The 7 Key Areas of Preparation: A Warrior’s Guide to Activism and Resilience

Many martial artists begin training for self-defense, only to realize that true preparedness is a lifestyle that extends far beyond physical skills. They may also come to find that survival isn’t just about the individual - it is deeply tied to the well-being of a community, environment, and the world at large. While most prepper guides talk about the essentials of food, shelter, and water, this action list also covers themes of creativity, regulation, and cooperative living. From mindset to mutual aid, self-defense to conflict resolution, nervous system regulation to voter rights, this guide provides small steps that you can build up over time to help you and your community stay ready. You won’t find doomsday fear mongering or cues to hoard resources here - Warrior Healing Arts is all about self actualization, sustainability, and community abundance.

The 7 Key Areas of Preparation

To build a strong foundation for resilience in uncertain times, we are going to focus on these areas:

  1. Security & Resilience (organization, medical care, and disaster preparedness)

  2. Economic Stability (downsizing, strategic boycotting, and creative business solutions)

  3. Personal Empowerment, Mastery & Skill Share (education, skill-building, and physical & mental resilience)

  4. Community & Mutual Aid (local resilience networks, nonviolent conflict resolution, and defense strategies)

  5. Political & Civic Engagement (voting, advocacy, and direct action)

  6. Mindset, Emotion & Nervous System Regulation (inner regulation and lessons from past and current movements and leaders)

  7. Collective Envisioning (systemic change, sustainability, and global well-being)

1) Security & Resilience

The base of any strong foundation should be one of structure, order, and awareness. Know yourself and know your plan.

Organize Your Documents

  • Get or renew your passport

  • Keep track of your Social Security Card, Birth Certificate, and other important documents

  • Make digital copies of everything and store them on an external hard drive

Get Your Health in Order

  • Take proactive steps to maintain your well-being before a crisis hits - book and attend those check ups!

  • Secure your insurance (review coverage, understand options, update as needed)

  • Manage your prescriptions and stock up on extras if possible

  • Plan for reproductive health (know your options, access necessary care, have a backup plan)

Have a Disaster Plan

  • Store a minimum of 3 days’ worth of food and water, then gradually build up to 2 weeks, 1 month, or more

  • Prepare both a go-bag for quick exits and a stay-bin for long-term needs

  • Develop a home base plan for your family’s safety and logistics

  • Learn basic first aid skills to handle emergencies

2) Economic Stability

I know - capitalism is the root of so much of our collective woes, but we can’t change the system if we are drowning within it. Find or make a better way!

Practice Strategic Boycotting

  • Use your financial power to support local businesses, entrepreneurial friends, and ethical companies

  • Move your money from big banks and into local credit unions

  • Remember that boycotting is only strong when it’s done in huge numbers - keep an eye on organizations that are tracking the movement

Explore Cooperative Living & Resource Sharing

  • Participate in resource-sharing networks, such as tool libraries, BuyNothing groups, and ride-sharing programs, to minimize individual consumption and contribute to a circular economy

  • Cancel non-essentials (capitalism thrives on urgency, competition, and inadequacy - know that you don’t have to keep up with the Kardashians!)

Build Your Own Business as a Vessel for Change

  • Start a business or side hustle that not only serves your passion but also drives progressive change - Use it as a platform to promote ethical practices, community empowerment, and environmental responsibility

  • Channel your creativity and entrepreneurial spirit into projects that reflect your values and contribute to building a fair and sustainable world - We need your genius!

3) Personal Empowerment, Mastery & Skill Share

In times of uncertainty, focus on what you CAN control. Use your mind and body wisely, and share your genius with others.

Build Yourself Up

  • Prioritize education, whether from academic institutions, mentorship, certifications, skill trade, or free resources

  • Develop skills (what do you know or what can you learn that might help your community? Hone it!)

  • Focus on specialization (we can’t all be good at and know everything - so find your special sauce and share it!)

Fuel Your Mind

  • Read books, listen to podcasts, and watch media that challenge your thinking, teach resilience, and highlight different forms of strength, survival and historical perspectives

  • Practice discernment (question sources, recognize bias, and guard against manipulation, as misinformation and fear tactics are everywhere)

  • Balance your intake of information (stay informed without doom-scrolling)

Fuel Your Body

  • Practice martial arts, strength training, mobility work, breathwork, and/or endurance training to stay focused and alert

  • Train for resilience by developing self-defense, survival skills, and nervous system regulation to handle the unexpected

  • Nourish yourself by prioritizing whole foods, hydration, and nutrient-dense meals (as much as you can afford/manage)

4) Community & Mutual Aid

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” - Margaret Mead

Build Community

  • Take & teach local classes

  • Engage in mutual aid (provide resources and services to each other in times of need)

  • Learn about and implement non-violent communication and conflict resolution strategies

  • Experience joy with others - dance, party, eat good food, rejoice whenever you can!

