There are always trade offs. Norway seems focused on the well-being of its people rather than exhausting them to maximise the results(with collateral victims, of course). It seems most of them like to be happy and vote for this system, it's a democracy after all.

I'm actually surprises that it works so well. They are many unhappy socialist states(in EU as well) that don't deliver on their promise.

Norway is not a big country(5.3 mil) so you should't expect it to invent much.

I think the OP argument against NW is actually BS. If anything, Norway is socialism done right.