in the sense that they are recognizable, the truth hits you in the gut.
But the process of finding and paring things down to the core that can be a rich and complex journey.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir – Beautifully said, thank you and I agree with it all.

@rooeytoo :), of course

simple relationships, complex books.

by simple relationships, i mean comfortable and honest relationships with anybody, from family to significant others