
Most of the time prepping is about being in the “hurry up and wait” mode, which can cause us to become complacent about prepping. This might seem counter intuitive, but not having to use our preparedness supplies because of a disaster is actually a good thing.
While some of us might secretly hope for a small power outage, or a reason to test our preparedness level, hopefully none of us hope for a large-scale disaster that could change our lives forever.
SPP198 The Dangers of Becoming Complacent as Preppers
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Below is a list of the topics we covered in the Survivalist Prepper Show this week. We talked about everything from escalating tensions around the world, preparing for natural disasters and other dangers of becoming complacent as preppers.
No Sense of Urgency
It can be tough to prioritize prepping when things are going good, and we don’t have that a sense of urgency. I think this happened to quite a few people after this election. People thought that because Trump won (or maybe because Hillary lost) they could relax about their prepping.
We can’t afford to lose our sense of urgency and become complacent with prepping, because bad things usually happen when we least expect it. When those times come that I feel like I have nothing to worry about, I start to worry about what I’m missing.
The Calm Before the Storm
With prepping, there are always ebbs and flows. There are times when I seems like everything is going well, but we know something could be right around the corner. While we are always looking ahead, some people don’t. Some people sell off their preparedness supplies or let their food storage dwindle.
As preppers we need to take advantage of this lull in the action instead of becoming complacent. When there is less demand, it usually means cheaper prices and sales. We can also take advantage of this lull in action and do some of the things we have been putting off for a while.
Attention to Detail
Sometimes when we think we have the best plan in the world, we end up getting bit in the butt because of something minor. In a SHTF scenario something minor could turn into something life threatening. We could have the best bug out vehicle, packed to the roof with all of our preparedness supplies, but if we forget to fill the gas tank it’s game over.
We can get complacent about everything from getting an oil change, to preparing for complete societal breakdown. As people we are creatures of habit, and we need to make a conscious effort to avoid that. This is why knowledge and skills are so important. The more we know, the better our chances are of catching those small details.
The Easy Life
Just about no one alive today has ever had to live through a world wide crisis (like WW2) and there has never been a large scale attack on U.S. Soil other than Pearl Harbor. The weapons we have today are much different than the mortars and tanks of WW2. Weapons are being developed that can be launched for anywhere around the world, and land in your back yard.
With countries like N.Korea and Iran hell bent on our destruction we can afford to be complacent. The United States has been the king of the hill for a very long time. The only way do remain the king of the hill and keep our freedoms is to deal with those who threaten us, not by crossing our fingers or asking please.
Crying Wolf
Sometimes as preppers we can become complacent because we fear an economic collapse and nothing happens. We hear about N.Korea testing missiles and nothing happens. The more this happens, the more we say “yeah, I’ve heard this story before”.
The problem is that we know eventually something will happen, whether it’s an economic collapse, bombs dropping or something else. Just like the story of the boy who cried wolf, eventually the wolf will come, and the sheep that are asleep will be the first to go.
Outside Our Front Door
At times we can get so focused on the larger SHTF scenarios that we forget about natural disasters and things around the home. While these larger disaster scenarios are important, there are other small scale scenarios we need to keep in mind.
Preparing for natural disasters and personal doomsday’s could be more important because they are more likely to affect you. Prepping isn’t just about Nuclear bombs and Martial Law, it’s about being prepared for ANYTHING that might affect you and your family.
Situational Awareness
As I said earlier, people are creatures of habit. Eventually these habits become routine, and we are basically sleepwalking through life. We might take the same route to work everyday, or we might go to the bank the same time and day every week. This all makes us to becoming a target for someone who is paying attention to what we are doing, even when we aren’t.
Situational awareness is also about paying attention to what is going on around you at all times. It can be easy to become complacent because our daily lives are usually pretty boring, and nothing ever happens. Criminals are opportunists, and all they need is 1 opportunity to take advantage of.
Our Health
Becoming complacent about our health is probably something we all do at one point or another. This is because the affects of not eating right, or not exercising aren’t immediately noticeable. Over time these affects could lead to health issues and illness that could have dire consequences in an SHTF scenario.
It seems like some people won the genetic lottery and can eat of drink whatever they want, while some of us need to watch out for everything. Regardless which category you fit into, it’s important to be as healthy as possible because when there are no doctors or medications available, you are on your own.
Overconfidence
Overconfidence can lead to complacency because we think we have it all figured out. Sometimes we can work our butts of preparing and take a break for a week. That week can turn into a month, and then 6 months leaving us right back where we started.
We all know that “know it all” or someone who thinks they have it all figured out. Anyone who tells you they know everything about a certain subject is probably not the person to listen to. We are all constantly learning and evolving, and there is always something new to learn.
Urgency and Fear
There is a huge difference between prepping with urgency, and prepping because of fear. We can’t afford to let these disaster scenarios consume our lives. Yes, there are some pretty bad things, and some pretty bad people out there, but all we can do is what we can do.
The reason we prepare is to remove some of that fear. We can only do what we can do, and the rest is in gods hands.
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