It’s been said that no one is an island, and that’s certainly true when times are tough. Having a sense of community during a natural disaster, a pandemic, or a SHTF situation can be critical to your survival.
Yet just because someone is your neighbor, doesn’t mean that they should blindly be considered a trusted resource. Ideally, you should know your neighbors well enough before the world goes sideways before accepting them into your network.
The Benefits of Community
Prepping creates an understandable sense of self-reliance. Yet even the most well-prepared person will inevitably find themselves in a situation where they need the help of others. It’s hard-wired into us by evolution to be a social species.
However, the benefits of this social component go far beyond having someone to chat with when you’re feeling deeply lonely.
Strength in Numbers
Being part of a community of well-prepared people gives you strength in numbers. In a disaster situation, knowing that your friends and neighbors have your back, definitely improves your safety.
A neighborhood watch program today can be reinforced when the world goes sideways. When outsiders come prowling through your neighborhood or community, they’re more likely to behave themselves when you present a unified front.
Related: The Dark Side of Being a Lone Wolf
Easier Bartering
In a disaster situation, “Stranger Danger” is a real thing. Yet there are going to be times when you need something unforeseen, and someone else will have it. If you have to go to a total stranger, even one across the street or down the road, tensions can run high for you both.
When you know your neighbors, and you’ve vetted in advance that they’re reasonably trustworthy, these tensions are diffused. You’re also more likely to negotiate a fair barter price for the things each of you needs.
Shared Labor
Switching over to a 100% sustainable lifestyle is a lot of work, rife with major projects. Trying to put up a new pole barn, or get your field tilled on your own is often too much for one person or family to do alone.
When you are part of a community neighborhood, many hands can make light work on these major projects.
You help them with their barn raising in the spring, they help you cut ice for the icehouse in the winter, and everyone saves time in the long run.
Less Dependence on Your Resources
A neighbor who isn’t informed or well-prepared before a disaster is likely to need more help from you when SHTF. When you know your neighbors in normal times, you can gently help them understand the benefits of being prepared.
Related: Survival Skills You Can Trade After SHTF
When something does go wrong in the world, they’ll be able to stand on their own two feet, without constantly knocking on your door. They might also have the skills and stocks to help you when something unforeseen comes along.
Discretely Assessing Your Neighbors
Determining how trustworthy and competent your neighbors are goes beyond the odd conversation over the back fence. Ideally, you should discreetly watch your neighbors for key signs of trustworthiness, or potential danger. There are a few ways to do this up close as well as in person.
Watch Their Recycling Bins
Your neighbors’ open-air recycling bins will tell you more than just how much they reuse, reduce, and recycle. They give you keen insights on how they live, and what their habits are.
Just to be clear here, we’re talking about open-air recycling bins and times when they take the garbage out.
I’m not talking about rutting around in your neighbor’s garbage like a rabid raccoon in the middle of the night.
If you see a lot of liquor bottles and beer cans, it likely means multiple people have a drinking problem. This is a red flag on its own, as alcoholics are prone to rash behavior. It also means that the other family members are enablers, who don’t have the coping skills to correct the behavior.
This is a sign of a family that’s prone to escalation in tense times. They’re also more likely to talk to others about what they know about you. I’m not saying you should cut them out of your neighborhood network, but it’s wise to keep them at arm’s length.
Listen to Their Arguments
In most suburban neighborhoods you know when you’re the families next to you are arguing and they know when your family is arguing.
It’s one thing for a family to have a bunch of disagreements, especially if, unfortunately, money is tight or they have a troublesome teenager.
If you’re in earshot, pay attention to how the spouses talk to each other. If you’re hearing a lot of abusive statements, threats, and narcissistic comments it’s another red flag.
This is a person who is used to manipulating and taking power over others. If they’re willing to do that to their loved ones on a frequent basis, they might start plying that behavior toward you when SHTF.
The State of Their Lawn
How someone cares for their yard sends a statement about more than just their pride of ownership. It says something about how they care for their things, and how well they manage their time.
A person with an overgrown lawn and scrap trees growing out of their landscaping likely has a mind as sloppy as their lifestyle. They’re prone to procrastinating things, and you usually can’t trust them to pitch in their fair effort during community projects. It’s not that they’ll be useless to you, but they’ll probably need more management. They also might be lacking in certain skills.
Whereas someone with an immaculately trimmed lawn and a vegetable garden likely takes a proactive approach to life. They might even have some prepped stocks of their own just because it sounds like a wise idea. These are the types of people who can take on a management role in community projects and can teach others how to handle basic maintenance tasks.
The Lights in Their Windows at Night
When I talk about watching the lights in your neighbors’ windows at night, I don’t just mean if they’re night owls who stay up late. Nor should you turn into some sort of peeping Tom!
Related: You Should Never Ask Your Neighbor This
If you get the chance to casually notice what they spend their screentime on, you’ll get a better understanding of their personality. While things like their favorite news agency and TV shows might help you find some common ground, it won’t tell you much else.
It’s other forms of entertainment you want to be mindful of. For instance, someone who plays countless hours of video games into the late hours of the night could be a red flag.
These are often people who are escaping the challenges of their lives and getting their fix by sword-fighting imaginary dragons. Believe me, I’ve been down that road before in my life.
I can tell you that when you’re slaying the proverbial dragons in your real life, the video game dragons become less and less appealing.
A neighbor who plays an unhealthy amount of video games every night isn’t the type of person you can trust to rise to a challenge.
How They Maintain Their Car
You should take note if see your neighbor taking care of the routine maintenance on their car. Simple things like changing their own oil, rotating their tires, and replacing their worn-out serpentine belt tell you more than just that they’re handy.
These are skills you have to learn, and it shows that they have a mind with at least a little mechanical sympathy. In a prolonged SHTF situation, this is the kind of person you can trust to take care of tasks when they say they will.
If you see your neighbor taking on bigger jobs, like replacing their brake pads, or changing their own spark plugs, you should consider bringing them closer in your network. This is someone with valuable mechanical skills and likely tools that will be handy with improvised repairs.
On the flip side of the coin, you also have to watch out for neighbors who are aloof about car care. The person who is always leasing a vehicle because they don’t want to deal with routine maintenance, and the one who drives a beater with a heater, likely doesn’t have a lot of mechanical skills. These tend to be people who need a lot of tending to in disaster situations.
The Hoarder
Hoarding disorder is a very real psychological issue, and many hoarders will come up with creative excuses to keep hoarding. I’ve even met someone with a hoarding disorder who claimed he was a prepper with extensive stocks.
A downstairs bedroom full of packing materials that smelled like a gallon of mouse urine, and a hall closet overflowing with plastic bags were clear signs that something else was afoot.
Yet in this context, it’s not just the unhealthiness of hoarding that’s a problem. Hoarders tend to have a collection of creative, stubborn excuses as big as their physical collections. This will get in the way every time you try to get them to do something outside of their comfort zone.
No matter how well-stocked and prepared you are, being part of a community or a collective neighborhood improves your chances of surviving in desperate times. Being networked with other people gives you safety in numbers, a mutual defense, the opportunity to work together on big projects, and care for one another.
Yet you can’t welcome every neighbor blindly with open arms. Watching them for questionable signs, like substance abuse problems, and close mindset comfort zones helps you spot the people who might be deadweight in advance.
At the same time, being able to identify people with mechanical skills, physical fitness, and a growth mindset helps you prioritize the neighbors you want to be close to. These are people that are likely to ascend with you and bring something more to the table than you might have on your own.
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