While hold up in the basement one evening, I was tweeting about the storm and huge hail that was pounding the window. I offered to share my preparedness list on social media when Bonnie from Beverly Hills suggested it would make a great blog entry. What a fabulous idea! So, this is part one. 

As you know, my background is in disaster recovery and business continuity. With weather patterns seeming more erratic and tornado season in full swing, I decided to update the list -- the result of many years of preparedness research. In addition to it being my business in a former lifetime, I want my family and YOU to plan for the unexpected … whether it be severe weather, biological hazard, blackout, earthquake (Ohio is on a fault), fire, pandemic, temperature extremes, tornado, or war. 

Some time ago (during a snow storm), I tried to spread ‘thought seeds’ encouraging people to think about what can happen. It’s a fun exercise when we get to play with an idea versus being in the thick of a situation. There are many circumstances not in our control, but there are many that are – that’s what I try to focus on. My philosophy is that when we plan for an event, we’re more likely to experience it with a little more grace. Here’s the resulting article, Over Plan and Underutilize. 

So, let’s get started. Here are beginning steps to help you survive unexpected situations (mentioned in the second paragraph). 

• At your bed side, keep a flashlight and pair of shoes
• Pack a grab-n-go bag (also known as bug-out bag) nearby. I’ll have more about contents to pack in this in a later blog post.
• Discuss contingency plans with your family. Example: Plan A is everyone meet at home. If they can’t get home then Plan B is to go to Aunt Lou’s house. If they can’t get to Aunt Lou’s then Plan C is go to the Meijer’s on Sunbury Road (something open 24 hours). The idea here is that roads may not be open or travel friendly (example, debris). If traffic is jammed, walking may be in order. Get the idea?
• Within your home, everyone should know where and how to turn off electric, gas, and water. If tools are required, a set needs to be readily available.
• Have you heard of ICE contacts? ICE (in case of emergency) contacts should be input to your mobile phone. Example: ICE1 Fire (with name, phone numbers, emails if known, and address). ICE2 Police. ICE 3 Spouse. ICE4 Parents. ICE5 Children. ICE6 Work contact, and so on. In the unfortunate event emergency services or hospital personnel need to contact someone on your behalf – they’ll look in your phone directory for ICE contacts. P.S. Notify your emergency contacts that you have them listed and keep this list current.
• Inventory your home. Whether you have a physical written list, or a video log … maintain a record of contents. The ideal list includes the item, when and where purchased, and how much it cost. Of course original receipts are helpful. While you’re at it (especially on video) include any family or sentimental history. Consider doing this with photos and memorabilia too!
• Talk with your neighbors. What are their plans? If you can’t get home will they turn off utilities or take care of your pets? If they can’t get home, how can you help them?
• Hold family drills. Brainstorm what to do during a biological attack. What is each person’s role? Then talk through your plan as though it is happening. Who steps in for each person if they aren’t there to help (called a backup plan)? What can each person do when a blackout happens? Where will supplies be? Have a drill for earthquake, fire, pandemic, and tornado scenarios. What will you need that you don’t have? When will you make those purchases? Maybe place items on your wish list? Most important is to work on your plans, and plan your work – in other words, figure out what can be done in month one, month two, and so on. It’s also good to review your plans periodically (once every six months or more often). Practice builds confidence.
• Eliminate earthquake hazards such as open shelves, cupboard doors that aren’t latched, and large furniture than might fall over. Secure things to walls or install latches. I’ve seen beautiful dishes dance across countertops and crash to the floor during an earthquake. In one case, a man had a wall of swords fall to the floor. Luckily, no one was in the room. Look on your walls and surface tops. What hazards are possible? Are there items to pack safely away?
• Discuss your home-evacuation list. In the event you’re told you need to evacuate, what are the ‘must takes’ – pictures, pets, family heirlooms, etc., that can’t be replaced (because stuff can be replaced). Make it easy on yourself. Instead of binders of pictures, scan them onto a memory stick. Do the same with important papers and medical information. I’ll have more about this on a future blog post.
• Ensure your last will and testament is current. Everyone should have a will!

