---
title: "Simplifying complexity"
description: "## Overview Ask a technical writer what they do, and the most common response is that tech writers"
canonical_url: https://idratherbewriting.com/simplifying-complexity/index
---
# Simplifying complexity
> Although technical writing is often described as the task of simplifying complexity, there isn't much information on how to actually do it — that is, how to convert complex, confusing information into content that is easy to follow, understand, and apply. This series intends to explore various methods, tips, and strategies for simplifying complex information.

 ## Overview

Ask a technical writer what they do, and the most common response is that tech writers “simplify complexity.” In systems that are complex (supporting many tasks, options, functions, and information), we figure out user goals and create clear instructions on how users can achieve those goals. The technical writer’s core value is in his or her ability to simplify information in these complex systems.

But for all the talk about simplifying complexity, there’s not a lot written on how to do it. Just how do you make complex processes and concepts easy to follow? How do you help users achieve their goals in the context of sophisticated, confusing applications and code? Explaining concepts in plain language and using task-based steps is a great start, but it’s not the entire solution. We need to increase our skill at this game. Technical writers need to center on what’s complex for users, and use all the tools available to turn up the simplicity factor in ways that add real value to organizations.

I’m fascinated by the idea that my core value as a technical writer involves helping users make sense of complex systems. We should center our efforts around the user’s greatest pain, because that is where we can deliver the greatest value — and that is also where the space is the most interesting. We don’t deliver value by documenting simple, obvious instructions, or by providing instructions for interfaces and workflows that are already well-designed and intuitive. We deliver value by first identifying what users struggle with most, their point of utmost complexity and frustration, and then set our sights on that maelstrom and [sail directly towards it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aobNxeft_no).

## Ways we simplify complexity

As a profession, I think we need more focus on ways to simplify complexity. In this series of essays, I’ll outline a number of techniques and approaches for simplifying complexity. Some of these techniques might involve embedding [journey maps](/simplifying-complexity/macro-micro.html) that carry users through a process from beginning to end. Other approaches might involve providing high-level summaries that [distill and crystalize key points from large swaths of information](/simplifying-complexity/reduction-layering-distillation.html), condensing it into quick reference guides. An approach for simplifying complexity might include [tagging content with the right metadata](/simplifying-complexity/discoverability-through-metadata.html) to be surfaced when the user needs it. Or consuming the entirety of the information space to see just how the piece we’re adding integrates and [harmonizes with the whole](/simplifying-complexity/ensuring-information-harmony-in-the-larger-documentation-landscape.html). It might involve looking beyond our product to consider the [larger journey our users are on](/simplifying-complexity/reconstructing-the-absent-user.html) – even before they arrived at our product. Or shaping our documentation around [schemas the user already uses to categorize information](/simplifying-complexity/reducing-complexity-by-shaping-into-schemas-esp-story.html). Or implementing interactive JavaScript to [hide complexity](/simplifying-complexity/hiding-complexity.html) for the majority of users who don’t need the information.

The task of simplifying complexity is even more difficult in the landscape of developer and API documentation. Developers have deeper, more comprehensive technical skills and understanding than most technical writers. And yet, even so, technical writers can still simplify information in ways that become vital to the developer’s success. Of course, simplifying complexity involves understanding enough of the domain and customer journey to speak at their level and in their terminology, but it’s more than that. Simplifying complexity involves incorporating a host of techniques that go beyond mere transmission of knowledge in a particular domain.

My hope is that by understanding the right techniques and approaches, we can do our jobs better. We can provide more value in our roles. As we simplify complexity in deep ways, we can move beyond merely being perceived as editors, writers, or publishers. We become knowledge creators and usability experts in information spaces.