Let's take a quick break from detailed analysis for a moment and zoom up to the birds-eye view.
What motivates us to spend time here at PeakProsperity.com?
- We all come to this site because we're concerned about the future. We realize that there are growing predicaments, caused both by human behavior and natural constraints, and we want to reduce our vulnerability to them.
- Also, we believe that in courageously facing these challenges head-on, we (as individuals and as a society) can create a quality of living superior to what we enjoy today – realizing that such transition will require brutal honesty with ourselves, acceptance of a lot of change, and a heaping amount of hard work.
Both of these are worth addressing.
The Future
The next 20 years are going to look very different from the last 20. No doubt about it.
Here's the high-level view:
- Our global debt-based economy is reaching the limits of its ability to convince the marginal investor to accept newly issued credit in exchange for real wealth. We simply won't be able to use credit as a way to drive economic growth the way we have for the past numerous decades.
- Declining world net energy production (and increasing competition for it) will also add increasing headwinds to economic growth. Western societies in particular will find they have either less energy to put to productive use, or the same energy with much less leftover profit. Either way, most of the developed world will have to adjust to having less (of practically everything) than they do now.
- This double-whammy drag to the global economy will be fought by central planners to their last breath. It will be a losing battle, most likely ending in a hyperinflationary series of currency crises caused by massive money printing. Less likely is a cascade of debt defaults causing a global Greater Depression.
- The post-crisis era will shine a brighter light on the extreme wealth gap that has emerged in society. The few who currently own the vast majority of the wealth will be even better off on a relative basis, because they will own nearly all of the tangible "real" wealth that will still exist after paper wealth has been decimated by inflation or default. Those who instead have seen their life savings disappear, their homes foreclosed, their jobs lost, their dreams dashed – they'll get despondent first, then angry. And eventually desperate.
- In the mix here will be growing emergencies around essential resources – food, water, health, education, etc. – but fewer financial resources to meet those needs. Capital formation across the national, state, and individual levels will be seriously compromised from the damage to our economy. We'll have to pick our battles, and we'll be challenged to mobilize effectively around them.
Pretty sobering stuff. But little, if any of this, should be surprising for those who have watched or read The Crash Course.
When will all this come to pass? Well, much of it is already underway. But no one knows for certain its exact timing and exact path. That's why Chris, myself, and the contributing editors at Peak Prosperity spend so much time analyzing the probable implications of recent developments. By this continuous "dot-connecting," we do our best to track where we are in the greater timeline of these predictable trends.
Your Future
Which brings us to the pratical mission for this site. What are you doing to secure a bright future for yourself and your loved ones in advance of these predicaments arriving in full force?
Most of you are well-aware of our firm position that an optimistic future – a better future – is squarely within our reach, despite (and, in certain cases, because of) the looming issues mentioned above. That's why we stress developing personal resilience so much and built the Resilient Life section of this website to help folks do so.
As Chris so often states:
- The unsustainable economic, energy, and environmental policies society is pursuing will last longer than we all expect they can.
- But unsustainable trends – by their very definition – must end.
- And when they do, they will do so at a speed much faster than we think they will.
So, the big question here is: How well prepared are you?
At this very moment, how confident do you feel in your homestead? Your health? Your relationships? Your finances? Your role in your community? Your income security? If the economic and societal risks above were to hit hard tomorrow, are you as prepared as you need to be?
The honest answer for most of us, myself included, is not enough. Developing resilience is more of a pursuit than a destination. Even for the most diligent, Murphy's Law pretty much ensures getting to "100% prepared" is an unachievable goal.
This isn't said with the intent of making you feel bad. Quite the opposite; we're all in this quest of self-improvement together. Life is busy, and these efforts take time to plan and put into practice.
Weekend Seminar at Kripalu: July 19-21
Our weekend seminars are designed to serve as a catalyst for improving your personal level of resilience.
They offer an often much-needed recharge of the reasons why resilience is important and why, as Chris often states, it's MUCH wiser to be a year early than a day late.
They also provide inspiration and specific guidance for improving your physical, emotional, and financial readiness for the most probable eventualities. And beyond that, the relationships you forge with other like-minded participants gives you a community support that you'll leverage for years afterwards.
