What’s Your Threat: Economic Downturn

This post is by Bernie Carr, apartmentprepper.com

When I started my preparedness journey, I was mainly concerned about preparing for the next hurricane, but as time went on, I felt there may be a possibility for a major economic turmoil in our future.

We already experienced “The Great Recession” back in 2009 when many people lost jobs and businesses.  We had our own share of financial troubles, and, have not fully recovered yet.  Although the media reminds us the economy continues to improve, we can see the writing on the wall.  The government continues to print money, banks continue their bad behavior that led to the decline, and people continue to get in over their heads in credit.  We all know what happened in the Great Depression.  Back them people were a lot more resilient and not as self entitled as people are today.

Even if the economy continues along in its path, there is also always a chance of a personal economic turmoil, if you were to lose your job.  In that situation, everyone else is fine, but you still have to find a way to pick up the pieces and keep going.

Steps to prepare for another economic downturn

• • Avoid debt like it’s the plague.  Adding to your current debt by buying stuff you don’t need only worsens the problem.  The short term boost of buying something new is not worth the anguish later when the bill comes.  Put the brakes on borrowing now.
  • Downsize your lifestyle.  Now is the time to reduce your fixed overhead costs such as housing, utilities and other bills.  You might consider moving to a small house or apartment, giving up cable, going to a lower cell phone plan etc.
  • Make your home more secure.  In a bad economy, thefts and other crimes will rise.  Make your apartment or house more secure while you have resources.  Even a low tech solution is better than none.  Take a class in self-defense, get trained in firearm safety or find options in personal defense.  Your mode of defense is a personal choice, but at least consider your options.
  • Build your emergency fund.   Make it a habit to save some of your income every month.  You may need to rely on savings if you lose your job.
  • Keep cash at home.   Even if nothing happens, it is important to have some cash hidden at home in case your credit and debit cards stop working.  A power outage, a security breach such as the recent one at Target, or identity theft can all cause you to lose access to bank cards.
  • Get a side gig.  It is a good idea to develop some income on the side, in addition to your regular employment.  You could try moonlighting at night, or using one of your hobbies to make items that people would buy.
  • Boost your preps.  Before prices rise, buy bulk foods and add to your emergency supplies.  If you were to lose your job, you can use your food storage to tie you over until things get better.
  • Consider buying physical gold and silver.   To find out about buying gold and silver, see Economic Collapse:  5 Strategies for Protecting your 401k Savings
  • Develop self sufficiency skills.  Learn to do things on your own, instead of relying on outside services:  bake your own bread, make yogurt at home, use essential oils, start a garden etc.  You don’t have to learn everything all at once, just choose one skill and try it out.  Not everything works out right away – there is a learning curve.  You’ll find some things you like, and some things you won’t.  The main thing is to try it out.
  • Find product substitutes.   We all have our favorite name brands, but sometimes you can replace the pricey brand with a simple solution:  make your own cleaning supplies or laundry detergent.  Or, if you really like your products, try using less.
  • Take care of your health.  Maintaining your health is important, especially if there are stressful times ahead.  Keep a healthy weight, exercise and take care of any health issues now.
  • Take action.  All too often, we get bogged down reading but neglect the next step:  doing what you need to do.
  • Don’t worry.   It can get overwhelming sometimes, and these worries can keep you up at night.  If you are already preparing and taking care of what you need to do, you can rest easy knowing that you’ve done your best.

© Apartment Prepper 2014

See what other members of The Prepared Bloggers consider to be current risks, in our first ever blog hop:

Push Past the Fear and Just Do It!! – Mom with a PREP

Living in Tornado Alley – The Busy B Homemaker

{Forest Fire Safety} – Mama Kautz

Why You Need Food Storage – Food Storage Moms

Break in the Supply Chain – Homestead Dreamer

Drought! – Ever Growing Farm

Medical Emergencies at Home – Preparedness Mama

Hurricane Safety Tips – GeekPrepper

Wildfire – Cooke’s Frontier

Rising Food Prices – Common Sense Homesteading

Economic Collapse – Timber Creek Farms

A Personal Job Loss Situation – Food Storage Made Easy

7 Tips for Keeping Your Family Together in an Emergency – Food Storage & Survival

Massive Blackout– Trailerpark Homestead

How to Overcome a Lack of Motivation to Prepare – Home Ready Home

The Unexpected – Are We Crazy, Or What?

Our Threats Are Many, But Our Worries Are None – Trayer Wilderness

Food Storage Without a Plan – My Food Storage Cookbook

Hurricanes and Nor’Easters – Backyard Pioneer

Hurricanes (What I Wish I Knew Before it Hit!) – Prepared-Housewives

A Financial Disaster – The Surival Mom

Everything Becomes Too Expensive – Beyond Off Grid

 

Teach kids to be prepared, not scared.