“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” – Leonardo da Vinci
The Tale of the Wheeled Suitcase
Picture travelers in the 1960s, grimacing while dragging boxy suitcases across airport floors. The wheel already existed. Suitcases already existed. Yet it took humanity 6,000 years after inventing the wheel to finally put the two together.
Even after sending astronauts into space.
In The Tale of the Wheeled Suitcase, author Nassim Nicholas Taleb points out how easily we overlook the simplest, most effective innovations. We instinctively assume that if something is complicated, it must be better.
This is particularly common with investing.
Financial companies often promote complexity because it feels impressive… and complexity conveniently justifies higher fees. There is always a new strategy, a new product, a new piece of jargon that promises to unlock “Alpha”… but too often just distracts from what actually drives long-term success. (It isn’t lost on me that the word “alpha” is, itself, jargon. D-oh!)
Why Complexity Hurts Investors
Barry Schwartz, in The Paradox of Choice, showed that complexity doesn’t empower us. It overwhelms us. Too many decisions. Too much noise. Too much fear of “getting it wrong.”
Jason Zweig has made a similar observation: markets can feel like a giant, flashing video game. Price updates every second. Opinion pieces every minute. Endless streams of data that feel like information yet lack meaning.
This type of complexity doesn’t improve results. It accelerates emotional decisions and short-term behavior… exactly the things that damage returns.
The antidote is clarity.
Long-term success is not about attending to every market headline. It’s about focusing on just a handful of things that truly matter.
What I Focus On With You
I help cut through the noise so your financial plan serves your actual life, not Wall Street’s entertainment industry.
Here are the essentials I focus on with clients:
- Clear purpose for your wealth
What do you want your money to do for you? We anchor every decision to that purpose. - Evidence-driven investment design
Disciplined diversification. Tax and fee efficiency. Consistency that supports results over decades, not days. - Behavioral coaching and emotional guardrails
Together, we reduce the odds of painful, impulsive decisions during stressful markets.
These are the “wheels on the suitcase” of investing. Simple. Effective. Often overlooked.
A Question For You
What financial noise could you tune out today so you can focus more clearly on the life you want tomorrow?
When you feel ready to pursue a simpler, more confident path, I’d be honored to help you roll that suitcase forward.
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