In this case, he/she is probably referring to dealing with things before they have a chance to turn into big issues - remembering to buy toilet paper when you're almost out, picking out clothes the night before when you need to be up early, actually getting enough sleep / exercise, etc.

Uncomfortable and boring sometimes, but you can avoid a lot of stress by catching things before they turn into big issues. Of course, if you thrive on drama, then making a habit of ignoring things until they blow up in your face will feed the fire. (Know anybody like that?)

I think the people at my old Aikido dojo called this "zanshin".

Are you kidding? If you want to see the negative consequences of ignorance, just look at the trajectory of the US over the last decade. All the new problems the US faces today were anticipated by astute Cassandras.