The Metis story is interesting because according to the prophecy Metis would have two children - Athena and then a son who would ovethrow Zeus. This would have represented a triumph for the Titans, including Metis, over Zeus and his Olympians. So Zeus prevented this next generation from being born by swallowing Metis whole, thus absorbing her wisdom as well.
So we have to assume that Athena has the prudence and forethought of her mother, and the cunning of her father. (Metis had cunning too, as she came up with the plan to free the Olympians by making Kronos vomit them up.)