SHTF situations can stem from a wide range of events, such as natural disasters, economic collapse, or nuclear war. Immediately after SHTF is the survival phase before stabilization and rebuilding occur.
This is the most dangerous phase, where primary needs are the focus, and living may be day-to-day. The skills most needed for this phase are those geared towards the necessities of food, water, and shelter, and it is important to remember that you may not be in a traditional wilderness survival situation. Urban survival skills are just as valuable.
Going after all your needs alone will make it much more difficult to move out of the survival phase and into the stabilization phase. Having in-demand skills that you can trade will make it easier for you to focus on what you are good at and trade for everything else you need.
Here are some of the survival skills you can trade after SHTF.
Water Procurement and Purification
In best-case scenarios, humans can live three to five days without water. This timeframe is even shorter in hot climates or with intense physical activity.
The ability to procure water and make it clean enough to drink is a skill that is largely lost to the masses.
Having these skills, especially in deserts, will make you essential to the survival of many and open trade opportunities. You can learn here how to get clean, drinkable water, under any circumstances.
Hunting and Fishing
Hunting and fishing have long been integral to human survival. Today, they are often for sport or supplementary nutrition.
While it is possible to get lucky in both pursuits, substantial and reliable hunting and fishing require skills that are not very common in modern society.
Hunting requires a keen sense of animal behavior, tracking, traps, weapons proficiency, and determination.
Fishing is a bit easier for personal survival, but knowledge of fish traps, breeding waters, lure crafting, and fish species can be highly valuable for trading.
Medical Aid
Any SHTF situation is bound to be accompanied by injuries, and the ability to provide medical aid to people will make you an invaluable asset.
You may see providing this type of aid as a moral duty, and it is in some cases, but not all. Much like doctors and hospitals in regular society, you can trade your skills for survival items that you need.
Even if your skills are not immediately needed, the fact that you have them will help ensure you are taken care of and seen as a high-value member of the group.
I rely on this doctor-written and approved guide on how to manage most health situations when help is not on the way. It’s also where I found out what the most sought-after medical items will be in a crisis.
Foraging
Foraging is a critical survival skill that predates all civilizations. Knowing edible plants and where to find them can ensure you have enough food to eat, and you can trade the surplus.
Additional knowledge of medicinal plants can ensure you have valuable commodities to trade with other survivors.
If you are well-versed in the native herbs and spices of your area, you can help turn otherwise revolting foods into more palatable meals, aiding caloric intake and overall survival. Tasty food is always of value and very tradable in survival situations.
Fur Dressing and Tailoring
Humans are unique in our ability to craft wearable shelters. It is one of the reasons we have spread across the globe and can live in otherwise inhospitable climates.
Whether you live in the hot deserts of Arizona and need protection from the sun or in the depths of Alaska and need protection from the cold, the ability to craft clothing can be an invaluable and potentially lifesaving skill.
Related: Waterproof Socks – One Step Further in Terms of Outdoors Living
Hunting will provide pelts that can be crafted into warm clothing, but they must be treated and tanned first. This skill is not widely practiced, providing ample opportunity for trade. Similarly, the ability to craft furs into wearable clothes and functional accessories can be lucrative for trade. Just being able to patch existing clothing will be valuable.
Food Preservation
Some parts of the US enjoy mild climates and abundant rainfall, making year-round foraging possible.
On the other hand, large swaths of the country experience pronounced seasons and hard winters, making foraging a seasonal event.
To survive winters, food preservation becomes essential.
The ability to smoke, can, pickle, salt, and dry foods that are then packaged to stay fresh for the winter is a skill that can improve your chances of survival and create a valuable trade commodity.
Construction
Construction broadly encompasses many skills that can be useful after SHTF. Carpentry is a very versatile skill that is essential for building or repairing shelters and other structures.
Masonry is useful for building more durable shelters, fireplaces, ovens, and even grain mills. Roofing is critical for keeping the elements out of shelters, and the knowledge can be adapted to life without asphalt shingles.
Plumbing can be useful for piping water to shelters and waste away, as well as establishing good sanitation systems with improvised pipes and water heaters.
