"Complex systems punish solutions that ignore feedback delays.
Read the quote as instruction, not as comfort. In a performance fix that adds coupling, the word solutions is where the cost hides. If you miss it, you will pay it later.
In a performance fix that adds coupling, people argue about preferences when the real issue is structure. You see it in a local optimization that creates global instability, where the system teaches everyone the wrong behavior. If the exception path is informal, it becomes politics; write the signal that makes an exception legitimate and who can approve it.
Donella H. Meadows is a reminder to keep it concrete. Define the exit condition before you read the next signal, so you can stop without rationalizing. A clear line beats a long explanation.