So there are a few suggestions. Will you do a favor for me? Offer suggestions or insights. If you find this information helpful, please let me know. If I don’t hear anything, then I’ll assume this isn’t a worthy topic (then parts two and beyond may not get posted). It’s up to you!

May you be exceedingly, generously, and joyfully blessed,©

Diana Garber

President, CEO (Creative Environment Officer©), and Master Feng Shui Practitioner

Intuitive Concepts, Inc.

(740) 965-9458

Foursquare, GoWalla, Yelp and Facebook Places are just a few of the geotargeting platforms available to businesses that interact with customers individually. Brands can learn who visits them most often, gain feedback and observe trends of their target market.

Users love it because they can see where their friends are, meet up if they are close by and learn about new things in their area.

But, as the weather heats up, so do crime rates.  Peak vacation time is just around the corner.  Summer months see the highest rates of crime of year according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.   Users can avoid being a statistic by keeping these tips in mind…

Don’t publicize your location posts on Twitter and Facebook.  Users should keep posts between friends on the platform only. As well as being an unsafe practice, many users consider posting an individuals whereabouts to everyone on their Twitter and Facebook feeds bad social media etiquette.  Followers will get sick of it quickly.  Information shared should benefit others.  No one cares about a trip grocery.  Followers do care about a grocery trip and where the user scored a pretty sweet deal on their favorite grub.

Be smart about when and where you check-in.  Participants should try not to check-in as soon they arrive to their destination.  Instead, they should wait until they leave to post.  Some companies require users to check-in to receive special discounts in their stores.  Contributors should use extreme caution if they wish to participate. 

Never post private residences.  Once the address is on the web site, there is no going back.  Shady characters will go to great lengths to find the information they need to create problems. Users don’t need to make perpetrators’ jobs easier for them. Keep everyone safe by keeping private addresses just that—private.

Seek permission from present company before post.  If congregating at a favorite place, users should ask permission from everyone in your group to release their identities.  Not everyone is kosher with having their whereabouts publicized online.  Participants need to ask before you tell and respect the privacy of others. 

Stay safe this summer and think before you tweet!

Baker Creative is a brand architectural firm that practices an holistic branding approach which encompasses marketing, business, HR, public relations, social media and new media with creative execution. You can follow her on Twitter @BakerCreative or read the team’s blog.

IMPACT teaches programs to young people and adults. We understand that emotional pressure is a big reason why young people often have a hard time stopping unsafe and uncomfortable behavior.

We teach them that when we set a boundary, the other person might get upset.  And, we teach them that their safety is more important than anyone’s embarrassment, inconvenience or offense. And we practice with them in situations like this:

“Pretend you have said ‘Stop’ to something someone is trying to do with you that should be your choice, such as giving a hug or playing a game.  Suppose this person is someone you care about, and he or she gets hurt feelings or mad because you said to stop.

We teach them to practice saying:” I don’t want to hurt your feelings, and please stop. And if the person they care about says, “I thought you were happy to see me. Or says, “You’re being unfair.” or says, “You’re being difficult.”


We practice responding like this:

“I am happy to see you, and stop,”

”I don’t mean to be unfair, and stop”,

“Sorry, and stop.”

Simple sentences – Important message

I recently gained perspective on the importance of verbal skills while traveling internationally in areas where I did not speak the language.

I am used to answering my own, infrequent “what would I do if…?” questions.  My response is typically a variation of “Well, I’d talk with him, set a boundary, and it would be clear that I’m not an easy victim…  Or I’d go get help…” Only after exhausting all of these options would I consider physical skills.

During the time I spent alone on my trip, however, I realized that I really wasn’t able to have that conversation to prove that I wasn’t the target assailants look for.  I realized, “Well, I could say “no” and yell a bunch, but I really wouldn’t be able to say much.”  If it kept escalating, I’d have to turn to physical skills.  Not having the necessary language skills, I’d have no other recourse but to use a strike.  Mind you, nothing untoward happened to me nor did I anticipate anything like that, but I returned home with a new awareness of what happens when a person lacks options.

