NOWWT - Now What

Input: $ARGUMENTS

Core Principles

Something changed. Start there. “Now what” always follows an event. The event changed something — your situation, your options, your constraints, your information. Identify what changed before deciding what to do.
React to reality, not to feelings. After unexpected events, the emotional response comes first. Acknowledge it, then set it aside and assess what actually changed in concrete terms.
Not everything needs an immediate response. Some changes are urgent. Some can wait. The first job is to separate what needs action NOW from what can wait.
Good news and bad news both require adjustment. Unexpected success can derail you just as easily as unexpected failure. Both require a “now what” assessment.

Step 1: What Just Happened?

EVENT: [what happened — from $ARGUMENTS]
EXPECTED: [yes/no — did you see this coming?]
VALENCE: [positive / negative / neutral / mixed]

Step 2: What Changed?

List the concrete changes this event creates:

WHAT CHANGED:
  GAINED: [new resources, options, information, capabilities]
  LOST: [closed options, resources spent, constraints added]
  SHIFTED: [priorities that moved, timelines that changed, relationships that altered]
  REVEALED: [things you now know that you didn't before]

Step 3: What Does This Mean for Your Goals?

CURRENT GOAL: [what you were working toward]
IMPACT: [how the event affects this goal]
  - Goal still valid? [yes / no / needs revision]
  - Path still valid? [yes / no / needs revision]
  - Timeline still valid? [yes / no / needs revision]

Step 4: What’s the Most Important Response?

Based on the event type, follow the appropriate path:

Path: Unexpected Success

Something went better than planned.

RISKS OF SUCCESS:
  - Overcommitting based on one win
  - Changing strategy when the current one is working
  - Ignoring what actually caused the success
→ RESPONSE: [capture what worked, secure the gain, then decide if it changes your plan]

Path: Unexpected Failure

Something went wrong.

TRIAGE:
  - Is there damage to contain RIGHT NOW? [yes → contain it first]
  - Is the failure recoverable? [yes → recovery plan / no → adaptation plan]
  - Did you learn something that changes your approach? [what]
→ RESPONSE: [contain damage if any, extract the lesson, adjust plan]

Path: Surprise Information

You learned something you didn’t know.

INFORMATION IMPACT:
  - Does this invalidate any current assumptions? [which ones]
  - Does this open new options? [what]
  - Does this close options you were counting on? [what]
→ RESPONSE: [update your assumptions, reassess options, adjust plan]

Path: External Change

Something outside your control shifted.

NEW CONSTRAINTS:
  - What can you no longer do? [list]
  - What can you now do that you couldn't before? [list]
  - What stays the same? [list — this is often bigger than you think]
→ RESPONSE: [adapt to new constraints, exploit new possibilities, continue what still works]

Step 5: What Can Wait?

ACT NOW: [things that need immediate action — hours, not days]
ACT SOON: [things that need action this week]
CAN WAIT: [things to address later or that may resolve themselves]
IGNORE: [things that feel urgent but aren't actually important]

Output Format

NOW WHAT
========

EVENT: [what happened]

WHAT CHANGED:
  + [gained]
  - [lost]
  ~ [shifted]
  ! [revealed]

GOAL IMPACT: [one sentence on how this affects your current goal]

→ MOST IMPORTANT RESPONSE: [the one thing to do first]
  THEN: [what comes after]

TIMING:
  NOW: [immediate actions]
  SOON: [this week]
  LATER: [can wait]

Failure Modes

Failure	Signal	Fix
Panic response	All actions marked “ACT NOW”	Most things can wait. Force at least one item into CAN WAIT
Ignoring emotional impact	Jumping straight to planning after bad news	Pause. Name the feeling. Then plan
Overreacting to good news	Scrapping entire plan because one thing went well	The plan was working. The success is data, not a mandate to change everything
Missing what stayed the same	All focus on what changed	Most of your situation is unchanged. Anchor to stability
No concrete actions	”Reassess” or “think about” as outputs	What specifically are you going to do, where, and by when?

Integration

If user needs to start something new after the event: route to /strt
If user is stuck processing the event: route to /unstk
If the event requires a decision: route to /decide or /dcp
If the event is emotional: route to /emotion
For simple “what’s next” without a triggering event: route to /wtdn or /nstep
Differs from /wtdn: wtdn is for ongoing work; nowwt is for after something happened
Differs from /next: next classifies and routes; nowwt processes aftermath

nowwt - Now What