About this quote

Some people keep their head down and still end up in the middle of problems. That’s the idea here: trouble often shows up uninvited, so pretending it won’t is a poor use of your time. Notice the patterns that keep attracting hassle and do one small thing to reduce the next hit. Who do you call first when something goes wrong? Have that contact and a quick plan ready, then move forward.

When to use it

• At the office, right after a last-minute bug appears before deployment, you laugh to your teammate, "I don't go looking for trouble. Trouble usually finds me."
• At family dinner when an old bill surfaces and everyone's looking for answers, you shrug and drop the line with a grin.
• During finals week when an administrative hold pops up on your transcript, you tell your roommate, "I don't go looking for trouble. Trouble usually finds me," and then get on the phone.
• On the soccer pitch after a misplayed pass creates chaos, you jog back and tell your captain the line to break the tension.