Acknowledging that human beings are always learning is one of the ways you can keep yourself young, keep your brain and body moving, and keep adapting. No matter what season of life you are in, it’s helpful to consider that revisiting your personal goals can reignite growth and make you stronger. Here are a few skills that will benefit any woman and the people around her.
Personal Safety
Revisiting your personal safety goals will offer short-term and long-term benefits. Lay out your goals! Whether you use an old-fashioned piece of paper or draft yourself a journal page in digital form, write down what you want your personal safety plan to look like. Is it a plan for just you? Is there anyone with whom you’d like to build a plan? Family? Friends? Coworkers?
Short-term goals:
- Take a concealed-carry or self-defense class.
- Start a strength-training program.
- Establish a dry-fire regimen with your concealed-carry firearm.
- Buy that home-defense firearm you’ve talked about.
- Take a first aid class or advanced CPR and buy an AED (especially if you live with someone older or are yourself over 60).
- Build a robust medical care kit with your family doctor and maintain it (prescription meds and other items you might need if you had to bridge a gap in healthcare).
Long-term goals:
- A residence in a safe location, with the ability to grow some food, and become even partially self-sufficient. Living close to family or a support community of like-minded people is another consideration as a long-term goal.
- Courses to put you on the road to self-sufficiency: automotive repair, home repair, first aid, personal defense—any of these could be areas to invest in for long-term strength and resiliency. Can you fix a flat tire and maintain your car without calling AAA? Can you acquire the skills for basic plumbing and electric work on your home? Are you able to treat minor illnesses or provide short-term help to someone needing transport to urgent care?
- Invest in skills by taking classes to get certified in something you’ve always been interested in. Skills matter! And learning new skills for a part-time job or as a volunteer is a way to make you and those around you stronger.
Preparedness and Planning
Legal planning is another area where you can become more resilient. In recent weather-related catastrophes, Americans have seen the need for a safety plan, but what can you do legally to make yourself and your family safer?
Short-term planning goals:
- What are the laws in your state and local area on firearms, or other preparedness tasks, i.e., installing solar or storing rainwater? Do you have your firearms stored in a fire-proof safe? Do you have a plan for transporting them in an emergency?
- Make and store copies of all your legal documents, tax stamps for any NFA firearms, photos and other important data with family or friends who have a safe location.
- Buy a fire-proof safe and keep your important documents stored there.
Long-term planning goals:
- Execute a will, power of attorney and all the legal documents that you and your family will need for maintaining control of your assets.
- Plan a trust so your family is not met with undue legal hurdles, in the event you had an accident. Barring a trust, even something as simple as filing a TOD Deed (Transfer on Death), for your home or property can mean that your family avoids your property going into probate. This is an actionable item you don’t even need a lawyer for.
- Invest in protection in case you have to use a firearm or other tool for personal defense. There are plans that offer protection for Americans who have to use their firearm in a self-defense action. This can bring both peace of mind and valuable assistance from experts to help you navigate an eventIn the scope of considering your personal goals for safety and preparedness, it’s easy to get caught up in the things we are often hammered with—stuff to buy! Preparedness is a market and it can be easy to fall into the idea that buying X will make you safer. It can feel nice to invest in a year's supply of emergency food or a very commercial offering for water/food/medicine—but it’s not always necessary.
Logistics and Gear
A family with limited food stores, but a cabin in the wilderness with access to clean water and hunting might weather a catastrophic event better than someone with a year's supply of food and water, but living in a populated area, rife for looting and riots. Having lots of gear and supplies does not always mean you are better off; you can become a target. This means a person should consider that having a plan in place, along with the tools to execute the plan. It is a better mindset than having all the “stuff” but not being able to use it.
Start with the basics:
- Water: a water filter and stored water.
- Food: shelf-stable food and other ways to obtain food (hunt, garden, trade)
- Shelter: a home-base, but backup plans if you live in an area where hurricanes or fires could happen.
- Personal safety: firearms and ammo or other tools for self-defense and the training to use them.
- Transportation: a vehicle and fuel, maps to get out of populated areas, and a plan to do so in a timely manner.
Have a plan to access these basics, to possibly travel with them, and to pool resources with trusted family and friends.
In the event you ever had to leave your home and walk away with nothing but what you carried with you—it’s OK to let the paperwork burn or the rice and beans you stored wash away, but it’s a lot easier to do if you already have the legal papers and important things copied and stored someplace safe. It’s a lot easier to be thankful for your life and family if you had just a bit of planning to prepare for the “what ifs” and you all carry your skills and know-how with you.
