Even if you think you are one of those people who will have to take rather than give during a crisis we bet you can look at the list below and find at least one skill that might be worth an effort. Take some classes and you might be stunned by how well you do!

1. Soap and Candle Making. If the disaster goes on for long, soap and candles will be in high demand and a valuable trade item.

2. Water Purification. One of the most important skills of all! In the weeks after a major catastrophe, many people will die from dehydration or from drinking unsafe water. It will help a lot if you learn all you can about cleaning and filtering water.

3. Food Storage. Canning, dehydrating, sealing, smoking, etc. Most people don’t know how to store food without a refrigerator. Offer to preserve someone’s leftovers in exchange for help or supplies.

4. Gardening. Yet another skill that has become more and rarer. Learn to grow fresh herbs, fruits, and vegetables, preferably indoors unless you have a secure backyard.

5. Hunting and Fishing. When food supplies get low and gardens fall short, people are going to have to hunt and fish. If you can provide meat for your friends and family, they’ll have time to take care of other necessities.

6. Mechanic. Even if we have a depression worse than the one in the 1930’s, most people are still going to have jobs (remember, unemployment only got up to 25% in the 1930’s), which means they’ll need a way to get to work. The problem for many people is that they won’t be able to afford to get their cars fixed. If you learn how to work on cars, or any machine for that matter (lawnmowers, generators, etc.), you’ll have a particularly valuable skill.

7. Plumbing. People will still need their sinks and toilets, even more so if they’re washing clothes in the sink. Learn to remove clogs, fix toilets and replace leaky pipes.

8. Communication. If the infrastructure breaks down, common means of communication like cell phones and the Internet will be unreliable, if not gone completely. In that case, people who know how to use all kinds of radios, especially HAM radios, will be in high demand.

9. Animal Husbandry. The ability to raise animals such as chicken for eggs, rabbits for meat, goats for milk, etc. There is a limit to how much meat and dairy people will be able to store, and there will be a huge demand for fresh food.

10. Construction. Especially without power tools. It’s worth knowing how to properly fix roofs, board up windows or build outhouses using only basic hand tools.

11. Dental. Most people live their entire lives without realizing how much misery they would experience if not for the dentist. A perfect example of this is in the movie Cast Away where the main character has to knock out one of his own teeth. Someone who knows how to clean and remove teeth could be a great help.

We tossed in the extra #11 because we think dental issues can be crippling and, when the SHTF that is not going to stop. Anyone who was/is a dentist or has the skills will be a sincere asset to the world once we are all in crisis mode!

There are, of course so many other skills that will be desperately important during chaos situation and you can find more over on Urban Survival Site. While life after the fact will be frenzied it does not have to be so uncomfortable that life will not be worth living. Learn some skills and you can help yourself and the other poor souls around you!