Mastering Risk

Send us Fan Mail Much maligned and misused, the word priority does not have a plural. This is a principal rule in preparedness, that you cannot have multiple priorities, you have many tasks that you're undertaking, but there can only ever be one priority - you may shift it upon review, but that is your main effort, the thing that will take resources away from all your other plans and activiti...

Send us Fan Mail Stress, necessary for life and an important element in the human animal's response systems. However, high degrees of or sustained stress is harmful and can lead to coping measures that are themselves causing harm. Life can be tough, stress can be debilitating for some - so how do you deal with this? You are in control of what you do and how you act. You have no control over t...

Send us Fan Mail The first step in preparedness is accepting responsibility for your outcomes. For some that may be difficult, they don't have the belief they can learn, they may be in a culture with well defined roles or they may not be supported by those around them. Building self confidence through the adoption of skills is free. In preparedness we champion first building you through physi...

Send us Fan Mail Order into chaos, assuming a leadership role for you, your family and the community. When exogenous shocks happen and tough times surface, are you capable of assuming a leadership role for your family, to execute the tasks within your family preparedness plan? Your children are learning, how you react, how you choose to respond to tough situations teaches them what is acceptable i...

Send us Fan Mail On Sept 14-16 I rode out Hurricane Lee with family in Nova Scotia. While the hurricane became a tropical storm upon arrival, the lessons from being ready and what communications were issued is important. We discuss what it was like, the damage to a few trees, the need to understand your preparedness support equipment in advance and the vague and generalist nature of public sector...

Send us Fan Mail Hurricane season is well underway, that means time for some specific planning for those living on the eastern seaboard of North America. Hurricanes begin in the warm waters of the South Atlantic and are influenced by a number of weather phenomenons that steer them towards a destination, determine the strength of the storm and velocity. The predictability allows for deliberate plan...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wonder how the military is organized rot respond to an emergency, or who controls the deployment? What can they do and how do they execute a task? This conversation breaks down the organization, command and control, explanation of Notice To Move (NTM), how provinces request assistance and the infamous DART for international aid. The CAF is the force of last resort, there is n...

Send us Fan Mail Sorry, but contrary to YouTube Preppers and click bait journalism, the world is not coming to an end. We are facing clarion calls for the coming disruptions from the Ukraine War, Rise of China, Climate Change and Economic Collapse. None of these will result in armageddon or Revelations, but the world is undergoing the 80 year cyclical re-organization of humanity. Every 70-80 years...

Send us Fan Mail Evacuations are the most dangerous emergency event a family can experience, having a plan that is well built and understood by all family members is critical. We outline the steps to create a plan in detail, what to consider and a myriad of details. You are responsible to evacuate yourself and those for whom you're responsible. It is not the government's job to do so, th...

Send us Fan Mail Canada's second largest and most densely population territory is having a record wildfire year. We discuss the demographics, layout, political and economic factors that govern life and inform emergency management. The evacuations serve as an example for us to use in our own planning, to consider routes, responsibility to self-sustain throughout the travel period and the diffi...

Send us Fan Mail It's here, the launch of our most impactful and robust season for IMCH. We are going live on Instagram, giving away copies of our book, long form videos on YouTube and podcast episodes entered on 3 themes: Disaster event assessments : What went right, wrong and lessons for everyone; Planning scenarios : How to navigate situation X, whether it be natural, economic or political...

Send us Fan Mail This 199th episode, the last of the summer bonus series, is a description of my preparedness journey and my current plan. From how I become a preparedness guy, to my shelter in place plan, my days of supply, mobility, bug out locations and my personal plans for the trifecta of pain - utility failure, evacuation and income loss. I discuss why I have chosen these plans, and what I a...

Send us Fan Mail Preparedness is a framework to facilitate and support you rocking an incredible life. It is not meant to be all consuming and to fuel paranoia. Preparedness, through planning for the trifecta of strife - utility loss, evacuation and loss of income, enables you chasing your dreams. Minimalism is not about a number of items, but having your life in control, doing what you want and h...

Send us Fan Mail Rocking an incredible life, it's all about chasing your dreams, doing what you love in peace and calm. Preparedness permits this, it facilitates this - but what are you supposed to do, what is your calling?  The three rules are simple: pay your own way, be a good person and make society better. Really that simple, you shouldn't be a burden to your society, you should fol...

Send us Fan Mail The most likely emergency we will face in a modern and connected technologically enabled world is the loss of power. That brings a host of issues that challenge how we conduct our normal lives, as such, having a specific grid down power loss preparedness plan is a necessity. This 5 step plan sets you and your family up for success, ensures that you have the minimum power necessary...

Send us Fan Mail Where do you find accurate and trusted voices in times of disaster or emergency? This is a question to be answered in times of peace and calm. Finding these sources and having them readily accessible removes anxiety and stress when the world goes pear shaped and you're wondering what just happened. From your local EM website, to Twitter, Facebook, radio and most importantly -...

Send us Fan Mail Water is nature's most powerful force, it is unmatched in destruction and loss of habitat. With the recent floods in Canada and across the world, we discuss the four main thoughts around flood preparedness. First, local knowledge, find everything, flood maps, historical records, etc. Second, examine your ingress and egress routes to your shelter in place location. Third, your...

Send us Fan Mail Another fun summer bonus episode, talking about the ten most recommended items you should have included in your sheltering in place plan. These are drawn from both professional and anecdotal evidence, based upon our animalistic requirements framework from our education system in our first book. Most will be familiar, some new, but an interesting way to reflect on whether you are r...

Send us Fan Mail Some summer fun, the ten truths of emergencies drawn out from research into the gap between reality / experience and public sector resident-facing emergency preparedness communication. Take some time to reflect on whether the next flood will truly be a surprise, will the public sector element of critical infrastructure you rely upon really be available and can the government suffi...

Send us Fan Mail Season 7 was dedicated to returning to first principles, reviewing the core concepts of preparedness in theory - discussion over what it means and how to consider the options when developing a plan. Season 8 will be more detailed deep dives, specific examples with less theory and linked to a YouTube video. This is what you the listeners have been requesting, this is what we will p...

Send us Fan Mail Ai is disruptive, here and only going to be more impactful in our lives. This episode we cover a general synopsis of AI, what it is and how it is being used today. We further discuss the impacts on ur personal, economic and general lives. AI has great potential to answer questions that are beyond the throughput of human scientists, but it comes with the potential to be used for ne...

Send us Fan Mail If you were to search for preparedness online, or on YouTube, you'd think society was on the verge of collapse. The apocalyptic chatter is incredible, those who want to sell you something, who believe that fear is the best motivator are making mint. In this episode, we look at the three main arguments - US dollar failure as reserve currency, expansion to a European total war...

Send us Fan Mail Preparedness has some skill sets, most of which are not immediately apparent. We normally consider preparedness skills as first aid, bushcraft, cooking without utilities. They are necessary and important, but what about your ability to operate in times of chaos, your negotiations skills, de-escalation demeanour, physical fitness, firefighting, situational awareness. There are many...

Send us Fan Mail Summer, the happy season, also contains some specific hazards that need to be considered. We discuss how to brainstorm what may happen where you live this summer by considering what has happened and what you are exposed to. With that list, from natural, industrial, economic, political and conflict risks, we compare those to your preparedness plan. Is it sufficient to navigate that...

Send us Fan Mail The world, whether at the national, sub-national or community level is divided along ideological and political lines. We live in a world of massive information flow and limited discourse. The value of ideas from individuals are framed in relation to their political , cultural and religious ideology. Great thoughts and opinions are lost to the ether when we ignore commentary becaus...