I’ve been prepping since before it was cool. Long before reality shows and survival YouTubers with million-dollar bunkers, I was squirreling away supplies, learning to start fires in the rain, and convincing my wife that yes, we really did need another solar battery charger. And for the most part, I felt ready. I had food, I had gear, I had plans A through Z.
But there’s one scenario that still haunts me. The one thing that, no matter how much gear I’ve stockpiled or skills I’ve sharpened, could bring it all crashing down.
And it’s probably not what you think.
Forget nuclear war, EMPs, or roving gangs of desperate people. My worst nightmare? Complacency.
The Comfortable Lie
Prepping, for all its rugged appearance, can be seductive. There’s a quiet satisfaction in a well-stocked pantry, in shelves lined with ammo cans and vacuum-sealed beans. You walk into that room and feel powerful, like you’ve outsmarted the system.
But that comfort is a double-edged sword.
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It lulls you into thinking you’re ready when you’re really not. It convinces you that because you’ve prepared for a crisis, you won’t panic when one comes. That because you’ve got the gear, you’ll automatically know what to do.
That’s a lie I told myself for years.
The Drill That Shook Me
A couple of winters ago, I decided to run a surprise drill on myself and my family. No power, no heat, no tap water for 48 hours. Phones off. Everything shut down. I wanted to see how we’d do.
The results? Humbling.
Within six hours, my teenage daughter was losing her mind without social media. The emergency candles I had stockpiled gave off barely enough light to see. My wife and I argued over where I’d hidden the crank radio. And I learned that the freeze-dried meals I’d stored six years ago? Yeah… they don’t taste any better with age.
By the end of the second day, we were cold, cranky, confused—and clueless about how poorly we’d performed.
And that was just a weekend.
The Real Threat: People (Yes, Even You)
You can prep for the world ending, but what about the world changing slowly? What about an economic collapse that creeps in over months, so gradually that you barely notice your dollar doesn’t stretch like it used to? What about political unrest that simmers beneath the surface until one day your peaceful suburb is crawling with protesters, checkpoints, and armed patrols?
The real threat isn’t always dramatic. Sometimes it’s slow. Sometimes it’s silent. Like rot behind drywall—you don’t notice it until it’s too late. Society doesn’t always collapse with a bang. Sometimes it slips into dysfunction with a whimper, and you wake up one day realizing your version of normal is long gone.
And sometimes—it’s you.
Your assumptions. Your ego. Your belief that because you read The Lost Frontier Handbook, The Lost Ways II, countless other great survival books, bought the right gear, stockpiled canned meat, and watched enough YouTube survival videos, you’re somehow immune to chaos. That mindset—that is what blinds you to danger.
That’s what keeps me up at night. Not the EMPs or the looters or the famine. But the creeping possibility that I’ll miss the warning signs, fall into autopilot, and fail to adapt fast enough because I thought I already had it all figured out.
The Skills We Forget
Everyone talks about bug-out bags, ammo, and freeze-dried food. But let me ask you:
- Can you negotiate under stress, when tensions are high and someone’s pointing a gun while asking for half your supplies?
- Can you lead people without turning into a tyrant—or worse, a people-pleasing pushover who gets steamrolled in a crisis?
- Can you think creatively when your plan falls apart, your backup plan fails, and you’re out of options?
- Can you stay calm when your kids are crying, the dog is barking, the generator’s sputtering, and your neighbor’s house is on fire?
- Can you go without sleep for two days and still make smart choices?
- Can you de-escalate a confrontation without violence, but still be ready if it turns south?
These aren’t skills you pick up from a shopping list. These are forged through practice, pressure, and pain.
If you can’t do these things—if you haven’t even tried—then I hate to break it to you: you’re not ready. I wasn’t either. But I’m working on it every day now, because when it counts, gear doesn’t lead. People do.
The Nightmare Scenario
Imagine this: You’ve got the gear, the food, the plan. You’ve rehearsed the scenarios in your head a thousand times. But then the event hits—and it’s nothing like you pictured. The air smells wrong. The noise is deafening. Chaos is everywhere. And in that moment, instead of springing into action, you freeze. Or worse, you panic. Your hands shake so badly you can’t load your weapon. You forget the combination to your gun safe. You miscalculate your water supply and waste your clean reserve on the first day. You lash out at the people you’re supposed to protect because the pressure feels unbearable.
You become the weak link in your own chain—the one who everyone depended on, and the one who buckled.
That’s the nightmare.
