GIGO
In the 1950s theorists in the computer science field coined a term, GIGO, or “garbage in, garbage out”. Early scientists understood that the quality of any output is directly related to the quality of the input.
Example One: Advertising
If a company is analyzing the health benefits of their sugar-laden breakfast cereal, they may not want to compare their cereal to oatmeal and a banana. For advertising purposes, the cereal company will only analyze the data (input) about other sugar-laden cereals. This way they will be able to “honestly” say, “Our breakfast cereal is the best for you!” (output).
Example Two: Elections
A second example of GIGO might be voting for student body president. If someone enters all the ballots into a computer for tallying except for Teacher A’s classroom (input), the result will be an invalid election (output).
| GIGO = Whatever information is entered into an equation (input) determines the results (output). |
GIGO can affect you in many other ways than research, advertising or elections. It can also affect you personally in your day-to-day life.
Importance of GIGO to You Physically
How you take care of your body by eating healthy, making sure you are fully hydrated, staying in motion and assuring the quality of your sleep (all examples of input) will determine how well your brain processes information throughout the day (output).
Think about how you feel today after not getting a good night’s sleep last night when the wind was blowing, the cat was howling and every time there was a big clap of thunder, you were startled awake. How is your ability to think today? How are you at problem solving? Have you been short-tempered with your significant other or co-workers? These are all examples of GIGO. If you are not doing what you need to do for your body (input), you will not be able to function at 100% productivity (output).
If you are eating cupcakes for breakfast and skipping lunch (input), what chance do you have of being cool, calm and collected in that staff meeting this afternoon or dealing with an angry customer or with your kids when you pick them up after practice (output)?
When it comes to GIGO and your physical well-being, how you take care of your body really does affect how you process information and your interactions with others. GIGO may be even more important when you think about your relationship with your significant other.
The Importance of GIGO on Your Relationships
Whoever said relationships are 50-50 (50% effort by both people) has probably never been in a healthy relationship. For a relationship to be successful, both individuals need to put in 100% effort. Both. Even when you don’t want to. Even when you are too tired. Even when you think you are right and the other person is totally wrong. Both individuals must put in 100% effort (input) for a successful relationship (output).
Perhaps an example would be helpful:
Molly is frustrated that Don doesn’t do 50% of the cleaning around the house and 50% of the parenting of their two young children. His input in their relationship is that he will put the dishes in the dishwasher and take clothes out of the dryer, but never cleans the bathroom. He will pick up and drop off the kids at school or practice, but he never supervises bedroom cleaning or bath / brushing teeth / story time at night. His input into household chores and parenting is minimal. Don’s usual response? “Tell me what you want me to do and I will gladly do it!”
Don’s input into household chores and parenting frustrates and angers Molly. And when he says he will do anything, she just needs to tell him what he needs to do angers her even more! His input affects their relationship. The output (effect on the relationship) is that Molly feels Don is like one of the kids that she has to tell what to do. She loses respect for Don. The relationship suffers and may even end as the result of what she feels is a meager effort (input) on Don’s part.
Does this example feel a bit dramatic or over the top? Sadly, it is a very common scenario. It speaks to the importance of input (effort) in a successful relationship (output).
The Importance of GIGO at School or Work
It is not just relationships that are affected by the amount of your effort (input). If you put in thirty minutes of effort into writing a paper that is worth 25% of your final grade, should you really expect an A+ (output)?
An example at work might be that you are a roofer. You put new shingles on roofs to prevent leaks into the house. But you don’t really put much effort (input) into what you are doing. Some of the shingles aren’t layered properly. Some of the shingles have gaps. The result (output) will be a leaky roof during the next rain storm!
If you care about the quality of the output (garbage out), you will care about the input (garbage in).
Take Away Point
GIGO is understanding that whatever you put into a situation (input) will have a direct impact on the end result (output). Minimal input will have a low output or result. This is true at work, at school and at home.
With warmest regards,
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