SHTFPreparedness may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page.
Every year, nearly a million new preppers get online and try to figure out how to get ready for the next major disaster. And since there are literally thousands of articles on the topic, it can be very overwhelming.
If you’re one of those people, you might be asking questions like: Where do I begin? How can I afford this? What skills should I learn? What mistakes should I avoid? To help you out, I’m going to share some very important survival tips for beginners.
Finances
This affects everything else. You need money to buy supplies, and you need time to learn skills (and time is money). Your first goal should be to get out of debt. If we experience another Great Depression, having too much debt will put you in a terrible position.
You also need to build an emergency fund. This is something you should do whether you’re a prepper or not. And finally, you need to live a minimalist lifestyle. Move to a smaller home. Use fewer things. Repurpose your garbage. Make your own foods and products. Buy used instead of new.
Food and Water
Not only should you store water, but you should also store tools to help you purify water. And when you store food, make sure it’s food you like. A disaster is stressful enough, and it will be even worse if you’re eating foods you hate.
Another crucial tip is to rotate your food. When I started, I ended up throwing away hundreds of dollars in food because I stuck it in the back of the closet and forgot about it until after it expired.
You should also practice cooking without power. If you experience a long-term power outage, it won’t affect your mealtime in the slightest if you’re already used to cooking full meals with a grill or camp stove.
Other Survival Tips
There are many other survival tips you’ll want to learn. For example, you should always keep your gas tank at least half full. You should plan an evacuation route. You should get to know your neighbors. You should start exercising. And so forth.
Take all of these tips to heart. If you do, your prepper journey will be much smoother than mine was. Good luck!
