Most prepping advice tells you to turn your home into some kind of fortress. And today I want to debunk that just slightly. The smarter way to start prepping is actually much simpler than that. There's no bunker, even though they're pretty cool. There's no big budget. Everything fits in a bag. So I live in Southern California wildfire area. I've evacuated my house more than once, and I've actually used my kit. Most people giving this advice never have. So just take it with a grain of salt. I consider that a good thing that they've never had to use it, and it's, you know, better to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Now let's get into what I call the fortress mistake. The most common beginner mistake is assuming your home is the safe place to begin with, so you prep as if you're always going to be there. I know COVID kind of is skewing this theory a little bit, but hear me out. Your home is often the thing that gets compromised. In a wildfire, the house is the infrastructure that fails. On the Gulf, flooding does the same thing. Your home essentially becomes the emergency. So the real question isn't how do I fortify my home? It's if I can't stay here, what do I need to do to get to a place of safety and sustain myself once I'm there? So if you're prepping to leave, you're prepping to get to a place of safety and not to fortify. Next, you want to prep for likely events, not movie scenarios. Look at what's actually probable where you live. Don't get me wrong, we all prep as if it's gonna be the zombie apocalypse, but as a beginner, just easy, easy there. In a dense city, it's often utility failure or other people, man-made, essentially. Um, although there are some cities that are susceptible to natural disasters. For example, on the Gulf, you know, it's flooding in the Pacific Northwest, it could be constant rain and flooding and snow. For me in wildfire country, it's just straight up fire and evacuation. So you want to prep for where you actually are as well, not just your home. So something can happen while you're at work, while you're at the grocery store. No matter where you're at, something could potentially go wrong. So be honest with yourself if you're at work. Does your car have a basic kit? If the car is out, right, is compromised. Can you get home on foot? Is walking even feasible? Say, with the tornado moving through. That's why the plan has to be mobile, at least when you're first starting out. So the first thing that I recommend is that every beginner starts with the FEMA basic emergency supply checklist, which is at ready.gov slash kit. It's a free list and it's shorter than people actually expect. But here's the core of it: one gallon of water per person, non-perishable food, a hand crank radio or battery operated radio that's preset ideally to the channel for weather alerts, flashlight, first aid kit, extra batteries, a multi-tool, a manual can opener, local maps, laminated ideally, your phone with the charger and a backup battery, and a couple copies of your important papers. I put my important documents in a fire retardant envelope. You might want to do the same. Skip the pre-made kits though. They're cheap for a reason and often very unreliable. And the list is honestly so short, you probably don't even need one. You could build something better like yourself that's tailored to you and probably save some money. One thing I want to mention here as well is I do have a pre-made list for you on my website. If you go to jessiverga.com, you can grab that checklist. Now, the checklist is just the skeleton. The real skill is choosing how you actually meet each of those needs. So two people can check the same box but in completely different ways. Here are some examples. Staying warm. Do you want to carry extra clothing or a blanket? So it's whichever you would actually reach for. For me, it's a blanket. Staying dry, do you want to use cheap frog togs if rain is like unlikely for you? Or do you need like legitimate rain gear if you're somewhere like the Pacific Northwest or Florida? So spend where the risk is real. Next, water. Do you want to go with filters or purification tablets? You know, that's gonna depend on are you near natural water sources? Or, you know, is it less critical because you're in a dense city and there's safe water to drink? Food. You don't need a year's worth of food. Ask if you can acquire food based on what it would take for you to get to a place of safety. If you're in like a desert or extreme cold or really remote areas, maybe you want to grab some of those long shelf life food items. That brings me to my next point. Here's like what I'm calling the quiet failure of most beginner kits is you build one, half of it expires within a year or two, you never used it, and now it's just dead weight. And now you have to like rebuy everything, and it just feels like a waste of money, and there's really nothing worse than that. So start with the true non-negotiables, right? Food, water, shelter, protection from the elements, right? Water purification, and try to go for things that have that longer shelf life, like for food, for example, if you're gonna grab some of those meals, maybe a couple meals, and they usually last like 10-15 years. This way you're not constantly replacing things. And be honest about what does expire. Medications lose efficiency and meds and bandages should be replaced when they expire. And for all my veterans out there, yes, you should replace them when they expire. Water filters, tablets, and food are non-negotiables. If they expire, you replace them. That's exactly why you should buy the long life versions up front. And the kit isn't a set it and forget it. You have to check it, you have to keep it current, and you have to keep it ready. I can tell you that because I've actually had to rely on mine. Now, the kit only works if it's with you. So think in layers, not one perfect bag. On you, maybe you have your everyday carry. In your car, maybe there's a basic kit, so you're covered when you're away from home, or you have something that gives you the ability to get home or to a place of safety. At the door in your house, maybe you have a more robust grab and go bag that you can leave within minutes. The goal isn't one bag, it's coverage wherever you are, home, work, or out running errands. I always recommend that you start with the home kit, assuming you have an EDC. If you don't, then step zero is EDC. Prepping isn't about a fortress. Maybe it becomes that, but it's more so a peace of mind that wherever you are, you can get to safety and take care of yourself and your family once you're there. That should be attainable for everybody. Hopefully, this will help you get started. So here is what I recommend your next step be. Pull up the FEMA checklist at ready.gov slash kit. You can even go download mine if you want, which is my version of that kit. Look up the likely disasters in your area if you are not familiar, and start with the non-negotiables you cannot live without. I do a full walkthrough of my own kit and gear review every year heading into wildfire season. I'm actually about to do one. So subscribe if you want to catch that. Think deeper about the risks where you actually live. Live wiser by preparing before you need to. Stay ready with a kit that goes where you go. I'm Jesse. See you in the next one.