Team Mindset

[izzyscout21]

Let's talk about team mindset in a survival situation an how it pertains to us.

I'm amazed at how often I see folks who are convinced that they can survive any situation on their lonesome. While in many cases, this could be the case. I have been on many search and rescue missions in which a lone hiker or hunter became lost only to be found days later no worse for the wear. With certain critical skill sets, a lone survivor could do very well.

But, we normally don't think in these terms, do we?

In general, the SHTF scenarios we plan for consist of bugging in or bugging out, whatever your particular plan may be. We plan for natural disasters, civil disorders, and the like. Most any situation you find yourself in, there are going to be thousands of folks going through the same situation you are, just trying to survive. Even if you live in a very rural area like me, chances are there is a major population center somewhere close to you, or at the very least a decent population of folks scattered throughout the countryside.

Here's where I make my point. A single person by and large has very little chance of going it alone and coming out unscathed. Even if said person were to have the perfect survival retreat and all the supplies in the world, he or she is simply playing the odds.
In a psychological manner, being by oneself in a bad situation often leaves victims depressed, their mindset degrading a little each day. In severe instances, the perceived hopelessness can drive an individual to suicidal tendencies, rendering the person a detriment to their chances of survival.
As a practical standpoint, going at it alone increases the wear and tear on the body. Workloads that would be better suited to a family or small group now fall upon a single person to accomplish. Gathering food, growing food, finding water, defending the retreat will all take a toll on the physical stamina of the survivor .
In the event the survivor makes himself mobile, hoping to gather resources along the way, or even move to a new location, the risk becomes greater. Chances are that myriads of people have had this same idea. Moving across country or even in urban terrain solo presents an tremendous amount of risk. Sooner or later you will run into another human being. Soon after that, another. And another. There is simply no way to completely avoid all human contact. With each and every person you run into along the way, you play the cards of whether or not you survive the encounter. With billions of people in the world, how long do you figure you can play the odds?

ON THE OTHER HAND.......

Teams or groups of survivors greatly increase your chances of survival.
Psychologically, the camaraderie of people you can trust serves to lift morale. No longer are you playing that single game of solitaire with the same old worn out deck of cards, but now perhaps a game of poker, Battleship, or the like. You have people to talk to, to lean on, and gain support from.
Teams provide a more even distribution of workload, making hunting/ gathering/ growing food more feasible. Common tasks around the retreat can be divided amongst members, providing time for much needed rest and recreation.
Defensively, teams make sense. Period. Why do you think every military in the world fights as a unit? Manpower exponentially increases ones survival chances, on and off the battlefield. Same applies to us. One gun is better than none. Two is better. Four is better still. Get the idea?


While going all Lone Wolf McQuade may sound like fun, it is by no means practical. Keep that in mind the next time your buddy tells you that his plan is to load up his truck and head to the woods. He's an idiot.

Before he leaves, get his location. Me and my team may need some extra supplies.;)

[Baker]

You're totally right. Different people are good at different things. I'm not a doctor, nor a mechanic, but if I have friends who are, both those things drastically increase my survivability, as well as theirs.

Plus, many hands make light work. But, many hands means a bigger garden lol.

[ladyhk13]

You are totally right but what about those people who are already living a more isolated lifestyle and already doing everything alone? DH and I really don't have anyone to lean on for anything. We know some of our neighbors who are wonderful people yet we never socialize with them. If they have a broken gun they'll bring it over for DH to fix, if we see them along the road while we are driving (we live too far apart for the most part to be walking) we will stop and say hello and catch up. That's about the extent of our social networking even though they are the kind of people if we needed anything we know we could ask.
That still doesn't change the fact that we have remodeled 2 houses all alone and are still working on them as we speak. If my mother doesn't stop thinking of more things to do we'll never get done. We don't foresee any help with the other property either.
So although it would be nice to be in a group that we could all share each others work with to take the load off I imagine that if shtf for people like us who are used to being alone and doing everything by ourselves it wouldn't be too hard of an adjustment. The hard part would be the stuff that we normally would go "outside" for.

[Grumpy Old Man]

I've been trying for 5 years out here to put together a MAG. At most I've got 3 committed people and we're all well past 50. Then there are an additional 6-7 folks with families that may or may not be able to partner up, but join in our camping trips from time to time. Distance between us is the main issue, being exacerbated by traffic out here. So teamwork becomes somewhat problematical when bugging in; when bugging out it becomes easier, but still is a challenge. Our strategy is to maintain a low profile until we can hook up. All of us are multi-talented individuals, but we will have some gaps. We just keep trying to fill them in.

[bacpacker]

I agree with the concept. But here close to the house I don't really have anyone that's much interested. Most all the folks I have much dealing with is just into ham radio with a few other hobbies. I have some good neighbors, but none of them prep. My next door guy's 18 yo son just moved across state to go to diesil school. Our plan is buggin in, in all but the most extreme situations.

BO presents other issues for us. We have talked about bugging out with two different folks in different directions from us and while that offers different options, both places are 1.5 to 2.5 hours away and thru several towns. On top of that, My general plans are to try and revert back to a semi 1880-1910 life style as far as growing our own foods and making our own stuff. BO just throw's a huge wrench into that. That's really something I would have to work out some how.

My plans at some point in time is to buy a place out in the boonies and develop what we want. Then just BO full time. Something along the lines of what LadyHK was referring to, living the life style all the time. Changes aren't so drastic that way.

[ladyhk13]

I figure if shtf here in TN depending on what part of the state, between Izzy, Bp and us there would be one of our places that would be a safe haven if it came down to a situation where one or more of us had no choice but to leave our home. I think we could map backroads to each other's places and bypass the major roads if we really had to for the safety of any one of us.

