Day 23 · 2026.06.13

Impermanence at Work: Treat the Tremors as Rhythm, Not Accident

Topic: Impermanence at Work·4 Principles
"What is quite unlooked-for is more crushing in its effect." — Seneca
This week's premise: reorgs, new bosses, layoffs, killed projects — in a large company these aren't system failures, they're the organization breathing. Treat them as accidents and every tremor flattens you; treat them as the default and you'll have positioned yourself before the wind arrives. This week covers four actionable things: making impermanence the default rather than the exception, locking your energy back onto what you control when the tremor hits, writing a ready-to-use Plan B in advance, and the most fundamental of all — not outsourcing your security to the company. We use Stoic and realist lenses to see the truth of the employment relationship, then prepare pragmatically.
PRINCIPLE 01

Impermanence Is the Default, Not the Exception Premeditatio Malorum

Mindset FoundationNegative VisualizationPremeditatio Malorum
The Principle in One Line
Large organizations reorganize roughly every 12–18 months — it's structural, not personal. Treating a reorg as "my turn eventually" to rehearse, rather than "how could this be me" to suffer, is the foundation for everything that follows.
In Their Words
"What is quite unlooked-for is more crushing in its effect, and unexpectedness adds to the weight of a disaster. This is a reason for ensuring that nothing ever takes us by surprise. We should project our thoughts ahead of us at every turn." — Seneca, Letters from a Stoic, Letter 91 (on the fire of Lugdunum)
Scene
Situation: BigCat hears rumors that a neighboring division is about to reorg. His own team has had no word yet.
✗ Common reaction (normalcy bias)

"My team's performing well, they'd never touch us." — and back to business as usual. Or the reverse: refreshing Blind and internal channels in anxiety, but taking no actual preparation. Both treat impermanence as accident: either denying it can come, or being paralyzed by its uncertainty.

✓ The fix (negative visualization)

Spend 30 minutes writing a rehearsal doc: "If my team gets folded into the neighboring org next quarter and my reporting line changes" — how would each of my reports fare? My own two most likely landing spots? What can I do today that would make that day less ugly?

The rehearsal isn't to feed anxiety — it's to digest the shock in advance. When it actually arrives, you've already thought it through, freeing bandwidth to act instead of process emotion.

Rehearsal Checklist (ask once a quarter)
  • If my team gets reorganized next quarter, what are the two or three most likely outcomes?
  • Under each, how is each of my reports affected? What can I do for them?
  • What signals would forecast it 1–2 months out? (see Card 2)
  • What small "do-it-today" things would make that day less passive for me?
Common Mistakes
  • "Not my turn this time" ≠ "never." Surviving one round isn't immunity, just this round's random result.
  • Turning rehearsal into empty catastrophizing. It must land on "actions I can take today," or it's just feeding anxiety.
  • Rehearsing only yourself, not the team. You're the manager; when the tremor hits, your reports watch whether you panic.
Key References
Seneca, Letters from a Stoic, Letter 91 — the classic source for "premeditatio malorum" (rehearsing misfortune).
Andy Grove, Only the Paranoid Survive — the "strategic inflection point": upheaval in industries and organizations is the norm; survivors are those who sense it early.
PRINCIPLE 02

When the Tremor Hits, Lock Energy Back onto What You Control Bracing for Reorg: The Dichotomy of Control

Dichotomy of ControlReorg SignalsHonest Comms
The Principle in One Line
Most of the pain during a reorg comes from spending energy on what you can't control — who decides, when it's announced, who stays. Forcibly pulling attention back to your controllables (my output, my people, my next step) is the only way to cut the drain while preserving your judgment.
In Their Words
"Some things are within our power, while others are not. Within our power are opinion, motivation, desire, aversion... not within our power are our body, our property, reputation, office." — Epictetus, Enchiridion §1
Dichotomy of Control: Energy Allocation During a Reorg
✗ Not in your control (let go) · How leaders draw the final org chart · The timing of the announcement · Who stays, who's cut · Coworkers' guesses on Blind · How others read the change · The macro layoff trend ✓ In your control (invest) · My actual output these two weeks · How I care for my team · Honest comms with my boss/skip · My resume and external network · My sleep, mood, judgment · The response I choose right now
Scene
Situation: The reorg is half-public. A report asks you privately: "Will I be cut? Can you promise me?"
✗ Failed response

"Don't worry, you'll be fine, I've got you." — you don't actually know the outcome, and you have no authority to promise. If he does get cut, you not only failed to help, you torched the trust: he'll conclude you were either ignorant or lying.

✓ Honest + focus on the controllable

"I won't lie and promise something I can't — the final list isn't in my hands, and I haven't seen the full picture yet. What I can tell you is: I will advocate hard for your value, and the moment there's anything I can share, you'll be the first to know."

"Before the outcome's clear, what helps you most is what we both do: ship clear results on your current work. And I'd suggest you refresh your resume too — not because I know something, but because that should always be ready."

