Little steps

People new to prepping can get overwhelmed in a hurry. I wanted to point out that prepping is usually done in small, steady steps.
In my experience, the priorities are:

1: Water
2: Food
3: Shelter
4: Defense

There are dozens upon dozens of other preparations to make, but these are the top priorities, IMHO; the place most people start.

Water is a fairly easy one to cover. Store bottled water in the home. And get a filter or come up with a way to treat water so you can continue to drink water after the bottled water runs out. Identify water sources in your area---ponds, lakes, streams, ect. These are the sources you will turn to for sustained water consumption.

Food is another fairly easy one. (You will need a way to cook your food without electricity from the power company or gas from the gas company. A barbecue grill with extra propane tanks makes for an easy start on that.) First, look in your cupboards. Identify the foods you already eat and regularly purchase that have a long shelf life. Each grocery trip you make plan to purchase more of those items so you begin to build a stock of these items. Canned and dry goods are what you are looking for. Down the line you can focus on larger, long term storage foods that come in 5 gallon buckets. But first, put a little effort each week into purchasing extra items that you already eat. This might also help your significant other get used to the idea of preparedness before you begin really going for it.
But if you feel the need to jump start your food preps immediately you might consider getting beans and rice that are packed in 5 gallon buckets for long term storage. Your call.

Shelter should be the easiest of all. You already live somewhere, hopefully, so you should already be covered. You might want to look into making your home or apartment more secure. New locks, alarms, ect... Just imagine having to stay in your home for an extended period of time and try to figure out what will make you more comfortable and secure in your home.

Defense is just plain fun. Firearms are my #1 choice for defensive tools, but they're not the only tools out there. Begin thinking about what you're willing to do---how far you're willing to go---to defend your home and family. Purchase tools accordingly. If you're not willing to kill to protect your family and home, then look into non-lethal tools to persuade potential attackers to leave you alone.
Also, along with defensive tools, keeping your mouth shut is another part of your defense. And it costs you nothing! [Beer] Do not tell all your friends and neighbors that you are ready for TEOTWAWKI (The End Of The World As We Know It). If they don't know you have food and supplies then it's less likely they'll show up at your door demanding you give it all to them.


Very few people can afford to get prepared all in one shopping trip. Try to do something, no matter how small, to further your supplies and knowledge each and every week. In a shorter amount of time than you would think you'll find yourself prepared for a month or more. More time and effort will eventually lead you to your goal, whatever you've decided that is, in terms of preparedness.

This is just a simple beginning to getting prepared. There's lots more to get into if you choose. Good luck and try to have some fun with it.