Survivalism, as I see it, is made up of three basic elements - the survival mindset, material preparation, and skill assessment and acquisition. You must have all three in order to be properly prepared for a crisis situation. You, as an individual need to determine what your risk situations are, and how to prepare for them. You must consider what skills and materials you'll need to survive each of your risk situations, then you'll need to work to acquire them.

The next logical question people ask is "when am I prepared enough"? The answer is never the same, because each of us have different situations. You're the only one who can determine when you've prepared enough. Others can help you assess your situations, or recommend goods and gear for a particular risk situation, but only you can determine when you're ready to survive. One way you can make this determination is to test yourself. If you feel you'll need camping skills to make it through a time of crisis, go camping for a few days and see how you make out. Or, if you believe you'll need to pack the car and leave in a hurry, try it. See if you can fit everything in the car you thought you'd be able to, and see how long it takes. If you're happy with the result, then you're prepared. If not, keep working at it until you are.

Survivalism is a mindset that must become a part of your life. It shouldn't dominate everything you do, but it should always be in the back of your head. You should approach each situation in life with a few questions, two of which are "What are the possible risks involved?" and "What information, skills, or materials can I gain from this which will help me get by in risk situations?". Once you begin to look at life from a survivalists point of view, you'll view many situations differently then you do now. Only after you've practiced using the survival mindset will you truly understand what I'm referring to. But always remember to keep reading, keep learning, and keep stocking up. Prepare for the worst, pray for the best.