Secure Local Food Sources

  • Support small grocers, local farms, farmers markets & CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture)

  • Learn foraging & preservation skills

  • Look into community gardens & urban farming

Practice Self and Community Defense and De-escalation

  • Strengthen collective safety through mutual defense networks and nonviolent conflict resolution practices

  • Know when to engage in conflict & when to walk away or de-escalate by cultivating situational awareness and learning about attack dynamics

  • If you’re going to have a weapon, train diligently with that weapon

Leadership today is about courage. Courage to realize our challenges are complex and no one individual, organization, or sector can resolve them on their own.
— Brenda Herchmer

5) Political & Civic Engagement

Whether we like it or not, political mechanisms are the levers that push society forward…or backward. Your participation is required.

Engage in Advocacy & Direct Action

  • Research policies and candidates at all levels of government, especially local government

  • Vote strategically to support justice, sustainability, and community well-being

  • Contact representatives, sign petitions, and attend town halls (download the 5 Calls app to use as an easy tool and resource)

  • Participate in protests, general work strikes, or do what you can from home

Support Alternative Systems

  • Strengthen unions, mutual aid networks, and grassroots movements

  • Divest from unethical corporations and support community-led initiatives

  • Engage in local organizing to create real solutions outside of corporate control

Know Your Rights & Stay Secure

  • Learn your rights when protesting, recording police, or engaging in direct forms of activism

  • Use encrypted communication (Signal, ProtonMail) and be mindful of surveillance tactics

  • Always choose strong passwords and enable two-factor authentication

  • Limit personal info online and scrub what you can (use services like DeleteMe)

6) Mindset, Emotion & Nervous System Regulation

A sustainable collective movement requires a steady environment within. Learning from those who’ve come before us and practicing regulation are key to consistent action.

Mind Your Mindset

  • Respect the work that came before you - study the movements, leaders, and communities who have been resisting and organizing for decades, such as Black, Indigenous, LGBTQIA, veterans, and disabled folk

  • Try to avoid performative activism by staying grounded, engaged, and focused on real change

  • Learn to navigate fear, crisis fatigue, and burnout without becoming numb or paralyzed

Regulate Your Nervous System

  • If you’re able to, move daily—- walking, martial arts, dance, and even slow, intentional breathing all help regulate stress

  • Research and consider taking gentle, supportive herbs such as oatstraw, nettles, and passionflower

  • Find your support system and confide in like-minded people who share your values, whether in-person or online

  • Explore embodied activism & somatic practices that can teach you techniques to keep your body and mind steady in times of stress

7) Collective Envisioning

What is all the grit, pain, hard work, and suffering for if we don’t have a vision to strive toward? Without hope and vision, setbacks will feel futile.

Visualize the future and share with others

  • Take time to actually envision a world built on equity, sustainability, and collective care

  • Engage in discussions and creative problem-solving to imagine alternatives to harmful and exploitative systems

  • Support movements and organizations that center justice, liberation, and long-term well-being

Create Systemic Change

  • Advocate for policies that promote sustainability, human rights, and economic fairness

  • Vote with intention, participate in direct action, and engage in community-led initiatives

Practice Sustainability & Resource Stewardship

  • Reduce waste, support local and regenerative agriculture, and invest in sustainable solutions

  • Learn about permaculture, renewable energy, and ways to lessen dependence on exploitative industries

  • Advocate for climate justice, fair labor practices, and equitable access to healthcare and education

Now take a deeeeeeep breath! Very nice. Now, this guide isn’t a full prepper blueprint, and is only meant to be a foundation of small action steps. Start where you can, build as you go, and lean on community. Resilience is a collective effort.

Let’s do this,
Joelle

Resources:
Community Emergency Response Training (CERT)
Public Safety First Aid Training (PSFA)
Gun training and safety for progressive and marginalized communities
Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE)
Center for Nonviolent Communication
Embodied Activism by Rae Johnson PhD