Janet Napolitano Quotes

Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy.

If we wait for threats to fully materialize, we will have waited too long …. The war on terrorism will not be won on the defensive.

We should not be focusing on quick solutions. The really important concern for policymakers everywhere is to prevent disasters - that is, the outlier events that matter the most.

To anticipate and prevent disasterous contingencies would be the part of wisdom and patriotism.

Most people assume that once security software is installed, they're protected. This isn't the case. It's critical that companies be proactive in thinking about security on a long-term basis.

Nuclear power plants must be prepared to withstand everything from earthquakes to tsunamis, from fires to floods to acts of terrorism.

The way you continue to be a successful business is you don't wait for the car to go off the cliff. You have to manage yourself. And make sure you do it in the right way so you are not making decisions in crisis.

I think the idea that you would do everything you can to prevent what is coming at you by way of something very disruptive - a 9/11 - it's a no-brainer.

It would be unwise to say the least, irresponsible of us at the TSA, at the Homeland Security Department not to evolve our technology to match the changing threat environment that we inhabit.

I always anticipated difficulties in order to avoid scenes.

Crisis management … is the worst type of policy because you will miss things.

We must solve problems before they occur, rather than scrambling to deal with crises after they erupt..

In the military, we have known for decades, if not centuries, that the time to prepare, whether it's for a hurricane, a typhoon or strategic changes, is before they hit you

I'd say if you wanted to forestall bad events, the best thing to do is anticipate them and try to correct them before they get close.

A system, artificially stabilized, and of course you have hidden risks under the surface, and you don't know where the risks are.

I'm sure appropriate measures will be explored as to what to do if that is concluded to make sure that number one, it doesn't happen again and make sure that we put systems in place that protect Americans.

If you don't choose to do it in leadership time up front, you do it in crisis management time down the road.

Take care of what is difficult while it is still easy, and deal with what will become big while it is yet small.

Unless confronted by an immediate, visible, or uncomfortable crisis, our nation's tendency is to take the security of the Western Hemisphere for granted.

One thing I've found is that if you educate and show people the risk, they will do something about it.

Do every single thing you can to protect yourself, your family, and your country.

How can government reduce the frequency and the severity of future catastrophes? Companies that have the potential to create significant harm must be required to pay for the costs they inflict, either before or after the fact. Economists agree on this general approach. The problem is in putting such a policy into effect.

We face a wide array of threats, which means we have to have a wide array of capabilities.

Government's first duty and highest obligation is public safety.

Over the years, I've been involved in many business crises. I qualify this, since my crises have never involved life and death or the survival of the human race. But they are still crises.