Reorg Early-Signal Radar (1–2 months out)
  • Budget/headcount freeze, or hiring approvals suddenly slow and stall indefinitely.
  • Your boss starts holding frequent closed-door meetings you're not in, and gets vague with you.
  • Cross-team roadmap reviews keep getting pushed: "let's wait until the org settles."
  • Leadership language shifts from "growth/expansion" to "focus/efficiency/streamlining."
  • Consultants, a new VP, or an "org design" team appear — this is almost never neutral.
Common Mistakes
  • Over-promising to reports to look "in the know." An honest "I don't know" keeps trust better than a false "you're fine."
  • Burning all your energy mining uncontrollable inside info. Gossip makes you anxious; it rarely makes you safer.
  • Stopping delivery during the tremor. The opposite — clear output is the hardest amulet in a reorg.
Key References
Epictetus, Enchiridion §1 — the source of the dichotomy of control.
Ben Horowitz, The Hard Thing About Hard Things ("The Right Way to Lay People Off") — leading layoffs with honesty and no sugarcoating.
PRINCIPLE 03

The Pre-Written Plan B: Your Career Is Your Own Sole Proprietorship Your Pre-Written Plan B

Plan BABZ PlanningRunway
The Principle in One Line
Plan B isn't updating your resume the day you're cut — it's a standing set of assets: a cash runway of several months, an externally maintained network, transferable skills, a resume ready to send. Build it only when you need it, and you've already left it too late.
In Their Words
"No one owes you a career. You own it as a sole proprietor. You must compete with millions of individuals every day, and every day you must enhance your value." — Andy Grove, Only the Paranoid Survive
ABZ Planning: Always Hold Three Plans at Once
Plan A The current path · Excel at the job · But never assume it's permanent Plan B The adjacent pivot · Same skills, new company · Network kept warm Plan Z The safety floor · Cash runway · Survive the worst · Lets you take risks
Scene
Situation: BigCat is doing fine — zero layoff rumors. This is exactly the best time to build Plan B, because you're calm, hold leverage, and carry no desperation.
✓ Quarterly self-check (not a dialogue — an action)

Compute runway: at today's spending, how many months can my savings cover with no income? Below 6 months, fix that first — it buys you the standing to say no.

Tend weak ties: each quarter, proactively reach out to 3 people outside the company — coffee, a forwarded article, a small favor. On reorg day, opportunities almost always come from these weak ties you rarely talk to, not your closest colleagues.

Update the "achievements ledger": each quarter, record what you accomplished with quantified results. The day you need a resume, you won't face a blank, three-year recall.

Plan B Asset Checklist (inventory once a quarter)
  • Cash runway ≥ 6 months? (this is a floor, not a luxury)
  • Did I reach out to ≥ 3 people outside the company this quarter?
  • Is my resume / LinkedIn in a state I could send out within 30 minutes?
  • Was what I learned this past year a transferable skill, or just internal knowledge valuable only here?
  • Did I update the "achievements ledger" this quarter? (quantified results, not job-description boilerplate)
A Note for Women Leaders
Female Leader's Note Two structural facts make Plan B both more critical and harder to build for women. First, the pay gap makes the runway thinner — at the same spending, reaching a 6-month floor takes longer, so start earlier. Second, research shows women's professional networks tend to be more "internalized" and skewed toward strong ties, while what saves you in a reorg is precisely external weak ties. The countermeasure is concrete: treat "reach 3 people outside the company each quarter" as a non-negotiable discipline, even when it feels less "useful" than internal relationships right now.
Common Mistakes
  • Feeling no need for Plan B when things are smooth. Smooth times are when you build it calmly; build it in hard times and you're already negotiating from desperation.
  • Mistaking "internal knowledge" for skill. Mastery of this company's processes may be worth nothing elsewhere. Distinguish transferable from non-transferable.
  • Saving cash but not tending the network. Runway lets you hold on; the network gets you back on shore faster — you need both.
Key References
Andy Grove, Only the Paranoid Survive — "your career is your own sole proprietorship."
Reid Hoffman, The Start-up of You — ABZ planning and "permanent beta."
Mark Granovetter, The Strength of Weak Ties — the classic study that opportunities come more from weak ties than strong ones.
PRINCIPLE 04

Don't Outsource Your Security: The "We're a Family" Trap Don't Outsource Your Security

Employment Is a DealInternal SecurityRealism
The Principle in One Line
When the company says "we're a family," hear the subtext. Employment is fundamentally a transactional relationship — that's not cold, it's honest. Building your security on the company's promises is like building a house on someone else's land. Real sources of security must be internalized: skills, savings, relationships, a diversified identity.
In Their Words
"We're a team, not a family. A family is about unconditional love. A team is about achieving a shared goal — and you keep the people who help you win." — Patty McCord, Powerful (Netflix culture)
Scene
Situation: under performance pressure, a VP says emotionally at an all-hands: "No matter what happens out there, we're a family — you can rest easy."
✗ Taking the rhetoric as a promise

You relax, stop updating your resume, fully believe your boss's "I've got you," and bet your entire professional identity and future on this company. Three months later the layoff list comes out — the "family" line carries no legal or practical force whatsoever.

