Frequently asked questions about thinking, epistemology, and cognitive tools. 1647 answers
Confusing the presence of feedback with the tightness of the loop. You have a weekly one-on-one with your manager where you discuss your performance. You have quarterly reviews. You have annual surveys. You are swimming in feedback — and none of it is tight. The loop from action to signal.
The faster you get feedback on an action the faster you can adjust.
When feedback is delayed you may persist with ineffective behavior for too long.
When feedback is delayed you may persist with ineffective behavior for too long.
When feedback is delayed you may persist with ineffective behavior for too long.
When feedback is delayed you may persist with ineffective behavior for too long.
When feedback is delayed you may persist with ineffective behavior for too long.
Pick one area of your life where you suspect you might be drifting — health, a project, a relationship, a financial goal. Write down the last time you received concrete, measurable feedback on your performance in that area. If the answer is 'I cannot remember' or 'more than a month ago,' you have.
Mistaking activity for progress because no signal tells you otherwise. You keep doing the thing — exercising, publishing, managing, investing — and you assume that continued effort means continued results. The failure is not laziness or incompetence. It is the absence of a feedback signal tight.
When feedback is delayed you may persist with ineffective behavior for too long.
Some loops reinforce themselves — success breeds more success or failure breeds more failure.
Some loops reinforce themselves — success breeds more success or failure breeds more failure.
Some loops reinforce themselves — success breeds more success or failure breeds more failure.
Some loops reinforce themselves — success breeds more success or failure breeds more failure.
Some loops reinforce themselves — success breeds more success or failure breeds more failure.
Identify one reinforcing loop currently active in your life — positive or negative. Map the cycle explicitly: What is the initial condition? What does it produce? How does that output feed back as input? Write it as A -> B -> C -> A. Then ask: is this loop amplifying something I want more of, or.
Treating 'positive feedback loop' as always good. The word 'positive' refers to directionality, not value. A reinforcing loop that amplifies anxiety, debt, or distrust is still a positive feedback loop — it just amplifies in a direction you don't want. Confusing the technical term with the.
Some loops reinforce themselves — success breeds more success or failure breeds more failure.
Self-correcting loops maintain balance by countering deviations.
Self-correcting loops maintain balance by countering deviations.
If you cannot measure an outcome you cannot build a feedback loop around it.
If you cannot measure an outcome you cannot build a feedback loop around it.
If you cannot measure an outcome you cannot build a feedback loop around it.
If you cannot measure an outcome you cannot build a feedback loop around it.