Security
Shelter is not just protection from the elements but also from animals and, importantly, other humans. Robust security integrates offensive and defensive capabilities and the skills pertaining to each can be valuable for trade.
Crafting weapons, effective perimeters, defenses, and situational awareness systems will be an important aspect of survival in SHTF situations. Communication will also be very important, especially if the grid is down. You can learn here how to legally turn a CB car radio into a powerful transmitter capable of emitting and receiving communications from hundreds of miles away.
Stockpiling modern weapons and ammunition is a great start that also offers commodities for trade, but gunsmithing and ammunition manufacturing are skills that you can trade without digging into your own stockpile. Crafted primitive weapons can easily be traded to hunters and fishers.
Mechanical and Electrical Repair
After SHTF, life is not guaranteed to go back to the Stone Age. There will still be generators, vehicles, pumps, tools, radios, batteries, and other modern implements that will need repairs.
Intimate knowledge of mechanical or electrical systems can be a vitally important skill that has high trade value.
Beyond repairing items in exchange for goods, you will also have the ability to scavenge for parts and build systems from scratch. With these skills, you can adapt machines and equipment to specific requirements of whatever SHTF scenario you are in.
In a SHTF situation, you may face uncertainty and hardship in your pursuit of survival. Well-developed personal survival skills can get you through any situation and will make you an asset to those around you.
Many of these and some of the more formal trade skills can be extremely valuable for trade after SHTF. The more practical survival skills you have, the more valuable you will be, further ensuring your survival.
What are some other survival skills you can trade when SHTF? Let us know in the comments!
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Looking at what our pioneer ancestors did on the frontier help us learn what other barter skills we can develop.
Raising animals for milk and eggs can be taught and reproducing these animals can be a great skill to develop. Learning to raise these animals using natural means without the dependence on modern medicine is another aspect of the bartering situation.
Gardening and seed saving also require skills that others might not have that can be bartered.
Grafted trees are another barter skill that will help as SHTF situations begin to stabilize.
*Memorial Day weekend is here, we need to remember the fallen heroes of the many wars we fought.
Having a traditional barbecue and big sales. Parents should tell their children about the homeless vets who helped gave some, some gave all to have the peace and security our nation deserves. Enjoy the weekend traditions that is our America.
Biden has given more taxpayers money away to other countries then helping America first.
He pays off the Palestinian protesters student loans at our expense. He gives billions to Kenya for welfare needs there.
Well Joe, our country’s homeless and homeless vets need the help first.
God bless America and American veterans first this Memorial Day!
Post SHTF will be interesting as the city regulations in some states may get relaxed to having a rooster to continue our backyard chickens for eggs and meat.
The so-called SHTF may have certain things like utilities come back sooner if preppers have their self generated electricity systems running.
The municipal utilities will slowly comeback as long as a terrorist attack on the sensitive grid did not totally destroy the main skeleton of the electrical components.
As noted from previous posts America’s manufacturing has been taken over by China, some European manufacturers maybe able to manufacture badly needed transformer equipment replacements.
If not America will need to manufacture those items. Either way this can take several months to build up new transformers. Even in a AI robotic world and advance technologies it still takes time to manufacture and build up supplies that are needed.
The SHTF can be local, the whole USA and world wide that can make existing manufactures that survived behind the 8 ball in processing badly needed equipment to restore civilization.
American ingenuity is in our DNA even though we have had Marxist indoctrinated public school educated public.
While some preppers own NON-GRID TIED electrical systems may, temporarily, enable them to power some devices, all, except for solar-based systems will eventually run out of fuel. Possibly VERY Spartan usage could make certain peoples electrical abilities last for a few months, but they will NOT be tied to the grid. Can’t be. Load is too great for a generator too handle. So while some preppers may have isolated electrical power, the regular person who’s power is off, will stay off. I’m currently learning exactly what components of the substation transformers would be damaged by an EMP. Apparently, as of now, that is one of two big Achilles heels of our electrical grid in general. The other is the cooling systems of our current nuclear power facilities. It’s said they will go down and eventually cause a meltdown at those plants. Digging further into that as well. One thing is, sadly, absolutely certain. Millions of American citizens will die if the grid is down for even 3 months.
