If you have created your Go Kit, written your evacuation plan and pretty much done all the basics you need related to getting yourself prepared for a disaster, what comes next?  How much is enough, or do you just keep adding to your preparations in a never ending cycle of preparedness?

For me, the natural next step was to do what I could to help others prepare.  Hence, writing this blog, sharing tips with my co-workers, and taking the CERT class (Community Emergency Response Team training).  I don’t believe that everyone has to follow that same recipe for success though.  Not all of us want to become that involved, and that’s ok.

One thing I’ve discovered is that even if you only want to do the basics in being prepared, it’s an on-going effort.  For instance, I have my Go Kit assembled, but I have to rotate my medications and the food in the kit on a monthly basis.  That is how I keep the kit up-to-date so the items stay fresh and viable.  In the same way, I check my written plan quite often as phone numbers or financial information changes, and plans must be adapted as time passes too.  When have you done enough?  When you can say you’re comfortable that you’ve done what you could to protect yourself and those you love from the fallout of a disaster.   Every effort you make is another step toward survival.