The Control System
The only thing you can control is how you choose to be. But there are systems that help you bring your best state to the moment.
The Two Loops
Most people hear "positive feedback" and think good. In engineering, positive feedback means runaway — amplification without correction. A microphone pointed at a speaker. Panic selling. Doom scrolling. No setpoint, no correction, no control.
Negative feedback is what gives you control. A thermostat measures temperature, compares to the setpoint, corrects. That's not "negative" in the colloquial sense — it's the mechanism of all progress.
| Positive (Reinforcing) | Negative (Corrective) | |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Output amplifies input | Output corrects toward setpoint |
| Colloquial | "Good thing" | "Bad thing" |
| Reality | Runaway, unstable | Controlled, progressive |
| Example | Panic selling, doom scrolling, addiction | Thermostat, deliberate practice, VVFL |
| Human without it | No vision, no identity — passenger | Clear character, clear purpose — pilot |
Without a setpoint — a clear picture of what good looks like — you have no control system. No sense of identity. No destiny. Just a passenger sailing into oblivion.
A corrective loop with a bad setpoint still has control — it just controls toward the wrong thing. A company optimizing for quarterly earnings has a corrective loop. It's just not virtuous.
The Validated Virtuous Feedback Loop is a third category:
| Loop Type | Setpoint | Measurement | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Positive (reinforcing) | None | None | Runaway — addiction, panic, drift |
| Negative (corrective) | Defined | Yes | Control — but toward what? |
| VVFL | Values-aligned AND reality-tested | Validated against outcomes | Progress that compounds AND serves |
Validated — the setpoint is tested against reality, not just believed. Predictions that get scored. Hypotheses that get measured. Not faith — evidence.
Virtuous — the setpoint serves beyond self. Goodwill that compounds. Standards that lift quality for everyone. Not extraction — contribution.
Feedback Loop — the output changes the input. Each cycle starts from a higher baseline. Not linear progress — compounding.
The Three Systems
| System | Question | What It Grounds | Maps To |
|---|---|---|---|
| Value | What grounds you? | Virtues, essentials, belonging | Principles |
| Belief | Where are you going? | Purpose, predictions, intentions | Scoreboard |
| Control | How do you navigate? | Attention, direction, speed, scale | Standards, Protocols |
Value System keeps you grounded when things get chaotic. What actually matters? What can't be compromised?
Belief System points direction. Where are you headed? What do you predict will be true? Why does any of this matter?
Control System gives you levers. Where do you focus attention? When do you change direction? How fast can you move? What can you scale?
State Engineering
Rituals, routines, protocols — these are control system interventions. They don't guarantee outcomes. They optimize the state you bring.
| Ritual | What It Does | Biological | Phygital |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morning Prime | Sets intention before noise arrives | Journaling, meditation | Context injection |
| Mode Switch | Transitions between states | Naps, walks | Agent switching |
| Capture Loop | Preserves insight before it evaporates | Whiteboard, voice memo | PostToolUse hooks |
| Evening Reflection | Closes the loop | Review, gratitude | Stop hooks |
Same pattern, different substrate. What's true for biological humans holds true for phygital humans too.
The P&ID Model
Standards are the GAUGE in any P&ID (Process & Instrumentation Diagram). Without standards, you cannot measure. Without measurement, you cannot close the feedback loop:
HOPPER → FILTER → PUMP → GAUGE → CONTROLLER
↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓
PURPOSE PRINCIPLES PLATFORM PERFORMANCE PERSPECTIVE
The P&ID is the Tight Five:
| P&ID | Function | Tight Five | Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| HOPPER | Capture → Focus | Purpose | Why does this matter? |
| FILTER | Quality gate | Principles | What truths guide you? |
| PUMP | Movement | Platform | What do you control? |
| GAUGE | Measurement | Performance | How do you know it's working? |
| CONTROLLER | Feedback | Perspective | What do you see others don't? |
The logo is the thesis. Control systems close the loop.
| World | Material | Standards Measure | Control Question |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atoms | Physical matter | Temperature, pressure, quality | "Is the milk pasteurized?" |
| Bits | Information | Latency, accuracy, completion | "Does the code pass tests?" |
| Ideas | Thoughts | Clarity, truth, impact | "Is this ready to ship?" |
See Thought Audit for the ideas factory, Construction Protocols for the atoms factory.
Standards are protocols that have been formally adopted and enforced. In the knowledge stack, standards enable the platform layer by making capability consistent, composable, and scalable. Without consistency, improvement is guesswork.
Context
- Design Thinking — Design is a control system with human needs as setpoint
- Design Review — The audit loop for design output
- Capital — Control systems direct capital through levers
- Agency — Control systems enable the perceive-act-learn loop
- Standards — The GAUGE that makes measurement possible
- Process Optimisation — Improve the flow