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Military lessons for preppers: How to “improvise, adapt, and overcome” challenges

By Rita Winters // Jan 13, 2018

TAGS: adaptation, chaos, Disasters, military survival, preparedness, prepper, survival, Survival Tips

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Murphy's Law states, “If anything can go wrong, it will.” Today's world is unpredictable – there are threats of nuclear war, an impending zombie apocalypse from radiation and toxic chemicals, and the risk of being overrun by machines and artificial intelligence (AI). How in the world do we prepare for these extinction-level disasters? It's easy – we do it the military way.

The unofficial military slogan says it all: Improvise, adapt, and overcome. These are the only words you need to know, and it's sure to help you in the long run, in case the (incoming Resident Evil reference) “Umbrella Corporation” accidentally releases a T-virus. When facing challenges, we must be vigilant. By preparing how we get the upper hand on these events, we have a greater chance of conquering life as it comes.

• Improvise – Survival is all about using all that you currently have to its utmost. A stick may be just a stick to some, but for preppers it can serve multiple purposes: a cooking utensil, a harvesting tool, and even a weapon. Improvisation is essential, especially during disasters that affect large areas of land (nuclear war, etc.). Most people tend to buy things that they need instead of making what they need. This defeats the whole purpose of improvisation, because after the world ends, don't think that there will be malls around to supply your food and your toilet paper. Creative people are good at improvising by nature, but it is a skill that can be learned as well. Familiarize yourself with multi-purpose items such as pocket knives, bandannas, duct tape, and paracord. Spending time on nature trips like mountain hikes or trails also helps broaden your knowledge on what to use when you have nothing. Check out our Survival.news website if you need more information on improvising during disasters. (Related: Survival weapons: Cheap and inconspicuous alternatives to massive guns)

• Adapt – Science has always emphasized adaptation as an important factor of survival. Adaptation is one facet of evolution, and through history, only those that managed to get used to their surroundings are the ones that still exist to date. Dinosaurs were wiped out because of their inability to cope with the changing climates, and it would go the same for us humans if we don't prepare our bodies for the uncertainty of the future. Keeping fit and healthy helps with adaptation, because if you can't do cardio, you won't be able to run away from a brain-hungry zombie. Adaptation is also based on familiarization of a certain place: If you don't know where to go during the day or where to hide at night, you won't last 24 hours at all. Adapting to your environment is also a matter of mental conditioning. Believing you can jump helps a lot, especially when you're already on the edge of a cliff. Keep a positive mindset and believe you can change, because in times of peril, change is always for the better.

• Overcome – May it be a problem, an opponent, or a negative emotion, having the ability to overcome anything is vital for preppers. Again, a positive mindset comes into play here, and having an optimistic outlook as compared to a pessimistic one helps in this case. If you are able to improvise with what you currently have, adapt to your environment, then surely you'll be able to overcome anything that comes your way, may it be a zombie apocalypse or a worldwide AI domination. Thinking that you can win helps you win for real, and ultimate survival is only bestowed on those who have great mental capacities and exponential willpower.

Again: Improvise, adapt, and overcome. As early as now, keep yourself educated on ways of surviving when everything breaks down. Talk to people who have similar interests of surviving. Practice a healthy, active lifestyle in order to attain the body of a survivalist. Learn to use what you already have and don't forget to educate others along the way. We can only rely on ourselves, and if we want to survive, we should do all we can.

Sources include:

ModernSurvivalBlog.com

RogerCrawford.com

adaptation chaos Disasters military survival preparedness prepper survival Survival Tips

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