“Most setbacks can be effectively corrected at or near the time of their occurrence, and proactivity goes a step further. It means dealing with the problem before it materializes.”

Fixing things quickly is a real skill, and it is still repair work. The step past it is arriving before the damage does, so the trouble never enters your week at all. That takes two habits running together, seeing early and moving early, and the second is worth nothing without the first. It also explains why some people seem to have so few problems. Catastrophe usually sits one unnoticed moment away, and they noticed.