feedback loops

a year out of university, i am truly understanding the importance of maintaining feedback loops in all aspects of my life.

i studied mechatronic systems engineering, and so one of the core courses i took was "control systems". in short, we learned how to mathematically architect systems that read some input, to create an output. there are two types of systems: open-loop and closed-loop.

open-loop systems operate where the control action is independent of the system's output. an example would be popping your bread in the toaster for two minutes, and then taking it out when you hear the timer go off.

closed-loop systems adjust the control action based on the system's output. let's say we had a "smart" toaster and it could detect the colour of your bread. if this toaster worked by stopping until it is golden brown, that would be a closed-loop system.

university is an environment where the closed-loop system is made very obvious. the system's output (your GPA) can be easily adjusted by the control action (you studying longer).

it is deceptively easy to slip into a prolonged liminal state or limbo period after graduation when you no longer have anyone or anything nudging you to work in any direction. it is now entirely up to you to create and newly define these new "systems" in your life, and more importantly to implement the closed-loop systems that define your progress.

this has become apparent across various facets of my life including my work, hobbies, and even relationships. for me, entrepreneurship has been the most prominent because it has been my main focus for the past year - i am now realizing that the lack of progress is entirely attributed to the absence of feedback loops, which ultimately led to a loss of conviction.

the way i would work before is setting goals based on a set of untested assumptions. these goals ended up being pretty ambiguous, and unrelated to a positive outcome like more users. a common example was thinking i needed to add features in hopes of driving usage; evidently, this did not do anything and after enough times i got pretty discouraged on the projects i worked on.

moving forward, i am starting with a hypothesis, creating a testing methodology, and then making a decision based on the results of the experiment (i.e., scientific method). this is especially helpful in the context of startups because a startup is a totally self-directed project in a realm with maximum uncertainty. when navigating such nebulous spaces, it is imperative to set up processes to determine whether or not each step is a positive step forward.

running is a regular exercise that has both entered and disappeared from my workout routine: it is an exercise that could never remain consistent because i would eventually come to the point of hating it. i would just aimlessly run on the treadmill for about 5km and would not feel any particularly type of way about it. as a result, running never became a part of my routine.

recently i picked up running again, and now at the end of each run i record my pace. seeing my continuous improvement, and essentially visualizing this feedback loop has completely shifted my attitude towards running. i have not dropped it yet, and now i am even considering running a half marathon since i have learned to enjoy the process.

my relationship with cooking is very similar to that of running. for the longest time i was the most stubborn person about learning how to cook proper meals, and would frequently buy food or make some shabby "girl dinner". i have certainly become a better chef after treating cooking like a learning activity where i can clearly see the personal improvement.

perhaps the notion of establishing feedback loops is obvious news, but this recent realization has fundamentally shifted how i approach anything unfamiliar. rather than relying on motivation and setting ambitious goals, i understand the value in creating a system where my progress is visible, measurable, and self-correcting.