Douglas Adams Quotes

For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong.

There are no simple solutions to today’s problems.

There are no big problems, there are just a lot of little problems.

It's very difficult to solve a lot of problems from the top down.

There are many people who want simple solutions, but there are none ... nor will there be.

The world is complicated. But does every problem require a complicated solution?

The problem is that we attempt to solve the simplest questions cleverly, thereby rendering them unusually complex. One should seekthe simple solution.

Solutions are not the answer.

I'd be wary of simple solutions to complex problems.

People are tired of simple things. They want to be challenged.

Sometimes big problems are best solved with lots of small and creative solutions.

Solving big problems is easier than solving little problems.

Early on, in discussions of financial oversight, people would say, 'Well, this is a very complicated problem, therefore it requires a complicated solution.' And at that step, I would say, 'Well, wait a minute. Just because it's a complicated problem doesn't mean the best course of action immediately is one that's complicated.'

However much a president wishes it, a national problem cannot be knocked out with a single punch. A president must work with the problem as much as against it, turn it into a solution if she can.

There is always an easy solution to every problem - neat, plausible, and wrong.

When you start looking at a problem and it seems really simple, you don't really understand the complexity of the problem. Then you get into the problem, and you see that it's really complicated, and you come up with all these convoluted solutions. That's sort of the middle, and that's where most people stop... But the really great person will keep on going and find the key, the underlying principle of the problem - and come up with an elegant, really beautiful solution that works.

When you first start off trying to solve a problem, the first solutions you come up with are very complex, and most people stop there. But if you keep going, and live with the problem and peel more layers of the onion off, you can often times arrive at some very elegant and simple solutions.

If simple, painless solutions to public problems existed, they would have been found long ago.

Often, problems are knots with many strands, and looking at those strands can make a problem seem different.

Complexity has and will maintain a strong fascination for many people. It is true that we live in a complex world and strive to solve inherently complex problems, which often do require complex mechanisms. However, this should not diminish our desire for elegant solutions, which convince by their clarity and effectiveness. Simple, elegant solutions are more effective, but they are harder to find than complex ones, and they require more time, which we too often believe to be unaffordable

Our goal is to try to bring a calm and simplicity to what are incredibly complex problems so that you're not aware really of the solution.

Unfortunately, simplistic framing of problems leads to simplistic answers.

Our agenda, by necessity, is as complex and encompassing as the problems we face: beware of politicians promising simple solutions.

If you have a problem you can solve by throwing money at it, you don't have a very interesting problem.

There are no silver bullets.