Common Prepper Mistakes

Keith Thomas  00:02

Welcome to typical prepping the podcast for those who would like to start their own disaster preparedness plan, or those who have gotten started, but are not quite sure where or how to take the next steps. Each week I'll present a disaster preparedness topic with actionable tips and strategies that you can implement to start or grow your personal disaster preparations. Thanks for stopping by to listen today.

Keith Thomas  00:56

Hi, I'm Keith, and welcome to typical prepping. In this episode, we'll talk about some of the most common mistakes preppers make. So, you've decided it's time to prepare for emergencies and disasters. That's great! You're taking steps to ensure the safety and survival of yourself and your family in what are often Unstable Times and in the face of increasingly severe weather and natural disasters. Like any new skill, there's a learning curve involved with prepping and a set of common mistakes people make as they learn how to protect themselves. Knowing what mistakes to avoid will help you gain the skills and supplies you need faster and more effectively. Here are some of the more common mistakes brought to you by more experienced preppers so you won't repeat their growing pains. 

Buying Before Researching

Keith Thomas  01:51

Buying before researching, once you realize you need to prepare for emergencies, it's tempting to rush into stockpiling supplies. This is a very effective way to max out your credit card and buy equipment and supplies that don't fit your needs. Make an assessment of all the possible emergencies and disasters that are likely to occur in your area. These will be the emergencies you want to prepare for. Preparing for a hurricane or tsunami while living in Minnesota is not only ridiculous, but a waste of time, money, and resources. Do your research first. Read up on disaster prepping and gather the information you need to make an informed decision. Don't rely on a sole source of information either. Just like any other community. The prepping community has people who spread inaccurate information. Read all you can and then start buying what you know you'll need, not what you think you'll need.

Choosing Supplies Over Training

Keith Thomas  02:59

 Choosing supplies over training supplies alone won't keep you safe. Would you be able to fend for yourself if your food supply burned to the ground? If you had to provide emergency medical assistance, would you be able to use the items in your first aid kit effectively? Supplies are nothing without skills, especially in a disaster situation. If you buy a medical kit, take first aid classes. If you own a rifle, Learn to Hunt. learning new skills is one of the most enjoyable parts of disaster prepping and knowing you can handle yourself in an emergency is a real confidence booster.

Not Keeping a Survival Library

Keith Thomas  03:44

 Not keeping a survival library. While there are fantastic online prepping resources all of them need an internet connection and a power source. You might say well I've downloaded all these manuals and resources to a flash drive to use without an internet connection. In an emergency, especially a long-term disaster you might find yourself without a power source. Books, however, are much more reliable. If you have the money and resources, you can also print books, manuals, and reference guides that you've downloaded to place in binders for later use. Just be mindful that if you're bugging out, you may not be able to take your complete library with you.

Discounting What You Already Own

Keith Thomas  04:34

 Discounting what you already own. One of the best pieces of advice a prepper ever gave me was simple and elegant. Don't reinvent the wheel. Chances are you already have items and supplies you could use in an emergency. They may not be sufficient for a full-scale emergency, but that doesn't make them useless.  Do you need a $500 sleeping bag if you've got thick camping blankets? How long could you sustain yourself from the food in your pantry? Do you own outdoor equipment you can use in a disaster? Chances are some of the things you'd need to survive are already in your home or garage.

Limiting Food Choices

Keith Thomas  05:20

 Limiting food choices. There are disaster preppers out there sitting on stockpiles of food consisting solely of rice, beans, wheat, sugar, salt, and nothing else. That's a horribly, unimaginative diet, even if you only must live off your stores for a week. With today's advances in dehydration and freeze-drying, there's no reason to limit your food choices, an emergency is tough enough without having to endure another meal of unseasoned beans. Buy a varied selection of emergency food and learn to cook it. Keep an inventory of what you have and rotate items with limited shelf lives by cooking them as part of your regular meal preparations. Don't forget to choose the foods you and your family eat on a regular basis. And don't forget snack foods like cookies, brownies, or popcorn. Part of the idea here is to restore some sense of normalcy to a chaotic situation. This serves to calm nerves and boost morale. Don't limit your emergency supplies to just food and water. A small supply of personal hygiene products, pet supplies, cooking equipment, and extra clothing will make waiting out a disaster easier and more comfortable.

Assembling an Arsenal is Not Prepping

Keith Thomas  06:48

 Assembling an arsenal is not prepping. Hollywood has a one-dimensional view of disaster preppers. They're the characters living in the cabin in the woods filled with guns and ammo. Sadly, some people really do prep this way. Amassing a large amount of firepower with little in the way of food or water. This is not prepping firearms and ammo have their place in a disaster plan. You might have to defend yourself or hunt for food. But all firepower and no food is the strategy of someone who doesn't know what it takes to survive a disaster. 

Loose Lips

Keith Thomas  07:31

 Loose lips. Even if you're excited about prepping, keep it to yourself. There's no reason people outside of the family need to know about your supplies. In the event of a serious disaster, you only want trusted friends and family in the loop. That guy with all the guns and ammo. You definitely don't want him knowing about your water and food resources when he gets hungry.

Underestimating Water Needs

Keith Thomas  07:59

 Underestimating water needs. Perhaps the single greatest mistake a novice prepper can make. A previously well-fed adult can last for weeks without food. It wouldn't be pleasant, but it's possible. Without water, most of us would be dead within days. store as much water as you can. The standard advice is a gallon per person per day. Stored in heavy-duty stackable containers and understanding how to gather and purify water will prove invaluable if you're forced to ride out and long-term cessation of public services.

Keith Thomas  08:40

 If you're new to prepping, remember, to ask yourself these questions. What do I already have that I can use? How much food do I have in the pantry? How much water do I need? By all means, take your prepping seriously but have fun gathering supplies and learning new skills. If you haven't made an emergency plan for your family, check out Episode #2, The Family Emergency Communication Plan, Episode #3 Financial Disaster Planning, and Episode #4 The Basic Emergency Supply Kit. Be sure to see the show notes for those episodes and download the necessary documents to help make your plan. 

Keith Thomas  09:27

Well, folks, that's gonna do it for this week. Thanks for listening and join me next week for another preparedness topic. And until then, stay safe and be prepared.

Keith Thomas  09:38

 If you enjoyed this podcast. Please share it with your friends and family leave us a five-star rating and a review on your favorite podcast app. This really helps the show and get our message out to others looking to start or improve their prepping skills. If you found value in this content, feel free to leave me a donation at buymeacoffee.com/ typicalprepping. Your donation helps with the production cost of the show so I can continue to bring you more amazing content. Also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. If you're unable to access these links in the show notes on your favorite podcast platform, you can access them on our website at typicalprepping.com Until next time, stay safe and be prepared!