Would you survive the next great depression?

Isn’t that such a scary topic heading? First off, no I am not being a fear monger or anything of that nature. Although I do feel that we haven’t seen the last of our country’s economic upheavals, I am not saying, oh my goodness there is going to be a disaster. There are many times in our lives when we are faced with potential trials that test the best of us. I do believe however that it is good to be prepared and have a proactive survivor mentality.

What do I mean by a survivors mentality? Experts say there's a 10/80/10 model for people that are confronted with crisis: 10 percent respond by doing the wrong thing; 80 percent wait for someone to tell them what to do, while they do nothing; and 10 percent respond with purpose, plan and action. An oft cited example is 9/11. When the people were sitting in their office buildings, how many people headed for the stairs immediately telling people we have to get out? How many people said, no, it’s all going to be ok, there is no problem? Worst though, how many people just sat there like sheep or worse like an ostrich with their head in the sand waiting for somebody else to pull them out and tell them what to do?

We have to be the ones that not only say we are going to be aware of what is going on around us, but we have to be prepared for the eventualities that something may happen. The first thing that I believe needs to be addressed is personal responsibility. I know it is not the standard approach to this topic. It is however where everything needs to start.

We are personally responsible for our own well being and that of our families. It is up to us to make ends meet, to ensure that our children are properly educated, and to ensure we are prepared for any eventualities that may come down the line. I actually addressed the topic of personal responsibility in a previous blog post. One of the issues with Hurricane Katrina was that people sat around waiting for the government to swoop in and save them. News flash, it is not the job of the government to swoop in and save you. Those that did well and survived were those that heeded the warnings to leave town in advance. Next in line were those that were actually somewhat prepared and took personal responsibility to get themselves and others out of there. The state of Florida is generally able to tell FEMA we really don’t need that much help when a hurricane sweeps through there because they recognize they are the ones that need to take care of themselves.

We should not be dependent on the government or anybody else to take care of this. A friend recently addressed a portion of this topic. I have borrowed something from him below, a quote, and paraphrased his lead in.

This is a quote from Marion G. Romney, a former Apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and someone I consider to be a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator. He gave this talk regarding the LDS church welfare program. He chose these words when discussing welfare and taking care of our brothers and sisters who are needy.

"It is the responsibility of every Latter-day Saint to work and so impart of his substance, regardless of the shifting standards of this world. We must uphold these principles and oppose every derogation of them. We must be careful not to adopt the commonly accepted practice of expecting the government or anyone other than ourselves to supply us with the necessities of life.

The practice of coveting and receiving unearned benefits has now become so fixed in our society that even men of great wealth, and possessing the means to produce more wealth, are expecting the government to guarantee them a profit. Elections often turn on what the candidates promise to do for voters from government funds. This practice, if universally accepted and implemented in any society, will make slaves of its citizens.

We cannot afford to become wards of the government, even though we have a legal right to do so. It requires too great a sacrifice in self-respect and in political, temporal, and spiritual independence.

Let us work for what we need. Let us be self-reliant and independent. Salvation can be obtained on no other principle. Salvation is an individual matter, and we must work out our own salvation, in temporal as well as in spiritual things."

To sum it up, we are responsible for saving ourselves.

What areas should we focus on to survive the next great depression or even personal financial collapse?

Other than personal responsibility which truly is the start, you need to be responsible in your finances, and ensure that you take some emergency preparedness to heart. Let’s take a quick look at personal finances. You need to get yourself out of debt. You need to save up at least a year’s worth of expenses; this is beyond the normal 6 months that financial advisors would tell you. You then need to invest in your future and retirement. I am not going to cover all of these here, but will probably take all of these topics in further posts regarding surviving. The reason I say you need to be responsible with your finances is because most people aren’t. I did some financial advising for a while and the one thing I always came across is nobody had a plan. Lisa and I have recently obtained and are getting ready to start working through a program from Dave Ramsey. We have heard very good things and some of his concepts I have heard of have worked for us when we have applied them. Application is always the key.

Now for some emergency preparedness guidelines. Lisa and I have always heard growing up being LDS that you need to have a 1 year supply of food. I think it is something that everyone should slowly build up. Even if there was not some major disaster, I know some families who suffered long term unemployment. There food storage helped them eat for that time. Start small by picking up an extra can of food when you go shopping. After a while, the small things begin to add up. Besides the food storage you truly need to have a plan. If x happens then we do y and z. Make sure you have a plan that covers not only natural disasters or a total financial collapse, but any challenge your family may view as an emergency. It is something that my wife Lisa feels so strongly about she has started working with a company that helps people to do exactly these things. (Yes, I am going to take the opportunity to plug my wife’s business.)

I have mentioned briefly our faith. I believe that is something that as Americans we need to get back to. No matter what your faith is or your belief system, you need to strengthen yourself. You need to strengthen your faith. I also believe that as Americans, if we have a strong faith and we are financially sound as individuals, when the government comes knocking with its latest and greatest entitlement program we can say no thanks and tell them where to shove it. If enough of us are in this position we can really change the future.

The Lord has told us that if you are prepared ye shall not fear. Let us increase our faith, make ourselves ready for whatever may come at us in this life, and be the 10% of people that take charge in those situations and help bring some of the 80% to our side.

Remember, keep yourself informed and don’t be afraid to speak out.