Many preppers have their priorities out of alignment. From my experience, many focus almost entirely on the how of preparedness—what supplies to stockpile, what gear to buy, or what skills to learn. Much of this is driven by one-size-fits-all recommendations that may not fit their specific situation. At the same time, attention is often focused on dramatic, low-probability events such as economic collapse, EMPs, or pandemics, while far more likely threats are overlooked.
Now, I’m not saying that supplies, gear, skills, and major threats aren’t important—they are all extremely important for preparedness. Food, water, medical capability, tools, and training are foundational, and ignoring large-scale threats would be a critical mistake. The problem isn’t that preppers focus on these things; it’s that they often focus on them in isolation. Without a clear understanding of which threats are most likely to affect them personally or how those preparations fit into a broader plan, well-intentioned preparation can become inefficient, unbalanced, or misdirected—wasting critical time and money in the process.
I came to this realization a few years ago because it described me. While I was preparing for a handful of large-scale scenarios, I was completely overlooking smaller, more probable threats. That became painfully clear when one of those “small” threats had a major impact on many people in my area. That experience forced me to reevaluate my entire approach to preparedness. I set out to improve my planning—specifically, to identify the threats that actually mattered to me and to my family, both large and small, so I could address them in a rational and effective way.
Continue reading“A Systematic Framework for Identifying Real-World Threats, by Danield MacLeod”
