On Being Ready for Recession
Tim Benedict

One of the biggest problems people faced during the Great
Depression was that they just weren't prepared for it, and
didn't know how to respond to it once it hit. But they could
have been.

Fortunately, we now have history to teach us. We know that the
stock market has just taken a bigger hit than the one that caused
the Depression. Another recession is all but inevitable. So now
is the time to prepare. It's high time to start asking ourselves
some hard questions.

* Do you know what the root problem is that got us to this
point?

* Do you know what some of the possible scenarios are for the
path we are now on?

* Do you know what the three smartest and safest investments are
right now?

* Do you know how to safeguard your own property?

* Do you know what kinds of things to have stockpiled for a 2~4
week emergency?

* Do you know what steps to take to be prepared spiritually,
mentally, and physically?

* Can you generate your own power if/when the grid goes down?

* Will you still have transportation if gasoline is suddenly
unavailable?

* Does your family know that you have them covered?

* What things are important to you in your world?

There is a lot of information out there, both on the net and
elsewhere, that focuses on various aspects of these questions,
but to my knowledge, only one or two places that address them all
in a quick, concise, overview, written in such a way that you can
quickly grasp the concepts and put them into practice.

And although it's easy to point fingers and blame other people,
politicians, and 'the system' on all the bad things happening,
it's more constructive to simply know what happened, and then to
focus on what kinds of things we can do to help be part of the
solution. It all starts with us, in our own homes. It starts when
we get things straight on a personal level, and then move
outward, first to our immediate world, and then to our
interactions with society as a whole.

Similarly, another part of this whole equation is our basic
survival. We can't impact our world in a positive way unless we
can survive the rough times. And we won't survive the rough
times without becoming refugees ourselves, unless we take steps
to prepare by asking ourselves the hard questions above, and then
doing something about them. And that all starts by admitting that
we have a problem, and recognizing that for the time being, it
will only get worse. Therein lies the first, and biggest question
that we have to start with.

Do you recognize that we are in a bad spot as a nation right now,
and that things will only continue to get worse until the market
corrects itself or we reach a breaking point (lots of
worst-case-scenarios are possible)?

And the second biggest question, what are you willing to do to be
prepared?

When things get bad, you have to be prepared. Focusing on the
above list will give you a foundation to work from, and help you
stay focused. And believe me, there is a lot of stuff out there
that would love to distract you. But you have to focus in. You
have to prepare. You have to get ready. You owe it to yourself
and your family.




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Tim Benedict at http://www.timbenedict.net is both a writer and
inventor, and has posted some of his responses to these questions
and others, and how to genuinely prepare for hard times, in an
ebook report called 'Preparing For the Upcoming Recession' at
http://www.thegridlesshome.com/recession