It’s not the lack of supplies. It’s not even the enemy at the gate. It’s you, under pressure, failing to rise to the occasion. It’s realizing that all your preparation meant nothing if you can’t perform when it matters most. And once that moment passes, there’s no rewind button. You only get one shot.
That’s the moment that separates the ones who survive from the ones who just thought they were ready.
What I’m Doing Differently Now
These days, I still prep. But my mindset has shifted.
I spend more time on mental resilience than on stockpiling. I read about leadership, decision-making, conflict resolution. I train in ways that simulate pressure. Cold showers. Fasting. Long hikes with heavy packs and no GPS.
I drag my family into role-play scenarios they hate but secretly learn from. We argue. We fail. We adapt.
And slowly, I’m becoming the kind of man who won’t crack when the world does.
I also joined the True Grit Academy, which I have to recommend. It was created by retired US Navy SEAL and BUD/S instructor Joel Lambert. Basically, this academy teaches you what US Navy SEALS learn to adapt to unexpected situations, thrive in the face of danger, and more.
The course is divided into 4 weeks, 7 courses each, 1 course a day. Now the great thing is that you only need 10 minutes per day and have the discipline to do the work for 28 days. I am currently on Day 15 – Take Control Of Your Time and I have to tell you this exactly what I feel like I am doing.
And I need to be honest with you…I do not like wasting money or spending too much on things I do not carefully investigate. I was already aware of Joel Lambert because I bought his Bug-In Guide, from which I learned so many great things, like how to looter-proof my home and what essential medical pills and supplies I need to always have. So I knew he was legit.
The final nail in the coffin, so to speak, was that the True Grit Academy is now available at an early-bird launch discount. For only $39 you gain access to the entire plan, all the videos, and 2 extra digital books packed with survival and prepping information. So take advantage of the deal before it is gone.
Click here to claim the 77% off early-bird launch discount, and get everything for just $39!
Final Thoughts
A prepper’s worst nightmare isn’t the end of the world. It’s the realization that you weren’t who you thought you were when it happened.
So prep your supplies—but also prep yourself.
Because no matter how many pounds of rice you’ve stored, it’s your mindset, your grit, and your ability to lead under fire that’ll see you through.
Stay alert. Stay humble.
And above all, stay dangerous.
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Well written article and completely accurate. I’m 73 and have been prepping to varying degrees since the early 1970’s (still have about 40 or so copies of the “early” Mother Earth News…long before they went woke), and these activities / gear purchases were determined by available funds and the environment I was living in (physical and social) at any given time. I learned decades ago that mid-set is the primary gear….the starting point. There are still many areas that I could improve on, but the reality is I’m getting to be a “short-timer” so now must concentrate on the immediately doable. I have near zero concerns re: food, water, firearms/ammo, and most medical supplies. My biggest concerns are the influx of people into my area who have no understanding of how quickly things can go south.
Howdy from high in the desert swamp,
I fell victim to my own lack of just sit, shut up and think. Last summer we had a hurricane no one saw coming or was warned. It was a small one, but it caused a lot of damage because the minor wind took out 10 counties of electricity right off. I was prepared in most ways except one. My attitude. I got mad because our State shelled out billions to the energy companies to beef up and harden blah blah and they did not. Instead of just sitting, taking stock and cooling my jets, I grabbed the dog and went to my cousin’s house 150 miles away. Just about the time I got there I realized what I had done. I left virtually everything and just angrily drove away. That was beyond dumb. That was against all laws of hiking, boating, training.. I was furious at me. Early the next morning I came back and all was well but still no power. I sat. Me and the dog sat. I verbally abused myself and then set to work on what I need to do now and what I will do next hurricane. Having the stuff and methodology down and practicing is great. I hadn’t been practicing my mental. I do now every day. I run through my head a list of things to accomplish and go from there. I got lazy. I got content with seeing my tools, supplies and such. Every bit of it was left behind because I didn’t sit and think it through. Dumb as a box of rocks. I am not a rookie at disasters or assaults. I just haven’t been in one for a couple decades so, I got lazy. Not soft, except between the ears, lazy. I’m glad the dog can’t actually talk except through stink eye. She didn’t want to go.
I shoulda listened to the dog.
Go ahead and let me have it. I deserve it. Live and learn. I’m still alive to learn and pass on my wins and mistakes. Practice your mental state. BAM! Sit. Breathe. Think. Only react if it is dire. Sit.
I wouldn’t be giving this advice except for being dumb so hopefully someone will get some advice from a long time be ready advocate and,…. a dummy.
