Keep it simple, stupid (KISS) is a design principle which states that designs and/or systems should be as simple as possible. Wherever possible, complexity should be avoided in a system—as simplicity guarantees the greatest levels of user acceptance and interaction. KISS is used in a variety of disciplines, such as interface design, product design, and software development.

The term was first used in the US Navy and is thought to have been coined by Kelly Johnson, who was the lead engineer at the Lockheed Skunk Works. Johnson told the designers at Lockheed that their designs should be simple enough to be repaired by a man in a combat situation with only some basic mechanic’s training and simple tools. If their products weren’t simple and easy to understand, they would not only cost lives but also quickly become obsolete in combat conditions and thus worthless.

In the world of user experience design and related disciplines, the KISS principle borrows from such a scenario in that users who tend to lead busy lives will quickly abandon a complex design. In the case of designing for mobile devices—where the users’ context finds them operating their phones with their fingers, often with one hand—this philosophy is even more vital to follow.

Today the KISS principle is celebrated in many engineering professions (including software engineering) and is often brought to bear by managers in many professions as well as by trainers and educators. So do we at Socife!

Here at Socife we follow the same principle in designing & building things. You are currently reading a story built block by block making it much easier to draft, think, design & edit any content anytime! KISS has given us flexibility that we always aspired to deliver.