Home > 7. Planning
“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail. ” – Robert H. Schuller
“Worry productively. If you’re going to spend time thinking about bad things that might happen, then use that energy for a purpose. Go ahead and visualize the worst that can happen. But instead of wallowing in your worries, imagine how you’ll respond to them.” – Eric Greitens in Resilience: Hard-Won Wisdom for Living a Better Life
Emergency situations are not the best time to decide what is the best escape route to take, to fine tune communication lines with your loved ones, or to purchase food when hysterical crowds are storming supermarkets. Do it know while you can.
So "Hope for the best, but plan for the worst." and start thinking today about:
What are the main risks you currently face according to where you live, your current health, your existing knowledge, what gear you have, etc. Write them down and decide where you should focus your time, energy and money.
How to be more prepared: Move to another city/country? Save more money? Stay in shape? Learn new skills? Buy more supplies or eliminate surplus? Set up a bug out location? Create a list of goals.
What will you do when disaster strikes? Make a plan for various scenarios, and rehearse them with your "team".
Quotes:
Long version: "No plan of operations extends with certainty beyond the first encounter with the enemy's main strength." (Kein Operationsplan reicht mit einiger Sicherheit über das erste Zusammentreffen mit der feindlichen Hauptmacht hinaus.") – Helmuth von Moltke the Elder
Short version: "No plan survives first contact with the enemy."
Lao Tzu's version: “Rigidity leads to death, flexibility results in survival.” ("故坚强者死之徒，柔弱者生之徒"), Tao Te Ching, A Warning Against (Trusting in) Strength, Chapter 76
Mike Tyson's version: "Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. Then, like a rat, they stop in fear and freeze."
So have a contingency plan ("plan B") but also remain willing to adapt to the situation and ready to adjust, depending on changing circumstances.
"Dump those barrels overboard to go faster."
"Stop painting the deck and attend to those leaks."
"Too many leaks; the vessel is sinking; jump in the lifeboats."
Add some "extra" into your plans, in particular money (i.e. over-budgeting) as well as gear and supplies (as long as you can afford to purchase them and have extra space to store them). You never know when you will face a greater threat than anticipated, a combination of disasters, or having to share your resources with others.