Practical considerations

Start with one or two goals only. Overloading yourself leads to discouragement. Add more goals as you succeed.

Keep a “Goal Graveyard” note of abandoned goals—review them to learn why they failed and adjust future planning.

Ancient explorers often set stages for expeditions—reaching a certain river by a date, gathering enough supplies at intervals. Your goals mirror these age-old survival strategies.

Incorporate variety—mix easy and challenging goals. Easy wins maintain momentum, hard goals give you long-term purpose.

If low on morale, revisit old completed goals to remind yourself how far you’ve come. Confidence from past success propels future efforts.

If you struggle with a skill, break it down further. Instead of “master gardening,” aim “successfully grow and harvest one pot of herbs.”

Use a simple code or icon system to mark completed goals in your journal—instantly see accomplishments.

Some survival courses make students list their top 3 priorities daily—this method ensures constant focus on what matters most.

Update goals as seasons change—winter requires different targets (warmth, fuel) than summer (water storage, pest control).

Pair a boring goal with a pleasurable habit—listen to favorite music while organizing seed packets, making the chore enjoyable.

Setting Prepping Goals: Why Setting Goals Matters

Clarity and Direction: Goals prevent scattered efforts. Instead of randomly buying tools or seeds, you focus on what fits your endgame—e.g., achieving 30 days of food self-sufficiency.

Motivation and Progress Tracking: When you hit a milestone (like storing 60 liters of water), you feel accomplished. These wins encourage you to keep improving.

Efficient Resource Use: Goals help you prioritize spending and time. If your main worry is water scarcity, focus first on water systems before overinvesting in other areas.

Start with a primary survival priority—food, water, shelter—and set a short-term goal, like “Secure 2 weeks of clean water,” to establish momentum.

Prioritizing Goals Based on Scenario Risks

If Economic Collapse Likely: Early: Stockpile tradeable items and basic staples.

Long-term: Achieve partial self-sufficiency in garden or livestock.

Keep a flexible “reassessment slot” monthly. If conditions change, reorder goals or adjust timelines.

Setting Realistic Goals Based on Capabilities

Short-Term vs. Long-Term Targets: If Low on Stamina: Aim to secure immediate shelter and easy food first. Improve stamina gradually.

If Skilled in Tool Repairs: Set a goal to maintain critical equipment long-term for stable productivity.

Incremental Skill Upgrades: One New Skill at a Time: If you lack gardening know-how, start small—try a few pots of hardy plants. Expand once you master basics.

List 3 critical survival aspects (water, food, security). For each, match a personal strength and plan how to leverage it. If any aspect lacks a strength, plan a workaround or skill upgrade.

Communication Networks After a Cyberattack

Reverting to Analog Systems: Printed Flyers, Chalk Messages: Spread messages in your locality using old-fashioned means.

Low-Tech Codes: Pre-Arranged Signals: Decide on visual signals—colored flags, patterned knock sequences—for safe meeting or indicating a need for trade.

Maintaining a Radio Network: Community Radio Channels: Arrange a set frequency for local updates. If multiple neighbors have radios, you build a mini-information net.

Practice using a radio without relying on digital frequency lists—memorize key frequencies in your mind or on a note.

Accepting a New Normal: Digital Convenience Lost: Let go of frustration over broken tech. Embrace manual methods and celebrate small tech wins if they re-emerge.

Confidence in Skill Diversity: Pride in Adaptability: Surviving without modern conveniences shows your resilience—remind yourself of that to maintain morale.

Celebrating Ingenuity: Every Workaround a Victory: Converting to a hand pump or building a crank generator is an accomplishment worth recognizing.

Define a result that can be checked

Turn a broad intention into a concrete result with a boundary and review date. Instead of improving preparedness generally, create a contact sheet, label a storage zone, or test access to essential documents without the internet. Specify who will do the work, necessary materials, and what counts as completion.

Keep the first goal small enough to finish within ordinary life. Check whether the result works for its intended user, not merely whether a box was checked. Record the next improvement revealed by the test. If progress stalls, reduce scope or remove a dependency. Completed, tested improvements provide more useful confidence than a long list that is difficult to act on.