I wrote about how I use AI to analyse patterns from my daily notes. This workflow helps me see the gaps, the changes, and what I could improve in my own thinking.

This is part of my weekly review routine. This week’s note is not about the workflow.

What matters most is what happens after reading the report.

When reading the report, I mark the patterns I consider significant. These are the things I carry into the following week.

For example, in the past few weeks, I wrote, “Monday workday colliding with strength training into flat exhaustion.”

This might seem like a simple reflection that could easily be forgotten. But it was an observed pattern, and I carried it into the following week. I adjusted my workout routine to better balance my workouts and my day job.

I’ve been reading about Donella Meadows and her work on systems thinking.

Her idea of how feedback works caught my attention.

We usually think of feedback as information about something that has happened. But Meadows looked at feedback as part of a system.

A feedback loop happens when information about a system influences a response, and that response affects the system itself.

We might know something isn’t working, but that doesn’t mean anything will change. The information might not reach the person making the decision. Or the response might not be enough to correct the problem.

As a result, the system continues producing the same result, even though the problem is already known.

Looking back at my Monday workout problem, I can see how this works. The weekly review helped me recognise the pattern, and I made an adjustment to my routine. What I observed influenced what I did next.

After marking the patterns, I might try something different the following week. Other times, I just keep an eye on a recurring problem to see if anything changes.

I don’t expect to solve everything immediately. Some things need more time to understand.

The important lesson for me is to treat feedback as a loop, not just information.

I’m not trying to turn every observation into another task.

I just want what I learn from the review to have some influence on what happens next.

Until next time, keep writing.
Gav