In all this, have your soul prepared. You may be your own worst enemy…
Chaplin Dan, I’m not going to beat you up over your lapse of better judgement. It happens to all of us from time to time. Fortunately, you were able to course correct with only your pride being wounded. It seems we humans can easily make more pride 😉
I’ve mentioned here before about the multi-day power outage I experienced about ten years ago now. I made three columns on a piece of paper and titled them the Good, the Bad, and the Serendipitous. I had items in each column. I learned a lot.
Even though I wasn’t in any danger, my mind kept racing, and I was hyper vigilant. Most of the items I listed in the Bad column have been addressed.
One of the biggest things I realized was that I didn’t have the right mindset. As power lines were all over the road, the safest place for me was to be right where I was. While I knew how to do a lot of things like start a fire in the coal/wood stove and keep it going, had a camp stove I could cook on since the electric one wasn’t going to work, and could cook a little on the coal/wood stove, how to conserve water and candle light/flashlight batteries, and I could find what I needed so far as gear went, I hadn’t planned on being completely alone. There was no safety net, my next door neighbor was an elderly man who had recently moved away to be with his son. My other next door neighbors stayed at a friend’s house. Anyone wanting to come by with nefarious deeds in mind would likely be electrocuted first with all the downed power lines. The heavy snow that fell dampened sound so it was easy to hear if a vehicle drove past.
By Day 2, we were starting to see electric company trucks. The town plows came by slowly after that, in case they needed to turn around because fallen lines hadn’t been addressed or fell in a different place from the repaired place.
I knew I needed to stop feeling sorry for myself. I made some tea and a list of what I needed to do. I realized that none of us had power lines in our back yards, so if I snowshoed in back yards, I could check on my neighbors. My landline was operational, so I called friends next town over to see how they were. One elderly lady who hosted our knitting group was especially glad I called. She was okay and glad to have someone to talk to. She was all right, she assured me. After all, she grew up during the Depression and had lived through the War.
After our chat, I donned my snowshoes and cut through a few back yards. The power lines weren’t lying in the street, so I switched to the road. The elderly couple up the street were in good spirits. They were glad I popped in, as they “were worried about [me] being all by [my]self.” Bob assured me they were fine. Ditto their next-door neighbors who are also older, and the across-the-street neighbors. They had also checked on neighbors farther up the street.
The across-the-street neighbors were conserving their cell phone charges, and I told them I still had a landline so could make calls on their behalf if need be.
I returned home well before dark.
It sounds silly, I suppose, but having that to-do list was very helpful. It helped me to focus on what I needed to do. My older and very elderly neighbors were more worried about me and all were so glad to see with their own eyes I was all right. They also had at least one party very hard of hearing, so having face-to-face conversations worked far better.
At that moment, I saw even though I was alone at home, I had neighbors who would lend aid if they were able. I just didn’t feel right asking a 90-year-old, and I also saw that I didn’t need physical help; I simply needed to work on my mindset.
My cats needed me to be there for them. They were glad to sleep with me, patrol down cellar in case any vermin made their way in, and kept an eye on me. One always reminded me when it was time for her meal, and power outage or not, nothing was going to get in the way of that.
My power was restored on the third day, and as I waited for the water in the hot water tank to heat up, I took that piece of paper and named the three columns.
I had more good than bad, and the serendipitous had items I hadn’t considered, like starting the outage with a fairly clean house, and all laundry done.
Jeff, I get that. And, to some degree, it’s all prudent. But, what is missing is true prepping. We’re only on God’s earth for relatively short intervals. We get bogged down into the fears others perpetuate during our stay. As such, we miss the whole point of being here. Of course, if we follow those who believe this is all there is, then we get what we get and what you got.
There is only one prep and guidance book we need, and we need to read it without the distraction of those that say follow me and my interpretation, because I am an expert. Here are my credentials. LOL
The whole duty of man is to fear God and obey His commandments, as it is written. See Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
The law is “every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”. see all the Gospels that tell of Jesus’s encounter with Satan in the wilderness.
This isn’t rocket science or other fake knowledge. There are specific instructions given on how to deal with every situation we encounter here, and how, overall, to overcome our adversaries. Contrary to what the “experts” teach, the corruptions by them are obvious, and there are no conflicting passages once one gains knowledge, understanding, and wisdom from what is actually written, instead of what some think is written.
BTW, get the 1560/1599 Geneva Bible, Book of Enoch, Book of Jasser… for the real deal. There are other sources, but these are key. Stay away from “versions”. Version means destroction, as in destruction of the original words.
Prepare for what we are supposed to prepare for and do, not what certain men attempt us to believe.
