# The magic wand — removing complexity

- **Episode:** [179](https://agents.truthliesandwork.com/episodes/179.md) (2025-03-13)
- **Type:** interview
- **Tags:** simplicity, complexity, magic-wand
- **Time:** 43:39–45:34 (start 2619s)
- **Listen:** [https://truthliesandwork.com/179?t=2619](https://truthliesandwork.com/179?t=2619)

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[43:39] Leanne Elliott: So, if there was a magic wand, just an element, whether it be a behavior, a way of working in the leadership world, in organizational life that you could just eradicate?
[43:49] Eric Stone: I'd probably go to complexity
[43:51] Leanne Elliott: What happens when some of that complexity is removed? What impact is the leader going to see? What impact is the team going to feel?
[43:58] Eric Stone: It is almost step one, they're listening. So there's this, oh my God, they actually, they didn't just say they would do it, they're going to do something. And so I think it breathes an ability to now channel the energy too. And what it starts to do is people believe now they can truly embrace what is in front of them by just— and I'm not saying remove, as I call them, the big rock. I'm talking about some of the sand that just gets in the way. The extra update, the extra meeting. We ended up coming with a meeting matrix. You talk about things that are culture killers. And I found we had too many meetings. And so, well, that meant that the team was missing valuable time with their own team and with their customers. And so we created a meeting matrix of how many meetings do we have? How long are they? How often are they? What is the purpose? Is it getting the right behavior? And the ones that weren't, we threw 'em overboard. And all of a sudden, instead of having staff meetings every month, it was twice a year. We just made 'em count. And that's just one small example. It's an easy one and relatable to use today, but it allows those under you to feel heard and execute to the highest of level. And I think that's what greatness can, can be
[45:17] Leanne Elliott: Do you also think that's how you can leaders can create that lasting culture that evolves, but fundamentally stays core to its values and what it wants to achieve? Is that part of that evolution is to continuously look at the complexity and try and simplify?