10 Tips to Jump-Start Your Survival Bag

If you've never created a survival bag because you thought it was just too hard or time consuming, think again.

You can begin creating your own family survival kit today with common household items. Although this may not give you all the items you need, you can be much better prepared in just a few minutes by taking these steps.

1. Decide to take action today! Not tomorrow or next week, but start today. I think you will amazed at how quickly you can assemble the basic components.
2. Find a place to store your items. It should be easily accessible and someplace where you will see it frequently and remember it.
3. Store some water in a clean plastic container or gather some bottled water that you can dedicate just for this purpose. A general guideline is 2 liters or 1 gallon per person / per day.
4. Gather some food that won't spoil. This can be canned goods or other prepackaged foods that can be eaten without cooking.
5. Find an extra flashlight (with good batteries) or some candles. If you use candles, make sure you include a way to light them.
6. Grab an extra blanket or two and add them to the supplies. I don't know about you, but I can never find a blanket when it's cold in the house. They seem to hide with the socks from the dryer.
7. Consider an extra set of clothes and a jacket. Although it might be warm outside, it often gets cooler at night. This can also become very important as the seasons change.
8. Grab some common tools. You might consider a pocket knife, some matches for the candles or even a manual can opener for the canned food you added. A couple of plastic trash bags can come in real handy and take very little room. They might even be used to store some of your items.
9. Consider adding a few first aid items. This might include some bandages and pain relievers as a minimum.
10. Look back over your items and find what's missing. Make yourself a reminder to get the missing items.

Although this is a really simple and basic beginning, these items could really make a difference during a natural or man-made disaster. Since life happens at the most unexpected moments, I encourage you to start building your survival bag today.

If you'd like more tips and suggestions, join our newsletter or RSS feed right now. I invite you to leave your comments and suggestions below.