Albert Einstein once said, “Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler.”

What would Einstein have done in today’s online world? Would he have created the perfect interface? What would he have done with the concept for Google?

In some ways, Einstein had the ability to take his genius and boil it down without making someone feel dumb. In other ways, it was his ego telling him that the more people he could explain his ideas to, the better chance he’d have of accomplishing his personal goals.

I believe he was successful on both counts.

Our current online frenetic environment leaves people completely stressed about what goes into what space and ensuring that the customer “gets it” in a span of .008 nanoseconds. The user experience (UX) is about so many disciplines wrapped into one project that we often forget to give equal credit or time to the combined effort. A usability A/B test is just as important as where the search box should go as important as where you should place your “buy now” link is just as important as the color for the primary navigation.

We shouldn’t “dumb things down”. Rather, we should strive for elegant simplicity. Make your user aware of your services or goods, but don’t believe for one second that the person you’re talking to can’t read or write. Be simplistic, but not too simplistic. Make it as simple as possible, but no simpler.

Amen, brother.