The Prepper Mindset For Retirement

There they were in the far back corner of my closet. I didn’t know it at the time but they were the answer to what woke me up to improving my financial well-being. It was the reason my net worth went from $155,000 to nearly $1,000,000 in 9 years. I owe that financial change to my prepper mindset.

I had buckets of quick rolled oats sitting next to buckets of sugar and salt that was sitting next to buckets of elbow pasta. It was a preparedness mindset that drove me to educate myself on how to properly store those items to last decades. There were so many things to prepare for it was overwhelming so I focused on two main concerns: electrical grid (EMP, natural or man-made) and a pandemic.

“Chance favors the well prepared.”

Likely quoted from every Navy Seal

Though the pandemic preparation turned out to be prophetic, it wasn’t the best scenario to consider. The ultimate and only 100% scenario every human is facing is the coming of old age. I finally woke-up to this reality. Soon after, I turned my attention to retirement planning just like I did for electrical grid and pandemic prepping.

Prepping For Disasters

On 12/31/11, my net worth was $155,000 and I was just finishing up my two weeks of Christmas vacation. It’s my bet, though I don’t remember exactly, that I started looking into prepping during this Christmas vacation.

I went to message boards, read books, and any blog on the subject. Sounds familiar to retirement planning doesn’t it? Most of my first year was planning until it came time to start executing. So, I learned how to store food in buckets, bought a sun oven, water filters, and a manual grain mill.

50 pound bags of wheat, oats, or rice were regular purchases in our family. I’d put a mylar bag (with oxygen absorbers) into a bucket and repeat that process until I felt we had enough to feed the family if SHTF (look it up). We took classes on how to use the sun oven.

But that’s the point, we did all the necessary things (and more) to prepare ourselves for certain disasters. And when you do it really focuses your mind on understanding the goal, creating a plan, taking inventory, and executing.

Eventually, we concluded that this same urgency needs to be given to retirement planning too. It’s funny how the mind works and what gets people to focus on the things they need.

Prepping For Retirement

I’ll tell you one thing, prepping for a disaster made me feel good and empowered. I felt like I was doing something great for my family. But the funny part is I’m not sure how I got started in prepping. Something woke up inside of me, a sudden sense of urgency. Maybe it was a movie I watched that got me thinking about disasters.

Now instead of beans and rice, I focus my attention on reducing debt and increasing my savings rate. In 2011, I openly wondered (worried) if I have enough time to retire at 62. I feel like I’m “cramming” 40 years of saving into 14 years. If I had started earlier it wouldn’t be as painful. But at least I woke-up and it feels good … I have hope! I think the real zombies (and I used to be one of them) are those that aren’t preparing for their eventual retirement.

When I had lots of food, I started thinking about other ways to prep. And then it hit me. What good is prepping if I’m living in poverty during retirement? Maybe that’s what I should really be prepping for, not worrying about whether North Korea bombs the USA. Thank goodness I connected the dots.

Prepping for retirement doesn’t sound as crazy as prepping for “end of days.” Though my wife was a good sport during my prepping days she definitely got onboard with me prepping for retirement. Plus, she got some of her storage space back.

Instead of prepping for food, first aid, and safety for an emergency, I’m prepping to cover my food, shelter, and healthcare expenses in retirement. Seriously, what’s the difference? The mindset of preparing for an EMP, pandemic, paying off your mortgage, or long-term care is very similar.

You run through all kinds of simulations to make sure you’ve got your basis covered. Covering your essential needs is critical regardless of your prepping purpose. Seriously, the mindset is the important consideration. It’s a sense of urgency, a focus to make sure you are safe, and that you can take care of yourself and the family.

Summary

So wake up, people, and prep your little hearts out. Don’t be a retirement zombie and take care of business on whatever front you think is important in your life. Don’t be a retirement statistic like so many Americans. I don’t care what you prep for but I think the prepper mindset will eventually lead you to retirement planning.

“Make preparations in advance. You never have trouble if you are prepared for it.”

Theodore Roosevelt

Those prepper traits and mindset is exactly what I’ve needed for my retirement planning. When I was prepping, I felt I knew things few people were considering. And I still feel that way when I plan for retirement. So many people are unaware of their coming doom. Even those that know doom is coming don’t do anything to fix the problem. Please don’t be those people.

I still “prep” but for a different purpose – retirement. The one thing I found that was as sure as death and taxes was old age. Trust me, I still have my buckets of food just in case the supply chain breaks down. But it was that mindset of the prepper that shifted me into the ultimate prepping – retirement.

Thanks for reading!

Mr. TLR