If we’re talking about a SHTF that takes us back to a pre-industrial level a truly awesome skill to have would be spinning thread and yarn from cotton and wool fibers. How does a spinning wheel work? I have no idea, but women in pre-industrial households spent hours every day spinning thread and making clothes.
You don’t even need a spinning wheel to spin yarn from sheep’s wool, or even cat hair. All you need is a drop spindle, I watched my mother spin yarn with one, even though she had a spinning wheel, sometimes she just used a drop spindle. Here’s a short video:
How To Spin Yarn Using A Drop Spindle
Worthwhile article. He didn’t say the list was in order as priorities go but it almost is. Getting drinkable water is an area most people are going to need help with. Then medical attention to the damage done to human bodies. Foraging will be necessary because people in general have not stocked away a few months worth of food and even fewer could forage, so they will need help. Hunting may not be a big factor because I fear every eatable animal will be gone in short order. Construction and repairing stuff will be important but I would call that recoverage phase.
A general theme here is: make yourself useful and then those around you will want to keep you alive longer.
Shift will impliment martial law and control , positive Id , Marked for the Mass , and structured worship of the beast and all it represents ( Anti Christ )
Money , Gold, Silver , precious stones will be like in the bible times , as they find out you have they will steal , force , control what you have for the good of all .
yes corruption, murders , gangs, Mobs will rule as the laws will turn into as fit for me
and Me will rise to the surface
The Narcistic , Self Centered , Ego Society will rule over the week
What ever you can get or have will be trade
Poverty will be massive , and deception will rule the mass as they will believe the lie and worship the anti christ so as not to starve and get food for NOW .
Rest assured when this Happens ( YOU have Been left Behind ) and YOU did not trust, believe , follow Christ as listed clearly in the bible .
like you did not know . or were not warned , and said you would do it later .
Too much Now
Remember Every Man , Woman , child will make their own choice . because God is Loving, Just , Forgiving , he God allows Mankind right up to death to choose
There is never force or coorercian with God . It is YOUR choice , freedom to choose
any religeon or way of life which hold s something over your head is Fake, False, Anti Christ.
Remember There Can only ever Be ONE God , not by works so no one can take credit for God s work , God is a jealeous God and visits the sin of the fathers , mothers upto the 4 th gerneration of those who deny Him , hate Him in what they do . and commit attrosities in thier own eyes for thier own satisfaction .
Forgiveness , Love , Compassion That is Gods way
You’re absolutely right. Watch Israel and Germany, those are your time clocks. Germany is Assyria which gives rise to revived roman empire for 7th and last time. Out of it comes beast.
Right now king of North is building up to push against king of the South. Watch Russian Asian alliance. For North from Germany, From South Iran multiple alliance.
As Israel goes so does Manasseh (america) Ephraim (britain) Jacob – Israel’s grandsons descendants we are.
2 Chronicles 7:14
If Manasseh doesn’t fulfill this our prophecy will come to pass – utter total destruction. This anything goes non moral way of life is going to reap firey judgment as God allows this nation to be overtaken and brought into slavery under mysterious beast.
No mystery open your eyes see revived roman empire is catholic church – government hybrid. It’s rising now with germany help. The 10 are forming as we speak.
Stop watching news and start reading God’s Word Jesus’ love letter to all – The Holy Bible. Prophecy is being swiftly fulfilled in no other time except now. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel especially now, Matt 24, Revelation see what is to come.
Devil’s future is ending in hellfire along with all his 1/3 demons he took when they jumped out of Heaven, he was thrown out after great battle by Michael and the angels. Don’t let him drag YOU to hell with him! Call on Jesus He hears and will answer He will save you IF you ask Him.
Climate change? No just God’s judgment being meted out on evil rebellious children of his known as mankind, He’s trying to coax man to repent and return to Him.
Near world war 3 in Middle East? Yes war pigs are coming you’ve been told for centuries it’s coming. Antisemitism towards Jews? Yes in last days God’s miracle He will save His people and all mankind by coming back and ending devil’s reign over this world.
