Of all the fascinating parts of Jamie Friedlander’s cover story on Rent the Runway founder Jennifer Hyman, my favorite was the explanation of how simply her now nine-figure business originally came together.
Related: How Jennifer Hyman Is Disrupting the Way We Get Dressed
She had a conversation with her sister that gave her an idea. She talked the idea over with a business-savvy friend. Then they just emailed a power player in the fashion world and secured a meeting the next day. And just like that, Hyman was off to the races. She didn’t make it any more complicated than it needed to be. Hard work, tense meetings and difficult decisions were to come, obviously, but the biggest step of all—getting started—was done in what amounts to a snap of the fingers.
The Simplicity Issue is a celebration of the amazing rewards we reap when we have clarity about what we want and appreciate what we already have.
Not to mention the futuristic business model she’s created, this straightforward approach to achievement is why Hyman fronts the December issue of SUCCESS. The Simplicity Issue is a celebration of the amazing rewards we reap when we have clarity about what we want and appreciate what we already have.
Related: Lisa Bodell on Embracing Simplicity
You’ll find stories that honor the very individual search we must make within ourselves to find peace, such as Cecilia Meis’ account of her vow of silence at a spiritual retreat and Friedlander’s telling of her stress-smashing afternoon of destruction at an Anger Room. There’s a profile of entrepreneur Camila Alves, who has turned her passion into a thriving business. Plus check out the great collection of ideas to help you untangle your life and a story detailing the places across the globe that report the highest levels of happiness, the uncomplicated lifestyle approaches that make such joy possible, and methods to help you bring out your own bliss. In any issue that is focused on simplicity, we must also remind you of the gifts of the people in your life—especially family—and I love the way that theme flows throughout Tara Nieuwesteeg’s essay, “The Year We Skipped Christmas.”
The topic of simplicity is near and dear to me. Having an eye for elegant solutions is a strength I aspire to, in part because I think it sounds better than the trait for which it is often mistaken: laziness.
Related: Jennifer Hyman on Taking Risks for Something You Believe In
There’s an old idea in leadership that difficult, complicated tasks should be given to the laziest person on the team, because they’ll find the simplest solution. I think that makes a lot of sense! So does Occam’s razor, the philosophical idea that, all things being equal, the simplest explanation is usually the correct one.
I can tell you that there was nothing lazy about the time spent working on this issue of the magazine. But when we started to plan it, I did refer to the simplest solution—I put the issue into the hands of my amazing team, who came back with incredible stories and fantastic art work. I hope you’ll laze about in a comfy chair and take your time with this edition of SUCCESS. We want it to be a pleasure read that will inspire and teach you to find the elegant solutions that will help you achieve the life of your dreams.
Related: SUCCESS Talks Collection December 2017
This article originally appeared in the December 2017 issue of SUCCESS magazine.
