Why less choices equals more success

Winter, summer, doesn’t matter. My love for coffee transcends seasons. And with that…

So I went to this new coffee shop—great vibe with an artsy and welcoming feel to it. But I’m staring at their menu. It's tiny. Like, surprisingly tiny. Just basic coffee and, I think, a handful of snacks.

My first thought? "That's brave" (or maybe stupid?) in Dubai, where bigger is usually better. How are they going to survive?

So I go for my usual Long Black—two shots of coffee with a bit of water. And frankly, I wasn't expecting much. Bring on that burnt, flimsy coffee with more water than a kiddie pool.

I was wrong. The coffee arrived immediately—gasp, with a thin layer of cream on top. Coffee aficionados know the cream, or crema, is artistry by the barista. If you don’t believe me:

That first sip was smooth, and the coffee was magnificent. Not just the coffee but the whole experience. The barista actually came over, had time to tell me about their beans, how he got the crema on top, and genuinely asked me what I was up to. No one was shouting, anxiously waiting for their caramel-mocha-whatever variations.

It hit me—they weren't serving less. They were serving better.

It got me thinking. There is magic in less, in minimalism. And if you think about the clichéd pattern of less is more, you’ll start noticing it everywhere. I can’t NOT see it.

Take In-N-Out Burger. Three burger variations. That's it. While other chains scramble to add new items weekly (looking at you, McD's plant-based-season-based-local-based-whatever), they stick to what they know. And their sales per store? More than the competition.

Or look at Steve Jobs' return to Apple. First thing he did? Cut their products by 70%. Everyone thought he was crazy. "You can't grow by cutting!" they said. That "crazy" decision turned into the most valuable company in history.

Even Costco carries just 4,000 items compared to Walmart's 100,000+. Their sales per item? Way higher. Because when you are ruthless on making cuts, you tend to pick winners.

Can we apply this to life? Of course, we can.

This isn't just about business. It's about how our brains work.

Barry Schwartz's research on choice paralysis paints a fascinating picture: More options not only fail to make us happier—they actively make us miserable. Dang. When faced with too many choices, we either:

• Freeze completely (hello, Netflix scrolling at 2 AM)

• Make a choice and feel worse about it (because what if one of those other million options was better?)

• End up not choosing at all (analysis paralysis, anyone?)

Put this across anything—work, shopping, relationships—and you’ll see less is not only better, but less is liberating.

This tiny sushi place in Japan offers a precise 20-piece sushi course, is extremely strict about dining etiquette (no photos, turn off phones), and the meal typically lasts only 30 minutes. But the reservation list? Years long.

This restaurant was the first sushi restaurant to receive three Michelin stars.

Even here in Dubai, the land of biggest-everything, the places that last aren't the ones with the longest menus. It's that kabab shop that's been serving the same perfect recipe for decades. Or the shawarma place that does one thing so well that people drive across the city for it.

An Arabic proverb captures this idea of less rather well: "The hunter who chases two rabbits catches neither."

Old wisdom does know a thing or two about life.

I suppose you don’t really need old wisdom to understand fewer choices lead to better decision-making. And when presented with options, eliminate quickly.

It’s as simple as that.

After years of watching this pattern play out—from coffee shops to tech giants—I've noticed something interesting about how 'less' actually works. Let me entertain you with what I call the Law of Less—focus, constraints, quantity, and elimination.

(And yes, I realize the irony of turning less into a four-point framework. But hey, sometimes patterns are worth noting )

Want to try it? Start small:

• Pick one project to focus on completely (focus)

• Choose only three key features to perfect (constraints)

• Master something simple before adding more(quality)

• Remove one unnecessary thing each week (elimination)

Success isn't about maximizing options or opportunities. Or, as they say in business—scaling.

It's about minimizing noise —about finding your thing and doing it really, really well.

That little coffee shop? They're not just selling better coffee, they're showing us a different way to think about success. In a world obsessed with more, their power-move is choosing less.

It's the courage to say:

"This. This is what we do exceptionally well. This is enough."

Interesting posts I enjoyed and you might like:

Please, just an espresso - Don’t upsell me, please. (It’s one from me)

You are not Rick Rubin - Excellent piece by Adam Singer (Unless you think heating frozen dinners makes you Gordon Ramsay, prompting music doesn't make you Rubin (but it's great to celebrate him for other reasons)

The invention of the chocolate chip cookie - Excellent, fun illustration on how this heavenly thing came into existence.

And that’s it for now.

See you next week.