Remember Jesus named devil – satan as god of this world, he’s reason all the bad has been happening. God rules Heaven satan rules earth. Cant blame God for bad blame devil & you cause you listen to following him every step of the way by rebelling against God your Father the very one who made you.
Devil he comes to kill, steal, & destroy all God created including mankind. Jesus will return to judge him, his demons, and all not written in His Lamb’s Book of Life.
It’s easy to get in book; simply believe on the name of Jesus and be saved. Accept Jesus as your only Savior, confess He is, and your name is written in His blood in His book. So easy children are doing it. Why not you why not today while you have this moment? The next is not promised let alone tomorrow. Do it now and be saved.
Always praying for those to be gathered with we the last remnant Jesus’ Church Bride. He’s coming hang onto what you know is His Truth and faint not. Continue the harvest for the fields are white with it, but laborers are few. Let’s get more tell the world all the wonderful things He’s done for those of us He’s saved. We have this moment, what will YOU do with it??
By trade i am a blacksmith. I would imagine that post SHTF i will get quite busy. Just about everything on that list will require the aid of a blacksmith as premade items become scarce. Broke your shovel and there are no more hardware stores? I can fix it or make you a new one. Need a new hammer after losing yours working on that bridge? I can make a new one. Broke your foraging knife? Well, you guessed it, i can make you a new one.
“By hammer and hand all arts do stand”
Some of the oldest professional skills will always be around prostitution, criminals and the legal kind in both good and bad times.
Craftsmen will be the most valuable in the rebuilding of our communities. Politics will be on the low end of things that have caused most of our problems in society.
Memorial Day weekend is coming up fast we need to remember our fallen heroes of past and present wars. Besides having a traditional barbecue and store sales. Hopefully we have parents that will their children about the homeless veterans who helped give some peace and security to our nation to enjoy
Biden is sending more billions of dollars to repay the Palestinian protesters student loans off at taxpayers expense and giving billions to Kenya for their country’s welfare needs.
Hey Joe what about our country’s need first the homeless and homeless veterans than giving away money America does not have?
God Bless the American veterans and America first this Memorial Weekend!
Knowing how to make things from materials in hand would be useful. It’s mentioned similarly in the article with knowing how to fix and repair things, but I’m looking more broadly, e.g., how to make soap, fashion baskets or bags, make candles, work clay. All of those activities would be useful as they can create things that will be needed or welcomed.
You left out something very valuable, well will became invaluable because pharma won’t be around; Herbalist Practitioner. When you don’t feel good you can do nothing. When all stocked pharma runs out and it will fast or expire you’ll be looking for we the age – olde Physiomedicalists. What we Herbalists were before pharma took over around late 1800’s with Phony “Flexner Report” and rockerfeller fraud drugs.
We’ll be in huge demand for medicinals. Its already happening as the medical industrial complex is swiftly coming to a halt. After convid do YOU trust them? Nope I don’t didn’t before and absolutely not now!
We trained Herbalist Practitioner are the only ones who can correctly identity and create some herbal medicinals that are safe and successful. Herbal Alchemist we can create a myriad of herbal medicinals.
I’m an Herbalist Practitioner, forager, & Herbal Alchemist. I also garden food as well as herbals, hunt & fish always cook from scratch.
I create tinctures, infusions, decoction, liniments, salves, infused herbal oils, a myriad of other medicinals and body care items. I’ve been well trained in many world herbal traditions including CM, Western, & TCM.
No, you can’t just take a bunch of herbs, mix them up, and give them to everyone, herbalism doesn’t work that way. Not all herbs are good for everyone, some herb is good for someone.
Herbalism has a lot more to it because not every herb works for everyone. You need to consult client first before a single herb is recommended.
“Shotgun herbalism” causes more harm than you would ever know. From upset stomach to organ damage could be effects client suffers while you play chemist with herbs. Organ damage is not easily corrected. It also explains why some herb works for one, but not another. You MUST know your herbs and client.
Herbs are not beign or one – size – fits – all. They’re not a safe replacement for pharma unless you know and are trained in herbs, yet they are safer than pharma.
Some herbs can kill as well as heal. Some are for ingestion while many others are not.
