Thinking of joining a survival community?

Many preppers start out as “lone wolf” types, just putting up preps for their immediate family. In the course of prepping they may run into others of like mind and share some information. Soon a lose group of like minded preppers is formed.

Some take this even farther into creating tight groups or even intentional communities that revolve around being prepared for just about anything.

I do not belong to any of these groups so my “insights” are from the outside.

More hands are better than one

The more people working together toward the same goal usually makes that goal easier to obtain. A group has several advantages over an individual.

– Defense
You have to sleep sometime. A group can be on watch 24/7 whereas an individual cannot maintain round the clock security by himself. If it comes to a fight unless you are Andre the giant a group will have several advantages over a lone fighter. A group of people working together can cover for each others weaknesses.

-Group buying power
For the most part a group will have more resources starting out and more income to build on. This goes for initial land purchase through stocking it with supplies. An individual unless he is rich cannot compete with the buying power of a group.

-Shared workload
More sets of hands get more work done that one set. This goes for everything you have to do. An individual may need to work in the garden while a group can have some working in the garden, some building, some collecting a winter’s wood supply and others earning an income. And if someone should get sick the work doesn’t stop.

More hands can mean more problems

On the flip side there are some distinct disadvantages to working with a group.

– Freedom
You are not free to do as you please. You must consider the group in all your personal decisions.

– Conflicts
Some people are very nice up front but when you get to know them or even only under stress they turn into complete idiots. It is very difficult to head this off in a group that only comes together for an emergency.

– Higher profile
If you are worried about people knowing what you are doing, a group is much harder to hide than a single person or family that is prepping.

– Bigger target
If things really go south there will be those who specialize in taking things from other preppers. While a group will be safer against a small band of thugs they are also a riper target for those that are serious.

– Organization
If you noticed in the pro’s section I said “working together” a couple times. If the group doesn’t have effective leadership and or organization petty conflicts are bound to spring up. They will spring up anyway but with good leadership and organization they can be handled quickly. Most groups do not have this leadership in place.

These are things to think on before committing to join a group. There are several other things you should think about making clear before you join but those things are for you to decide. Ask a lot of questions and press for clear answers.

In the right situation and with the right leadership, a group has a clear advantage.

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