If you’ve spent any time online looking into emergency preparedness, you’ve probably seen the same type of content over and over, “Something bad could happen anytime.” “You’re not ready.” Or “You need to act now.” It’s designed to make you feel urgency. Sometimes even fear.
But here’s the truth, fear doesn’t prepare you. Knowledge does. This leads me to the problem with most preparedness content. A lot of emergency advice today focuses on grabbing attention, not actually helping people.
Obviously this is a business for most of us, and the goal is to make money. However, let’s be real, scaring people into buy gear and stuff doesn’t automatically help them. This keeps the prepper community surface level. We look untrustworthy and like Spammy Scamys trying to dropship, even if that's not the case, (it's not for us BTW).
It’s common to see stuff like, “buy water,” “get food,” or “have a flashlight”. You’ll see listings about it too; but there’s no real guidance on how much, how long, or how to store and/or use any of that stuff.
It skips real world application. Knowing what to buy is one thing; knowing how to use it under stress is what actually matters. Preparedness shouldn’t feel overwhelming. It should feel controlled, intentional, and practical.
Another thing that I want to touch on in the prepper community, emergencies aren’t rare events, why do they act like they are? Severe thunderstorms happen. Tornadoes happen. Hurricane damage freaking happens! Being prepared for these events shouldn’t only be about extreme, once-in-a-lifetime scenarios.
Why are we training like vehicle break downs, power outages, flooding, and even medical delays or supply shortages aren’t a thing? These are the situations real people really face, and they could be on a weekly basis. They require planning, not panic.
If we believed that it was only about having the most gear, we’d be pushing that; hard. It’s about having the education to employ the right gear and knowing how to use it.
So, what do I suggest? Instead rushing to buy all this expensive gear, start by asking yourself some hard questions:
1.) What are the situations that are most likely to happen where I live?
2.) What type of weather can I be stranded in?
3.)If I had to leave my house immediately for any reason, do I have what I need to function?
4.)Do I have backup copies of my most important documents in case of fire or flooding? If so, are they in waterproof or fire resistant places?
This is where I’d advise any of you to start. The answers to these questions will blow your mind. This isn’t a “I must buy this super backpack now!” deal either. This is just common preparation that we all should be doing for common sense reasons.
Now, it’s not just me saying these things, here’s what actual data statistics say:
Only 51% of Americans say they are prepared for a disaster
https://riskandresiliencehub.com/are-americans-prepared-for-disasters-femas-survey-reveals-key-findings/
Only 5% of Americans have a fully stocked emergency kit
https://www.safehome.org/research/home-emergency-preparedness-study/
20% of Americans have no emergency supplies at all
https://www.safehome.org/research/home-emergency-preparedness-study/
48% of Americans have gathered emergency supplies
37% have created a preparedness plan
12% have coordinated with others
https://riskandresiliencehub.com/are-americans-prepared-for-disasters-femas-survey-reveals-key-findings/
65.5% complete resource-based preparation (gear)
41.1% complete action-based preparation (plans and skills)
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2764814
Average of 23 major disasters per year in recent years
https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/billions/state-summary/US
Approximately 3,200 major power outages occur per year in the U.S.
https://www.nationalacademies.org/read/24836/chapter/7
25.4% of U.S. households experienced a power outage
https://earth911.com/health/prepare-for-power-outages/
83% of outages are caused by weather
https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/surging-weather-related-power-outages
Many emergency preparedness models are based on 24+ hour outages and short-term disruptions
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7704536/
62.1% of outages lasting 8+ hours are caused by weather-related events
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-38084-6
44% of Americans are more concerned about disasters than the previous year
54% have taken preparedness steps in the past year
https://www.safehome.org/research/home-emergency-preparedness-study/
Nearly 60% of Americans have never practiced a disaster response plan
https://globalbiodefense.com/2015/04/29/sixty-percent-of-americans-not-practicing-for-disaster/
It looks pretty plain from these stats that a “Grid down” situation isn’t what you want to prepare for. It’s everything else.
Most emergencies are resolved within 72 hours. That’s why a properly built 72-hour kit isn’t just a suggestion, it’s kind of foundation. And guess what? You can make one yourself!
A really good 72 hour kit should cover the following:
Water and purification
Food that requires minimal prep
Shelter and warmth
Lighting and communication
Basic medical needs
Nothing about that is difficult, and it should all be prepped in a way that’s grab-and-go.
All in all, Will something major happen? Maybe. Maybe not. But smaller emergencies? Those are guaranteed; and I don’t believe anyone needs to be scared into preparing. People need to be equipped, informed, and packed up, but not scared.
What you’re preparing for isn’t the end of the world. It’s everything that happens before that.
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