Digitalis definitely not safe in fact it kills, leaves easily mistaken for comfrey. Water hemlock looks like harmless Queen Anns lace or does it?? PAs constituent plants are deadly because by the time symptoms show up client already has liver damage. Boneset is a very low dose short time use, but for who? For what?
Would you be willing to bet your life on it or a family members on that herb you’re holding? You’ll only make fatal mistake once.
You need training to know which herb is and/or isn’t for who. Believe me it’s a lot of training in many fields to be safe and successful. Going into Herbal Alchemy you must learn so much more;
what chemical constituents does this herb have? Will it conflict with another herb you plan to use? What is the best CC extraction menstrum should you use? What percentage of menstrum should be used? How will client react to CC? Menstrum? To be continued…
I grew up using CM herbal tradition, continued self – training for most of my life, and I’ve been training in Herbalism for 8 years in actual herbal schools under many well – known Herbalists for those who are truly in herbal world.
For a very long time there were no schools. When they started to be available distance was problem. Now almost everyone has an Herbal school, but not so fast have they been properly trained? By whom?
Without proper training herbalism can be deadly. Giving wrong herb to wrong person could result in death. Also Herbal Alchemy can heal or kill, mostly can kill when you don’t know what you’re doing. Its far more than dumping some herb in a bottle then covering with some alcohol or oil. Which both of those are incorrect way of preparing CC. First you must prepare your herb to accept CC. How should what herb be prepared?
How much herb? What alcohol? What choice herb? Is it safe for client? What are client’s issues? Are there any adverse events client has ever experienced? What’s your ratio of formulation? What about a multiple formulation? Should you give a single or multiple formulation? What do you know about your client? What are alternatives to chosen herb? Does client even need an herb? What is dosing for client? Should it be based upon acute or chronic? What is issue? How is issue presenting? Is it damp heat? Cold stagnation? To be continued…
There’s multiple questions you need answers to BEFORE you give a single herb to a single client. Every client is uniquely individual, what works for one won’t always work for another including twins.
It comes down to training, more training, more training including a lot of research, reading, asking questions. It’s a life long training and learning in many fields including Botany and foraging to begin especially poisonous, toxic, non toxic herbs. Your training, research, and studying never ends.
One thing people who plan to use or barter their first aid skills frequently fail to think about is what or how are they going to care for a medical or trauma issue that is beyond their skill level and/or equipment level. For instance, a cardiac arrest. how long do you plan to do CPR when there is no ER, paramedics, medications, available to treat that issue? CPR has its limits. Can you suture (with or without modern suturing instruments)? It isn’t a really tough procedure to learn, but do you know how? Do you even have basic instruments you can clean, boil, and reuse?
How about long term injury care? Do you realize how many supplies chronic wound care requires? What about antibiotics? Almost crucial for successful long term injury care. Sure, you might get away with caring for someone with a major injury without antibiotics – once. Certainly not every time. Do you know how to make olde-timey wound cleansing medications that worked – sometimes.
Are you prepared emotionally to quickly realize you are wasting valuable medical equipment and supplies on a losing case and terminate treatment. Sure, the patient will probably die, possibly in agony. But are you mentally prepared for that? Can you triage a patient and “black tag” them as expectant (meaning dead or likely to die soon)? A stranger? How about one of your own children?
I’ve never been in a true SHTF or EOTWAWKI situation, but I have had to triage patients in a small disaster. I was a paramedic, a combat vet, and a police officer. I’ve seen some crap, but I always had more advance care to pass my patients on to. Maybe too late, but I rarely had to not try. I could black tag a stranger, or even a friend. I don’t know if I could black tag my kids or grandchildren knowing in regular times I wouldn’t have to. I won’t know for certain until I have to. However, I have given some thought to this dilemma. As should you.
One other problem that requires advanced thought. What will you do if you have a critically ill or injured patient, no skill or equipment to treat that patient, or you know they will die whatever you do. But their loved one won’t accept your prognosis and thinks your name is Jesus and you can work a miracle. So they put a gun to your head and demand that miracle. What then? This situation has happened even in hospitals in regular times. What about a real EOTWAWKI situation? Give it some thought.