Think of survival prepping like car insurance. You don’t expect to crash your car every time you get behind the wheel, yet paying insurance gives you the peace of mind that in the event of an accident, you’ll be covered. You should think of prepping in the same way.
- Know the Threats Most Likely to Occur
Every decent survival guide will tell you that the first step to stellar survival preparedness is knowing what exactly you need to be prepared for.
No matter which part of the world you are in, every place has its own unique threats. There are earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, etc. You also need to consider random events like fires, floods, terrorist attacks, freak storms, and so on. When you know what threats are most likely to come your way, it will help you significantly in your survival prepping.
- Create and Practice an Emergency Plan
It is important to make sure that your family knows what to do in case of emergency. It is not ideal to try to pick a safe place to meet while you have a tornado coming through the back yard nor is it smart to have to improvise an emergency plan during the middle of a catastrophe. The basic point here is that you should have thought of an emergency plan ahead of time. This is why schools practice fire drills so when a fire happens, schools, students, and teachers know what to do.
By creating an emergency plan, you make sure that everybody knows what to do and where to meet if there is a situation where you become separated from each other. Your family should practice an emergency plan so that when the time comes, you are all well-prepared and you can survive any disaster that comes your way. This is also called contingency planning.
- Create an Inventory Sheet of Your Belongings or Valuables
Another integral aspect of survival prepping is maintaining an inventory sheet of all the valuables you own. Make sure that you record the serial numbers, physical descriptions, and dates of purchase of your valuables so that you know exactly what you have. You should take pictures as well, even if it is just a general picture of each part of your house. You will find it helpful when the time comes to make insurance claims, and also with disaster aid.
- Pick Up Extra Things While Shopping
It is important for you to start building your stockpile as soon as possible. First, make a list of foods and non-perishables that you will be needing and take it to the store on your next shopping trip. What is poignant about this is you do not need to make a huge investment all at once. All you need to do is pick up a few extra things on each shopping trip.
For example, buy 2 packs of toilet paper instead of buying 1. Instead of two, put four cans of soup into your cart. It is really simple and before you know it, you will see that you have started a nice supply. Another marvelous way to build up your supply is to take advantage of coupons and promotions at the store.
- Build a Basic Survival Kit
Remember that you should not make your survival kit more complicated than it needs to be. All you need to put into this kit are tools that you will need to survive. Your must-haves include:
- Eyeglasses and prescription medicine
- Flashlights and extra batteries (make sure one is an LED flashlight with extra batteries)
- First aid kit
- A minimum of 1 gallon water for each person per day (ideally it should be 2 gallons per person)
- Assuming that you may need to travel, you should have enough money to get you through 3 days at least
- Enough nutritious nonperishable food such as canned foods, power bars, and ready-to-eat meals to last for 3 days or more
- Manual can opener
- Matches and striker (make sure that you seal it in a waterproof container); fire-starters like cotton balls dipped in Vaseline, toilet paper tubes that have lint, etc.
- A whistle to help you call out to rescue workers
- Two changes of weather-appropriate clothing for each person, including socks and underwear
- Blankets
- Water purification tablets
- Toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, deodorant, and other hygiene products
- Duct tape
- Paper plates and plastic utensils
When you have conducted and established proper survival prepping, you and your family are well-prepared for any disaster that may come your way. With preparation, you ensure survival.