You prep to avoid the mistakes of others, so that you don’t have to rely on government handouts (if there’s enough supply) or the kindness of others to get you out of sticky situations. Don’t let the very act of prepping be riddled with mistakes. Review the most common mistakes made by preppers below.

1. Giving up to early – Many new survivalist start out with a load of energy only to run dry, giving up before meeting their goals.
2. Putting off starting – Don’t put off starting your preparedness program. The number one excuse given is a lack of money.
3. Not making their own plan –There will be a lot of similarity between most survival plans, but it is important to look at your location, needs, and budget.
4. Overlooking the need for shelter – Many survivalists fail to realize the importance of a paid-for plot of land and shelter.
5. Bugging out – Bugging out can work, if you have a place to go and make it there unscathed. But you can’t just live in the woods.
6. Too many guns – Firearms are very important for foraging and protection, but many preppers have more guns than pounds of wheat.
7. Buying books and not reading. “I’ll read it when I have more time.” Don’t do this, read it.
8. Buying books and not doing. Reading is great, but you need to get off the couch and put what you’ve read into practice.
9. Not planning for unexpected arrivals. Buying extra food and assembling care packages is a good idea.
10. Closed mind. If something works, great; if not, you need to find out what the problem is and fix it – even if it means a complete overhaul of your original plan.

All of this is extremely valuable advice, but perhaps the most pertinent is not to have too many guns. Actually, you can have as many guns as you’d like, but make sure that you prepare far more food and medicine than you do firearms, because there’s only one way to eat a bullet, and you really don’t want to get so hungry or sick that things progress that far.

The other good advice is that you should also plan to use a bug out bag only to get you to your well-stocked location, not for use as a full-on live in the woods bag. Sure, it can be done, but it’s never the best option.

Check out some more great advice like this at The Survivalist Blog.