It was amazing for me to see this, because we work regularly now with young people in the schools – many of whom actually do feel confident with  (and have used) physical skills.  But they have no verbal skills to speak of.  It is not unlike the absence of language entirely to not have the vocabulary to get out of a threatening situation.  And I felt for these young people who get in trouble for using physical violence when words would have been sufficient.  They just don’t have the words.

Teaching verbal strategies and a vocabulary of avoidance and de-escalation is much easier than learning a foreign language, let me tell you!  And we must provide it to them.  Because if we don’t, they will act like a cornered animal who either submits to violence or lashes out him/herself.  IMPACT helps people stand up for themselves.  Teaching students ways to do that before it gets physical may be the most important thing we do.

The author Alena Schaim: Director: Impact  Personal Safety/New Mexico, http://www.impactpersonalsafety.org andJulie Harmon, President, IMPACT Safety, www.impactsafety.org,are part of an international network of chapters teaching personal safety, assertiveness and self-defense.

IMPACT training is an important part of a comprehensive strategy to create social change, prevent abuse, support healing and change communities. 

Julie Harmon, PhD is President of IMPACT Safety, a personal safety and violence prevention organization in Columbus Ohio. IMPACT builds safety from the inside out – teaching people of all ages and abilities the critical emotional and physical skills to prevent violence, make safe choices and live with greater confidence. http://www.impactsafety.org

As a personal safety expert, I talk a lot about the right to say no. The right to say no to uncomfortable circumstances, the right to say no to unreasonable or threatening expectations or requests, the right to say no to unwanted attention or touch. And there is the right to say no to a doctor, a lawyer or other person in authority who is not representing you or your best interests, or your friend who wants you to run an errand for her or your colleague who expects you to be the one to clean up after the meeting.

Saying no can mean the risk of being left out, being called a name or being punished. It can mean moving away from, changing your path, changing your plans, using your words, making yourself heard or raising your voice.

Saying no can sound like” I’m not interested, “ that’s not going to work for me”, “I don’t want to”, “no – thank you”. Saying no looks like confidence and courage and self-commitment – it looks like self – possession.

To say no, one must believe:

1.That you are allowed to say no

2.That the world will not end because you say no

3 That you have the skill to stand your ground and express yourself and

 the knowledge that saying no ultimately helps you say yes with more confidence.

No discussion of safety skills is complete without acknowledging the hard reality that most women and girls experience violence at the hands of people they know, often people close to them. This usually takes the form of physical and emotional abuse perpetrated by a dating partner or sexual assault perpetrated by a familiar person. These situations can be harder to face than violence perpetrated by strangers, but at the same time it is important to remember that there are effective strategies.

We are powerful. There are things we can do.

Someone else’s desire to hurt us doesn’t have to take away our power or our choices. We have the ability to assess situations and make judgments that are best for us.

What happens when you ask for something you need or say you don’t like something a person is doing?

If you’re dating someone new or meeting someone for the first time you can learn a lot by paying attention to what the person does when you ask for what you need. Does the person ignore you? Try to talk you out of what you need? Call you names or dismiss you? Or does the person respect you and try to compromise? If someone doesn’t respect your needs over small things (like where to go out to eat, whether to go to a certain party, what time you want to get home, etc.) it’s a good sign that the person could disrespect your needs over bigger things like sex or your safety.   

Change the physical dynamic.

If you don’t feel safe with someone or you’re having a hard conversation, you don’t have to stand right next to the person. Moving away with strong body language can communicate as much as words in some situations. If the person’s arm is around you, it’s OK to move it.

Someone else’s violence and abuse is never your fault.

If something happens it can sometimes help to get support from a caring person who won’t judge or blame you. Most campuses and cities have sexual assault services and 24-hour hotlines that you can call without having to give your name or any other personal information.

The author Meg Stone, Director of IMPACT Boston, http://www.impactboston.organd Julie Harmon, President, IMPACT Safety, www.impactsafety.org,are part of an international network of chapters teaching personal safety, assertiveness and self-defense.

IMPACT training is an important part of a comprehensive strategy to create social change, prevent abuse, support healing and change communities.