In our world of unpredictable emergencies, from natural disasters to personal crises, a common saying always holds true; “You don’t rise to the occasion, you revert to the level of your training.” This isn’t just my cynical view of human nature; it’s a powerful call to action, especially to us self-described preppers. It emphasizes that true readiness isn’t about spontaneous heroism or “hoping for the best”. Instead, it’s actually about the deliberate, often unglamorous work of turning preparation into an ingrained, automatic response. When the “stuff” hits the fan, our carefully laid plans are only as good as our ability to execute them under pressure. That ability is forged through consistent and realistic practice.
This principle applies to every facet of preparedness, starting with your home. So here are some simple, pragmatic things you can do to practice your preps. One place to start is a simple fire drill. It might seem like a basic, even childish exercise, but its value is immense. A plan on paper might tell a family member to exit through a window, but a drill forces them to discover if that window is stuck, if the screen is difficult to remove, or if a child can’t reach it.
In your drill, have all of your family members practice crawling low to the ground to avoid smoke, simulating a blocked exit to force a different route, and designating a clear, external meeting point. This will get abstract knowledge transitioned into muscle memory. By turning the terrifying reality of a house fire into a game, families can build a confident, coordinated response that is far more likely to succeed when seconds count. This is how you prevent a moment of panic from becoming a tragedy.
The need for practice extends far beyond fire safety. What about a power outage drill, for instance? This can be a huge revelation. Instead of waiting for a storm to knock out the grid, a family can simply turn off their main breaker for an afternoon or even for a full weekend. This test immediately exposes weaknesses in your plan. Does the generator start? Is the fuel fresh? What loads can your “genny” really handle? Are the emergency lights where they are supposed to be?
Running family drills also teaches crucial skills like food and water rationing and forces everyone to think creatively about entertainment without smartphones or PCs. It reveals the often-overlooked details, like whether a battery bank has enough capacity to recharge after an overnight use. These hands-on lessons are far more effective than just reading an emergency checklist. By conducting this type of drill, you will quickly discover your weak links; like if you aren’t using Sta-Bil in your fuel or if that new battery bank and inverter can actually run your refrigerator and the rest of your critical loads.
Beyond the home, the concept of practice applies to mobility and security as well. A bug-out drill, for example, doesn’t require a dramatic, end-of-the-world scenario. It can be as simple as a family road trip. The key is to add layers of challenges, like turning off all cell phones and navigating using only hard copy maps. During a preplanned road trip, you can even simulate a blocked highway or bridge and force a real-time rerouting. This exercise builds confidence in map reading and on-the-fly decision-making.
Similarly, practicing with your get-home bag isn’t just about making sure it’s packed. It’s about regularly pulling it out, checking the batteries, and taking inventory. A dead radio or a half-charged power bank discovered during a calm practice session is just a minor inconvenience. But if it is discovered before a real emergency, then it could be a critical failure. This simple, consistent habit ensures that your gear is always ready when you need it.
Lithium batteries — like the ones in your cell phones or power banks — can discharge at a rate of around 5% a month if properly stored and they can discharge considerably faster if they’re stored in more extreme conditions (like those found in the trunk of your car). So, set yourself a calendar reminder to pull out your get-home bags and bug-out bags every 90-to-180 days to recharge everything. It’s an easy thing to do that can make all of the difference in an actual emergency.
For those who rely on firearms for personal defense, practice on the range must also reflect a real-world context. While standing on a firing line and shooting at a paper target is a necessary foundation, it is not a complete training regimen. The best drills go beyond basic marksmanship. They involve practicing different shooting stances to understand their unique pros and cons. They incorporate movement, such as closure drills where a shooter advances on a target while firing, or rocker drills where they are pushed off balance to simulate stress.
Other drills, like using different colored targets and having a partner call out which to engage, improve decision-making under pressure. Even dry-fire practice at home, where you train with an unloaded firearm, can build crucial muscle memory for drawing and presenting the weapon from a seated position. These exercises are all designed to train the mind and body to perform under the extreme stress of a lethal encounter.
Something else that people rarely experience in their firearms training is the un-muffled sound of a firearm without hearing protection and the felt-concussion caused by discharging a firearm indoors. While I do not recommend the hearing damage of either of these, there is some value in knowing what your firearm will do to you without the proper hearing protection and/or what your bedroom walls will do to you if you discharge your weapon inside of them.
In the end, all these different practices share a common goal; to close the gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it. The true value of a plan is not its existence, but its integration into your core instincts. By consistently and realistically practicing for the challenges we might face, we can ensure that when a crisis strikes, we don’t have to “rise to the occasion.” Instead, we can fall back on a foundation of training so solid that the right action is not a heroic feat, but a simple, almost reflexive response.
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This was written by A.C. of the Stakeholder Prepping podcast.
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