The timing of this summer's seminar (July 19-21) is particularly opportune, as Chris is becoming increasingly confident that we are approaching an important turning point in the relative economic stability that the world has enjoyed over the past year and a half. Indeed, dangerous asset bubbles have re-emerged to an alarming extent – and we think their remaining lifetime will be measured in months vs. years. If there are meaningful holes in your personal preparations, this summer is an excellent time to address them.
What to Expect
At this seminar, we'll address:
- Chris' latest macro updates looking through the lens of The Crash Course
- The importance and benefits of living resiliently, and creating a custom vision for your future
- Developing your own actionable steps and checklists for realizing this visions
- Talking to (and living with) reluctant partners (friends, colleagues, and neighbors, too)
- Emotional barriers to action
- How our beliefs can be limiting or enhancing, and knowing which we are holding
- The six stages of awareness
- A full tour of the precise steps that the Martensons and Adam have taken at their homesteads
- Hopes & Fears - an open discussion among friends about the future
- Creating community
- Financial steps you should take - we'll have one of our endorsed financial advisors on hand to address your questions
You should especially come if you want to get to meet other like-minded people in a relaxing setting, be invigorated, and come away with a clear sense of what to do next.
We're proud of the seminar curriculum that we've carefully developed and improved over the years. We're quite certain that you'll find it immensely worthwhile.
Click here to Register for the Kripalu Seminar
But don't just take our word for it. Here's what participants of the recent seminars have had to say about the experience:
"I was deeply impressed with Chris, ,and Adam during this weekend. They have obviously put a lot of thought into the curriculum and done their own work. The exercises had an organic feel of having been worked from the inside out by them before being shared with us.
"The sense of openness, transparency in the workshop participants was immediate and, I believe, was catalyzed by the clear minds of Chris and Becca who come from a place of love not fear. I came away with a clear action plan and a deeper sense of peace in a world with imminent change upon us." - Debra
"The opportunity to meet Chris, Becca, and Adam face to face was invaluable. An unexpected result of our time together was the opportunity to meet with other concerned individuals and share ideas. Moving forward from the workshop I felt empowered with the knowledge that I don't have to do this alone. There is a growing community here, and we are poised to guide each other into a truly prosperous future." - Nan
"This was my second Rowe conference with Chris and Becca. In addition, having a reluctant spouse and being surrounded by generally closed minded family and community, being among an enlightened and enthusiastic group provided me with a huge morale boost to keep me moving in the right direction." - Daniel
"Chris and Becca's seminar was a thoroughly enjoyable and uplifting experience. One might imagine a lot of negativity at an event on this topic, and we did discuss each other's fears and concerns, but I left feeling a great deal better about the future. Before the seminar I felt like I had no one I could talk to about our predicament, but that isolation just melted away as we formed our own little community at the seminar." - Jamie
"Attending the Crash Course seminar was life-changing for me.I highly recommend attending the Crash Course or related seminars to anyone who is interested in learning about the changes that are currently unfolding around the world, and how to adapt to them (even and especially those who think they already have all the information they need about this)." - Heather
"This is an engaging, down-to-earth, and practical program. As late as it seems, we are all still "early adopters" in preparing for a very different future. That means most of our families and friends don't understand what we see coming, and it's great to be in a group of intelligent people who "get it." It's also a treat to hear Becca's story of having to help process things as a spouse, and to see how they work as a couple in the art of sharing a difficult message with the world. The delivery is as important as the content. Bravo!" - Doug
"As to the Crash Course presentation recently delivered at Rowe, let me say I have been referring to it as perhaps the best workshop that I have ever attended. I really found the whole experience fantastic." - Mark
If you've attended one our seminars before, please chime in with a Comment below to let others know what you valued most from the experience. Or come back for a "top up" weekend -- many do.
Click here to Register for the Kripalu Seminar
The Bottom Line
The bottom line here is: Take a moment to assess your personal level of preparedness. If it's not where you want it to be, take action – whether its a group experience like Kripalu, leveraging the tools available in Resilient Life, or working outside around your homestead.
The important thing is to assess, prioritize – and get busy!
~ Adam Taggart
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://peakprosperity.com/reality-check-time/
I agree that specific skills are probably the way to go rather than relying on physical strength. In Greece we see the consequences on the health care system of collapse so it motivates one to maintain good health as long as possible and decrease reliance on medicine.