✓ Read the subtext + internal monologue

Nod publicly to signal you understand (no need to call it out on the spot — that's politically reckless). But know internally: "The harder they stress 'family,' the more likely it's emotion compensating for guarantees they can't deliver."

Tell yourself: "I'll do the work to the fullest, but my security comes from my runway, my skills, and my network — not from anyone's 'rest easy.'" Investing in the work and not outsourcing your security are not in conflict.

Security-Source Audit: Internal vs. External
  • If this job vanished tomorrow, would my sense of self-worth collapse? (collapse = identity over-outsourced — see Day 22)
  • Does my financial security rest on "this paycheck continuing," or on runway and assets?
  • Of my contacts, how many would still talk to me after I leave this company?
  • Are my skills recognized by the market, or only by this company?
  • Have I conflated "feeling needed" with "career security"?
Common Mistakes
  • Treating loyalty as insurance. Your loyalty to the company is one-directional — it places no constraint on them when they cut you.
  • Treating "family" rhetoric as a contract. The contract is the offer letter and labor law, not all-hands oratory.
  • Sliding from "seeing the deal clearly" into "cynicism and checking out." Realism is meant to make you invest better, not less — the real cost in this gray zone is having to hold "give it your all" and "harbor no illusions" at the same time.
Key References
Patty McCord, Powerful & Reed Hastings, No Rules Rules — the "team, not a family" view of employment.
Reid Hoffman, The Alliance — reframing employment as a "tour of duty": being honest that it's a deal makes real mutual trust more likely, not less.

This Week's Exercise · Your Day 23 Action

Do two concrete things this week — one rehearsal, one tangible:

(1) Compute your runway number. Divide the savings you could draw on without income by your monthly spending — you get a number of months. Write it down — it's the dial of your standing to say no. If it's below 6 months, list the three steps to fix it.

(2) Reach out to one person outside the company. This week, proactively message a former colleague or industry friend: schedule coffee, forward an article, or just check in. With no agenda — this is exactly the weak tie to tend while you're calm, before a reorg arrives.

Reflection: How much of my current sense of security rests on the assumption — which I can't control — that nothing changes?

Going Deeper

Won't "seeing employment as a deal" make people calculating and disengaged? How do realism and commitment coexist?
The key is to separate two layers. At the relationship layer you can be genuine — you truly care about your team and invest in their growth, no pretense needed. At the structural layer you stay clear-eyed — the legal and economic nature of employment is a transaction. Trouble comes from conflating the two: either going cold and checking out because "it's a deal," or fantasizing that the company will protect you unconditionally because "there's affection." Reid Hoffman's "alliance" framework is more mature: precisely because both sides acknowledge it's a time-bound, mutually beneficial collaboration, you can build real trust grounded in candor — rather than the brittle illusion sustained by "family" rhetoric.
Where's the line between premeditatio malorum and excessive anxiety or catastrophizing?
The dividing line is whether it lands on action. Rehearsing misfortune has an endpoint: imagine the worst → assess the real probability → list what you can do today → let go. Anxiety is an endless loop: imagining disaster over and over, escalating, producing no action. The Stoic rehearsal is essentially "cognitive desensitization" — facing it early to blunt the shock; anxiety does the opposite, repeatedly reinforcing fear. The test is simple: after this rehearsal, do I have one or two concrete next steps in hand? If yes, it was rehearsal; if not, it was feeding anxiety.
In cultures with stronger lifetime-employment norms (some Japanese firms, SOEs, the public sector), does "normalizing impermanence" simply not fit?
On the surface stability is higher, but note two things. First, "stability" is often bought with liquidity — you're harder to fire, but also harder to leave with your skills at a premium; once the system itself shifts (reform, merger, an industry shrinking), your transferability is weaker and the shock is greater. Second, impermanence changes form: not layoffs, but marginalization, reassignment, stalled promotion, a hollowed-out department. So the principle holds; only Plan B's form must adapt locally — in low-liquidity environments, "transferable skill" and "external network" are actually scarcer and more worth deliberately cultivating.
As a manager, I've prepared for impermanence myself — should I help my team build this mindset, and how, without sounding like I'm talking down the company or shaking morale?
Telling the team outright "the company could cut you anytime" is both overstepping and harmful. But you can instill the same resilience in a constructive form: package "building transferable skills," "maintaining an external network," and "updating an achievements record" as career development topics, discussed positively in career 1:1s. You're not talking down the company — you're helping them become stronger professionals, which happens to make them calmer when impermanence hits. The highest form of protection is making your people strong enough that "staying is a choice, leaving isn't scary" — not letting them believe it's safe here forever.