Unlike my father who was an Eagle Scout, I never had any professional training in being prepared. I’m a fan of the idea though, and I like to Be Prepared for situations as best as I can anticipate.
Crafting Your Plan
Simply put, the best way to be prepared is to think about the scenario you expect to experience, then sketch out the steps that will be needed for successful completion. You may not need to write it down on paper, as though you’re writing a grocery shopping list of actions, but you should have a clear understanding of the process in sequence.
Take, for example, my recent water heater replacement. Having experienced that process previously, I knew many of the actions and reactions to expect, such as
- They’ll need to drain the existing water heater – make sure there is a path from the water heater to the yard for the hose (and have my hose on standby in case they need to borrow it like last time!)
- The guy steering the hand truck with the old/new water heater may have trouble maneuvering the weight – clear all furniture and wall hangings from the path, just in case
- Water is involved – keep towels/rags handy for emergencies and/or clean up.
Expecting the Unexpected
But even with all of the advance planning in the world, you always have to expect the unexpected. Here’s the item I didn’t have on my mental list:
- Move the pot holders off the stovetop in case the guy wants to light his blowtorch from the gas burners in the kitchen!
Yep, the water heater closet is off the kitchen, so I guess using a gas stovetop to light a blowtorch is a natural step before soldering gas lines back together. But, at least I didn’t need my new fire extinguisher!
There will always be complications and situations we didn’t expect, but we can still prepare for the obvious and manage the rest as it comes.