Folding a piece of paper

Paper Folded Eight Times
Originally uploaded by Curis

Imagine having an infinitely flexible piece of paper. Now fold it in half. It's twice as thick. Folding that in half doubles the thickness again. If this was done forty more times, how high would the paper become? Think of your answer before reading any more. This is a favorite introductory exercise to the explanation of growth in System Dynamics that was a subject of The Active Investor's  first posting.

When I started, I was wondering how long it would take before a brand new blog (and blog author) would start to get feedback. Last week I was speaking with a leading DFW area commercial risk specialist, Javier Hernandez, and as we parted he mentioned enjoying his reading of The Active Investor. Feedback was first felt in week 9.

Why is this small comment such a big deal? Let's get back to paper folding to imagine the power of feedback cycles. How thick did you estimate the folded paper would become? If we assume the typical thickness of paper to be about 0.1mm, then after 42 folds the paper would be 440,ooo kilometers high. This would be higher than from here to the moon.

Of course, we just can't image that. Creating anything with feedback opens a door to incredible growth potential. While feedback is easily apparent with internet activities, it's the engine of all "word of mouth" marketing Active Investors seek. Our business plans and actions are best judged in the light of their potential feedback (there is both good and bad). Then as we begin to sense positive feedback, we can take heart that we're on the right track - possibly from here to the moon.