Preparing for a small-scale disaster is straightforward, it mainly requires having supplies. When it comes to a larger scale event, it becomes a little more complicated, because there are things that could derail your SHTF plans.

Preparing for a large-scale event requires more than just food storage and bug out bags. Surviving for a long period of time when things go really bad requires planning, critical thinking, and understanding what to avoid, and how to avoid it.

As preppers we try to think about what could go wrong, and how we are going to handle each situation. Sometimes it’s the small things that can lead to big problems, and some situations are just unavoidable.

SPP209 11 Things That Will Derail Your SHTF Plans

This week in the show Lisa and I went over some of the things that could put us at risk during an SHTF scenario. All the items on this list can (and should be) worked on now, in order to avoid them in the future.

Yourself (OPSEC)

Operational security is crucial to everything we do now as well as in a SHTF scenario. Everything we do today, and everyone we tell, could have consequences down the line.  People love to gossip, so be careful about who you tell about your preparedness plans. The odds are, some people know more about you than you think.

After the S has hit the fan, operational security will play an even bigger role. The consequences in this situation could literally become life or death. People will become desperate, and desperate people will make different choices than they do today.

Your Neighbors

Like it or not, your neighbors will be there in an SHTF event. How long they are is another story. Your neighbors probably know more about you than you think. Or they have preconceived notions, which can be even more dangerous.

Our neighbors are literally right next door, or right down the street. We should expect a visit from them, and we should think about how we are going to handle that. This is why getting to know your neighbors is so important. We need to figure out who might be helpful, and who might be a problem.

Untrained Dogs

Dog are great for giving you a little early warning, and deterring intruders. A loud dog can also bring unwanted attention. If you are trying to remain quiet and maintain a low profile, dogs that bark at everything are going to ruin that.

I think the benefits of having a dog outweigh the risks, especially if they are trained. We have a large dog that tends to bark at everything, but is a very good deterrent.

Kids Being Kids

Children don’t intentionally set out to ruin our day (most of the time), it’s just what they do. We can talk to them until we are blue in the face, and they still don’t understand the consequences of their actions.

Children live in a different world than us. Their job is to learn and play, our job is to teach and protect. When children are out with their friend, they could talk about things you don’t want them to talk about.

Being Plump

In a SHTF situation where everyone is hungry and thirsty, we need to blend in. If everyone else is losing weight, and we look nice and healthy, we become a target.

This doesn’t mean we need to starve ourselves,