Life is busy. There is just no getting around it. Just like various priorities fight for our every penny, often those same priorities fight for our every minute.
Find The Time
Ultimately, you will only make it through this Prep-101 course if you decide that it is important enough to you and you set aside some time to actually work on it. One of my favorite quotes says:
I’ve found that to be true in my life. If I really want something to happen and it is important enough to me, then I find a way to make it work. I make sacrifices, I change things up, but I find a way. Sometimes, “the way” is to do a bit less at a time than I first wanted to, and to take things a bit slower. But for those things that are important, I find a way to make them work in my life.
How will you find a way to fit emergency preparedness and this Prep-101 course into your life?
My last post (about finding money for emergency preparedness) was crazy long and detailed. I want today’s post to be a bit simpler. I have a few suggestions for you from things that have worked in my life. I will also link to some great blogs posts that may help, and last I will quote some of you and your responses to this question on Facebook!
My Thoughts & Suggestions:
1. Make it a Priority.
- Decide mentally that this is important to you. Write down a commitment to yourself and sign it!
2. Share With Others
- Share your goals with a spouse, family member or friend. Ask them to followup with you on occasion.
3. Remove time wasters
- Think about yesterday or last week. Were there things you did that were time wasters? I’m not talking about necessary “me” time or relaxation. What did you do that served no purpose? Write them down. Commit to do less of them.
4. Work on it at the same time each week.
- Set aside every Saturday morning or Wednesday evening or one hour each afternoon…whatever works for you, but set aside a specific time.
5. Minimize Distractions
Turn off the TV. Ignore your phone. Ignore facebook and pinterest. Set a timer and then work on JUST THAT ONE E-PREP TASK until the timer goes off.
6. Make use of small amounts of time!
One of the most popular series on my blog is my 10 min preparedness project list. There are things you can do in just 10 minutes! Everyone can find 10 minutes!
6. Don’t quit!
If you miss a week or have to skip a lesson or fall a bit behind, DON’T QUIT! Give yourself some grace! Yes, you will get one email / week, but maybe you just work on one assignment per month. It make take you a few years instead of one to get through it all, but who cares?!? That is better than nothing! Just make sure you do something…whatever YOU can.
Blog posts / Articles that may help:
- 5 Rules to Get More Done
- Overcoming “To do list worship”
- 10 Minute Preparedness Projects
- 30 Lightning-Fast Productivity Hacks To Help You Work Better
- 10 Ways to get more done each day.
- 7 Ways to organize your time
Tips from YOU on facebook:
I asked on facebook what has helped you accomplish your e-prep goals in the past and here were some of the responses:
” Work on a little bit each day and do not burn yourself out or tackle too much at once”
~Anita
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“Watch the news!”
~Rita
At night when I lay In bed Is when my mind goes full throttle on thinking about what I need to do or purchase. I make sure to have a pen and notebook by my bedside. I also have my phone next to my bed because I always think of something to look up or learn about. It Is tough to do research when all of my children are awake.
~Vicki
In addition, I’m part of a FANTASTIC group of preparedness related bloggers on Pinterest. I asked them this question and they had some fantastic answers!
I make sure to do something at least once a week..even if it’s just research. Today I skipped work, played in the snow and showed my daughters how to twist cordage. Got to invest time just like you invest money.
~John, Geek Prepper
Prepping is part of the weekly schedule. We’re always doing something. Sometimes we plan to do certain tasks, other times, we just do them because they need to be done. For the record, cleaning, organizing and labeling things in our preps counts for prepping – if you can’t find it, or it isn’t in good working order, it doesn’t do you any good.
~Patrick, Survival at Home
I usually do a lot of researching and reading when I can during the week. I try to do that every day. On the weekends, I try to tackle at least one prepping activity whether it is learning a new skill, working on bettering a skill, organizing, making something, canning, or whatever. If I can do more during the week, I will. For me, it has just become part of my life and my schedule.
~Erica, Living Life in Rural Iowa
It’s our way of life. I pruned the blueberries last weekend, did half the fruit trees this weekend, and will start our indoor seedlings in a few more weeks. The key thing is to just do one thing every week or day (depending upon the season). Soon it becomes routine.
~Melissa, Pioneering Today
Over time, prepping has become a part of my DNA. New skills, new strategies, and new stuff are always on my mind no matter where I am or what I am doing. The favorite phrase in my household is “that would be good for SHTF”. Reporting on my weekly preps in the Survival Buzz helps, too.
~Gaye , Backdoor Survival
I made it a part of my income and goals.
~Scott , Graywolf Survival
In all honesty, after I went through a few disasters, I realized how important it was and made time. Then I turned into a geek about it and, when you love doing something, it just becomes part of your life.
~ Tess, Ready Nutrition
You make time. For prepping projects I (personally) work best giving myself large segments of time and get a number of things all prep related done. I work crazy hard (becoming a little imbalanced for a time) to get it done. Day to day I may spend time planning what I want to do, researching and reading, etc. but when it comes time to test things out my day is all about whatever the project(s) is/are and then we have pizza for dinner. After I’ve found what works, those things often get added into daily life (sun oven cooking for example) but it takes a lot of time testing to sift things out in order to find what really works.
Megan, My Food Storage Cookbook
Now, share your thoughts by commenting below!
What helps you?
How do you find time for emergency preparedness?
How do you meet your e-prep goals?
What has worked?
What has not worked?
Pin This Now To Save For Later:
I haven’t watched TV for 3 years. I came to the decision that network entertainment programming was a total waste of my time — I usually couldn’t even remember the next day which programs I watched — and I was so tired of all those commercials trying to persuade me to buy stuff I didn’t need. Whose life is substantially improved by watching every episode of Dancing with the Stars any way? Now I spend about 10 minutes each morning getting my national and local news from internet news sites — it’s a lot more time efficient to click on just those stories of interest to me than having to sit through a whole national or local TV news broadcast. What do I do with those extra 3 to 4 hours in a 24 hour period that used to be sucked up by TV programs? I can read books and magazines, some of which are about prepping, I can dehydrate and vacuum can food for storage, I can water my container gardens of fresh greens (to supplement by food storage meals) and I even have time to watch a good quality DVD movie of our choice with my husband each evening while working on my crochet or embroidery.
Smart Linda!