Last. When you grasp these things, spread these words far and wide. Satan can’t bear truth. Only facts, which are “false-acts” that truly occur. Satan needs facts to survive. Truth kills him.
As one of your “scenarios” you mentioned “negotiating” for HALF your food stocks with someone who is trying to take it. If you are in that scenario it’s not going to be half. They will want ALL of it and at this point you will be negotiating for your LIFE not your food. If they are close enough to negotiate they will simply kill you and TAKE anything they want. Don’t fool yourself. People are going to get desperate, mean and murderous when the excrement hits the oscillator. You HAVE to be prepared for the worst and be prepared to take a life to save your own or a family member. Can you? WILL YOU? I know I can because of the job I had most of my adult life but not everyone can or will. It’s like trying to convince a die hard anti gunner they need a gun simply because of the neighborhood they live in and they tell you ” OH I could never shoot someone even if they were trying to rape or kill me”. That person will likely never survive a true disaster where there is ZERO help coming such as an EMP or CME and we are thrown back to the 1700’s. You have to have the right mindset for that. Family and true friends will be the only ones you be able to count on. NOT that “nice neighbor” next door. Here in Swannanoa NC we got hit with Helene back in Sept 2024 and people from everywhere came to help. 107 people died and some lost everything they owned. Help came out of the woodwork including people trying to gouge us. But that’s not what will happen if an EMP or CME or a Red Dawn scenario happens. It will literally be every man for himself. Yes there will be pockets here and there of people helping each other. But you should read the “One Second After” book series by William Fortschen. IMHO that is the more likely scenario. MILLIONS/MOST of civilization will die within months and the ones who survive will be in little towns who somehow manage to band together and make it work IN SPITE OF what is left of government. And even that scenario is iffy at best. Depend on nobody but yourself and those you trust with your life. And even that may not work to save you.
I am not writing a rebuttal to Bubba. I am just sharing experiences growing up in tornado alley, heavy snow of the 1960’s and in the hurricane prone areas. Siblings can be the worst ones to rely on. I have seen this personally and listened as others tell their siblings story. Nightmarish to say the least. One actually shot near the sibling causing troubles and they forcibly made him and his family leave. Too much drama and I’m the youngest you always… I’m the oldest… I’m a girl.. Too much drama. I have had several very positive interactions with a neighbor. That will be it for me for sometime. Choose wisely and remember thirst and food will make an enemy very quickly.
Agreed Gator. Only YOU can determine who to trust or rely on in a truly TEOTWAWKI scenario. It might just be that neighbor OR he could try to kill you and take your stuff. I have family that know I’m a prepper but not to what extent. ALL pf them say “If it hits the fan I’m coming to your house”. Uh NO YOU AREN’T!! If you aren’t going to take some time and energy to prep I KNOW you are going top be a whiny a** burden to me.and I won’t tolerate that. You WILL work for your keep or you will be GONE — not dead just gone unless I’m forced to make you REALLY gone. but these are decisions only YOU can make and you need to be prepared to make them NOW. You really can’t
“practice” this. Sure you can practice self defense but that won’t prepare your MIND to take a life or even just hurt someone. I can’t
tell you how many people in my self defense classes have flat out told me they can’t bring themselves to hurt someone else or possibly kill someone even if it meant “its you or me”. Get your mind right or prepare to be a victim. I Refuse to be a victim which is part of the reason I always have a gun on me even if there are signs forbidding it. If you do it right nobody will even know you are armed. I have been in conversations with anti gun people trying to convince them I am not the one to fear. In fact I fear THEM more than I do the criminal because it only takes a few seconds to determine they ARE the bad guy.. After we talk I ask “Are you afraid of me?” And they always say NO. I then say “Well you have been standing here for 15 minutes talking to me and I have yet to try to hurt you and I am armed”. After they pick their jaw up off the floor I say “Nice talking to you. If you decide you want to TRY owning a gun call me as I’ll be glad to teach you for NOTHING”!!! I hae friends who come from both camps. Pro gun and anti gun and the anti’s are the toughest people to try and chamge their minds, They have truly been brainwashed and believe they know everything they need to know about guns when they really know NOTHING. If you have a neighbor or friend who says
If it truly hits the fan I’ll just shoot you and take your stuff. Many are like that including your own family, Stay as far away from them as possible as they are te dangerous ones. Keep your powder dry and your head on a swivel. Notice EVERYTHING. Situational awareness is what you NEED to know.If your tummy tells you “something isn’t right here” the tummy is probably right. LISTEN TO IT and you will live to see another day. Even if tummy is wrong so what? Good practice and good self teaching moment — learn from it!!!!