“Only the paranoid survive” is often celebrated as a leadership mantra. Constant vigilance, continuous scanning, relentless questioning. The idea is that leaders who assume stability are already falling behind.
Endless questioning can become indecision. Constant threat-scanning can turn into fear-based leadership. Organizations that never feel safe enough to stabilize also never feel safe enough to trust.
Grove’s famous questions push leaders to ask where change is coming from, what they might be missing, and who could disrupt them. These are useful questions, but they assume that perpetual disruption is the only meaningful state of existence.
In reality, not everything is a strategic inflection point, and not every shift is existential. Companies also need moments of consolidation, reflection, and trust in what already works.
Paranoia may help organizations survive uncertainty, but it should be a tool, not a permanent mindset. Otherwise, the goal becomes survival instead of progress.