Not that I can consider myself too old, but situations where I recall past mistakes arise more and more often. Thoughts like 'No, this ain't going to work' or 'I have to think about a simpler approach', 'This whole thing is getting too complex'. Not only in engineering aspects of my life, but also in musical and social ones.
Do young people make things too complex because of their natural amount of energy? Is this energy lost with time - mainly because of failed experiences - or does it simply flow in a different, wiser and more controlled way?
I remember in my first years of learning piano the sensation of being frustrated just because 'I couldn't play that fast'. I wanted to play all sorts of complicated rhythms, harmonies and melodies. Today I would just be happy of being able to record a warm sound - one that is warmer enough.
True complexity seems to be hidden behind neat simplicity.
P.D. - You can check the "Simplicity proof-of-concept" experiment I did in a programming contest. I created a super-simple football team which happened to be better than 75% of the teams in the contest.
This website defines 10 wise laws of simplicity: http://lawsofsimplicity.com/
ResponderSuprimirI remember World Chess Champion Dr Lasker saying in his book "Lucha", (maybe translated "Struggle" in EN) realising something similar to what you say.
ResponderSuprimirYounger players tend to be more on the pure calculation side, and like to go the complex way. Whereas when one gets mature, one tries to go the simple but effective way - which leads to less uncertainty, more easy play and more focus on the final result.
That is young players often lose themselves into tactical combinations, whereas mature players are more into strategic long-term plans. The amount of energy spent is way higher on young players, but often misspent.
I really recommend that book, although it's quite dense. The man was WCh for 20y or so on early XX century. He was the first one to make extensive use of psychology on chess - he variated his play tremendously depending on the rival. Besides, 20y it's a lot of years for a Wch :)
10 laws of simplcity in sidebar of this blog: http://lawsofsimplicity.com/
ResponderSuprimir