“If you find yourself saying _____ is always good or ____ is never bad, you may be a member of an idea cult. Appreciating complexity reminds us that no behaviour is always effective and that all cures have unintended consequences.”

I stumbled across this quote a while ago, and it hasn’t left my mind.

Having a go-to system or choice does make decision-making easier and things simpler, but often at the cost of producing fruitful outcomes.

For example, influenced by a close friend who is a die-hard fan of the “bokeh effect” in photography, I used to shoot almost every photo at an aperture setting of f/1.8 or closer. If you’re unfamiliar with the terminology, shooting pictures at wider apertures such as f/1.8, f/2 or f/2.8 gives you that dreamy, background-melting look which is often used to shoot portraits:

For years, my photography system or principle was this:

Taking a picture of a landscape? Shoot at f/1.8 or f/2.8.

Taking a photo of a person or an object? Aim for f/1.8 or f/2.

While this worked most of the time, photography is more nuanced than having a single go-to setting for every situation. Many of my photos could have turned out better if I had reasoned further and picked camera settings or lenses based on the environment and the style I wanted.

Fortunately, over the last few years, I’ve ditched my go-to system and started experimenting with my camera settings and lens choice based on the photo I’m trying to capture.

The result? Photos turn out far better than they used to.

Now that I’m thinking more about this “idea cult” problem, I realise it extends beyond a few people like me and my friend. This is why the nifty fifty lens has been the most recommended camera lens for decades.

You may also unknowingly subscribe to ideas that don’t always work in your best interests or produce the desired results.

So, the next time you find yourself defaulting to a choice or a decision without much deliberation, rethink your choice.

Are you making the right choice for the problem, or are you taking an easy way out?

Complexity doesn’t have to be evil. It can be a tool that helps you think and act better if you interpret it that way.

Think about it.

Now, while macOS's built-in OCR does a good-enough job, Snipit makes detecting, copying and exporting text from anywhere on your screen much easier.

Before you move on to the rest of this newsletter issue, here are a few words from: