Feedback Loops
Design systems that learn from their own outputs.
Feedback loops are how systems learn
Any system that cannot observe its own output cannot improve.
The feedback loop has four parts
Action observation evaluation and adjustment form the basic feedback cycle.
Tight feedback loops accelerate learning
The faster you get feedback on an action the faster you can adjust.
Loose feedback loops cause drift
When feedback is delayed you may persist with ineffective behavior for too long.
Positive feedback loops amplify
Some loops reinforce themselves — success breeds more success or failure breeds more failure.
Negative feedback loops stabilize
Self-correcting loops maintain balance by countering deviations.
Build measurement into your processes
If you cannot measure an outcome you cannot build a feedback loop around it.
Leading indicators for faster feedback
Measure things that predict outcomes rather than waiting for outcomes themselves.
Feedback from reality versus feedback from people
Direct results and other peoples reactions are both valuable but different types of feedback.
Emotional feedback loops
Your emotions create self-reinforcing cycles — anxiety begets more anxiety.
Habit feedback loops
Habits persist because they create their own reinforcing feedback.
Information feedback loops
What you read shapes what you think which shapes what you seek out to read.
Breaking negative feedback loops
Identifying the reinforcing mechanism is the key to breaking a destructive loop.
Strengthening positive feedback loops
When a beneficial loop exists invest in making it stronger and faster.
Feedback loop delays
Long delays between action and feedback make the loop harder to learn from.
Multi-loop systems
Real situations often involve several interacting feedback loops simultaneously.
The feedback you avoid is the feedback you need most
Resistance to certain feedback signals it touches an important blind spot.
Design your own feedback mechanisms
Do not wait for feedback to arrive naturally — engineer feedback into your systems.
Feedback loop hygiene
Regularly check that your feedback loops are still connected to meaningful outcomes.
Mastering feedback loops means mastering adaptation
The ability to build and tune feedback loops is the ability to continuously improve.