[eagle326]

As usual Izzy is dead on point. Team work is the key to surviving. Being a lone wolf is asking to die earlier than planned especially in a SHTF situation. Izzy has the mindset of the tactical ant in that he looks at the power behind numbers and different talents.
All of us have different things we're good at but not enough to survive on just our own for an extended period of time unless we got really lucky. The odds against us would be overwhelming in most cases. I'll be 62 in Oct. and my ability to keep up with the younger ones would probably be a challenge. Now us older ones can do the same things only we do them a little different.

This is what makes this colony so great. The fact that we have all age groups involved and willing to educate everyone else. Our colony encompasses a vast area yet everyone wants to know who's near them so that maybe in case of SHTF or whatever they can help out their fellow ants. The day may come when we have to try to merge into regional colonies and possibly into just a few big ones in order to survive.
This is where knowledge from the old to the young in the old ways and the young to the old in the new ways makes for a stronger chance at coming thru whatever calamity may confront us.

Ladyhk13 points out the mindset of teamwork in her offer of joining forces with Izzy and Backpacker if need be. With people like these 3 plus Twitchy; Sniper T ; Stig ; Grumpy ; Stromfeather ; Dropy and many many more on this board all have what I believe to be the team work mentality.
Let me not forget Gunbuilder69 ; One reason I came over here was because of him. He may not post much but he always says what he means and I'm sure he means what he says. No rose colored glasses here ; Just plain old honesty like the rest of the members.

Izzy keep up the thought provoking threads so that we may expand our knowledge and may your face shots be true. ;)

[izzyscout21]

Right on, Eagle.

Guys, I'm not saying that "you have to have a team" or you will die......

The point I wanted to make is that numbers, whether it be 2, 4 , 10 or 300 increase your chance of survival exponentially. There really is safety in numbers.

2 is better than one...so on and so on.....


BUT

when push comes to shove, you roll with what you have.

The point of the thread is to get everyone to think..... and discuss......let's discuss.



Lady: as far as I was ever concerned, you and Backpacker are part of my team, regardless of whether we're neighbors or not.:cool:

[eagle326]

True Izzy. If you are but 1 person on your own try to survive and locate any friendlies with which you may be able to work with. But keep your 6th. sense operating for those who are false.
The building of networks within the colony and any other people you trust is essential before the outbreak. If you have no one try to make it to your nearest fellow ant ; announce yourself and see if you can work out something. As far as me ; If your in this colony you have a place to stay. Depending on the situation we may have to move also. All things are fluid until the situation is accessed.

The better we get to knowing each other the better we will operate as a unit. And better the chance of keeping the colony up and running.

[izzyscout21]

I wish I had the skills to go at it alone, but I'll be honest, it's hard for one person to know everything needed to survive. That is a lot of information.

I'd rather live like a king with my fellow survivors vs live in austerity by myself.


And I get sick of hearing myself talk.......

[eagle326]

I wish I had the skills to go at it alone, but I'll be honest, it's hard for one person to know everything needed to survive. That is a lot of information.

I'd rather live like a king with my fellow survivors vs live in austerity by myself.


And I get sick of hearing myself talk.......


Hell Izzy ; I get into arguments with myself!! I just can't win with that stubborn S.O.B. I'd knock him out but I'm afraid I'd hurt myself. ;)
You're right ; It's just too much info to remember for one person. Especially if it's coming at you rapid fire. Then multiply that by X # of people who you may be responsible for. Teamwork and accountability is what survivability is about. And don't forget trust in your team. Without it your dead.

[ladyhk13]

I do hope that we get set up at our new place before shtf. Our closest property owner seems to be a good guy, hunter and very well rounded with a young son who is a champion shooter, they don't live on their property (couple hundred acres) but have a hunting cabin and large pond where they are stocking well with fish and will plan on someday to build a home. He introduced us to the local game wardens who are good friends of his and as you all know, the wardens have more power than any police agency so we plan on getting to know them very well.
I think if we can get out there we may be able to make some good connections with people who are in the same mindset as us so it will be a pretty good setup. For now we'll keep going as we are, had a nice visit with a neighbor down the road and he told me that if I bake him fresh bread he'll trade us beef (he raises cows). Hey, I can deal with that...think they are going to throw some eggs in too since their chickens lay too many for them to eat. Sounds like we are going to get the better deal outa this one! They are really great people and I will miss them, they aren't preppers just good ol country folk who have farmed and lived off the land all his life (his daddy was a moonshiner and supported 10 kids by doing it and was only one of 2 in the whole county that the sheriff told his people to leave alone and let him do it). Funny, huh?

[Echo2]

Our group formed a couple years ago with the folks that are in it now....we have added one new member in the last year.

The group dynamic is a double edge sword....because you really have to be able depend on folks that are not family.

However...our group is made up of folks that understand the family mentality....and realize that to protect their family better....they need a group.

I personally feel that this goes to the "village" aspect of human behavior....safety in numbers.

Not to mention the ability to prep on a massive scale....bulk food purchases....higher quality gear...more eyes and ideas on any problems.

Our group has a diverse skill set....and we do cross train each other....firearms....canning....medical....etc

And think about this....each of the 3 main families in the group....were already prepping. (example...there are 6 generators at the BOL) So the shear volume of back ups to back ups is awesome.

Not to mention....sleep....I like being able to sleep soundly while men stand ready to do harm on my behalf....and raise the alarm as needed.

[ladyhk13]

There is another issue to consider...the more people you have in your MAG the more people know about your preps. This can create a problem if shtf in regards to "loose lips" syndrome. It takes quite some time to build the trust and friendship it takes to be able to let someone in enough to know what you are up to. Just because they call themselves a "prepper" it doesn't mean they are trustworthy or will have your back when the time comes. They could turn around and totally rip you off or tell their friends/family about you and then you are screwed.