By Rusty Collins
Setting goals and hitting them is not just good for prepping, but it’s good for anyone’s personal development. As preppers we plan for plenty of situations, but why not plan for self-improvement as well? New Year’s resolutions give us the perfect opportunity for some introspection, skill-building, and continuous improvement.
Some prepper-oriented resolutions stand out, but working on yourself in any way is always time well spent. Setting your resolutions up as specific goals that you can meet is a good idea so that you can track your progress and review it at the end of 2024.
Here are some of the more impactful prepper resolutions that you can consider for the New Year:
Pick up a New Hobby
Prepping isn’t just about preparedness. There are plenty of opportunities out there to learn new skills with new hobbies. Diving into a hobby for the new year is a good way to meet people, challenge yourself, and grow.
Get Back to Basics
Check up on your Emergency Survival Plan. When was the last time you ran a drill? Are the contact numbers up to date? Make sure your fire alarms are working and your fire extinguishers are charged.
Besides just checking all this once, put these tasks on a recurring schedule so you can make it a habit.
Rotate Your Food Storage
It’s one thing to check your expiration dates, but you can also document, track, and organize your food storage based on type and expiration. I’m a huge fan of FIFO storage- first in, first out for food rotation. Make a plan to not only stockpile food but use it as well. We have a guide on prepper pantries and survival food stockpiles to help you get started.
Breaking the Habit
It may not be smoking anymore, but I’m willing to bet a few of the habits on our ‘habits preppers should break list‘ apply to you. Some simple bad habits can have extremely bad effects in emergencies. Picking your nose and biting your nails can severely hurt your chances in a deadly pandemic. Phone addictions can hurt attention spans when you create dependencies. Use the New Year as an excuse to finally tackle that habit that’s been nagging you your whole life and put it behind you for good.
Diversify Your Finances
Don’t keep all your eggs in one basket, and don’t keep all of your money in one spot either. Spreading your money between different investments is called diversification, and it’s not just smart for investing- it works well for prepping. Although we don’t give specific financial advice, we do talk about why financial preparedness is important for preppers.
Volunteer in Your Community
Being prepared on your own is one thing and is commendable. But then what? Spread preparedness by volunteering in your community. The main go-to is CERT – Community Emergency Response Teams but there are many more options to consider. Volunteering your time and resources to help others will help you grow as a person and improve other’s preparedness. The better a community is prepared, the better off everyone is.
Get the Kids Involved
It can be tempting to keep kids in their lane but getting them involved and understanding preparedness early can help them not just during emergencies but build resiliency for life. When my wife and I sit down to review the year we also set resolutions about our kids. Assigning them responsibilities and being intentional in the direction of your parenting can help you sculpt future leaders and preppers. One of the easiest ways to get kids involved beyond the basic emergency plan is to build a kids’ bug out bag with them.
Meet Other Preppers
Prepping doesn’t have to be a solo activity and it flourishes when it’s approached in groups. Finding a prepper group may not be as easy as picking up a golf partner, but it’s not hard either. You just need to know where to look. Many preppers practice ‘OPSEC’- so they aren’t going around telling everyone they have a stockpile of resources for an emergency with skills to match. It may take some time, but the larger your support group, the safer and more secure you will be in a disaster situation.
Get Organized
Resources aren’t as helpful if you can’t find them when you need them. Organization is part of planning and is critical to keep track of supplies and resources so that they are available and ready when you need them.
Improve Your Fitness
This may be the most obvious on our list, but we’re not talking about running a marathon or dropping serious pounds here. Practical prepper fitness is extremely important for emergencies. With few exceptions, regardless of your age or physical condition, there is always room to improve your strength and stamina. We’re not here to tell you to change your whole lifestyle, but you do need to be fit enough to not fall apart when disaster strikes and you have to be more active than normal.
The Final Word
Well, it’s been a great year for me, and I hit most of my resolutions from last year. I’ve always found it helpful to document them, share them with someone who will hold me accountable (i.e.. the wife), and word them so they are measurable within a time limit. Some people use the SMART goal acronym, but no need to get all fancy with it.
I hope you have a great New Year and get to spend plenty of time with your friends and family. I am looking forward to focusing a bit more on communication and first aid in the coming year. As always, I appreciate you taking the time to read our reviews, guides, and articles.
Keep exploring, stay prepared, and be safe.
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