In addition to stocking up on food and making sure that you have the means to defend yourself and your family, part of being a successful prepper has to do with having the right mindset. In order to properly prepare for a survival scenario, you have to think a certain way to ensure that your privacy and security won’t be compromised.
As a prepper trying to make it through a SHTF situation, you will undoubtedly have people knock on your door in order to ask for spare food and supplies, some of which will be strangers and others will be family members. While it may be fairly easy to turn away people that you don’t know, turning away loved ones can be incredibly difficult. This is exactly why it’s important to keep your preparations a secret by adhering to something called OPSEC, which is a military term that refers to keeping the enemy from figuring out your plans and capabilities.
OPSEC can be broken down into two components: Things that are done to hide preparations from others, and things that are done after a crisis occurs to hide the fact that you are more prepared than everyone else. The website TwoWayRadioTalk.com addressed both of these in an article titled “The Importance of OPSEC In Your Survival Plans.”
OPSEC While Prepping
While it while likely be difficult at times to avoid drawing the attention of others in a SHTF situation, those that are serious about prepping and OPSEC understand the importance of not letting people see what you are up to. The following are a few tips that will make it easier for you to do just that.
- Obviously, stocking up on food and other supplies will require you to go out to the store, return home, and then unpack your vehicle. When you do go to transfer your supplies from your vehicle into your home, be sure that you do it from a private location like the garage or the backyard where you are out of sight.
- If you intend on receiving deliveries of supplies, make sure that you are receiving a series of smaller deliveries rather than one big one. Even though this will take more time, you will look far less suspicious when taking smaller quantities of supplies into your home.
- Keep your stockpile somewhere in your home where others won’t find it, such as a basement or a closet that guests never use.
- If you live in an area where carrying firearms is taboo like California or New York, it’s best not to talk with others about your guns. During a survival situation, people will remember that you have the means to defend yourself and will want you to defend them as well.
Using Deception
While it’s not very difficult to hide a stockpile of food or a collection of firearms, there are some things that preppers just can’t keep out of sight from neighbors. If you are installing solar panels on your roof or have a 250-gallon water tank in your backyard, for instance, chances are people will notice. This is why it’s important to use deception – that water tank in your backyard is not for a SHTF situation, it’s for your garden. You’re installing solar panels to conserve energy and save money, not because you are getting ready for a crisis scenario. Using deception will keep you and your prepper status under the radar.
The will to survive
Although it's not directly related to maintaining privacy and security, one of the most important aspects of the prepper mindset is having the will to survive, even when times get tough and you’re not sure you can go on. SurvivalPrepper.net explained the will to live by turning the word “survival” into an acronym: S, size up the situation, U, undue haste makes you waste, R, remember where you are, V, vanquish fear and panic, I, improvise, V, value living, A, act like the natives, and L, live by your wits.
Practicing these eight things and forcing yourself to maintain a never-give-up attitude will make you tougher and more ready to face difficult situations than you think.
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