Prepared: A Manual for Surviving Worst-Case Scenarios

Chapter 3 opens with a thought exercise, asking the reader to remember the last time they drove or walked a familiar route, like their daily commute, and then write down every specific thing they can remember about the last time they drove or walked it. The usual lack of specifics remembered by most people is emphasized as a sign of our general lack of situational awareness.

Though situational awareness is important, many people are lost in the dark when trying to develop it. Glover cites Yousef Badou, a former Marine infantryman and current expert in the psychology and practice of situational awareness. Badou advises that people train themselves to engage more actively with their surroundings by “setting a baseline” (68). The practice of understanding the “baseline” or the normal patterns of an environment and then training oneself to spot the “anomaly” or spike in the baseline is a good way to develop situational awareness. However, “what you’re looking for in a restaurant is different from what you’re looking for in a stadium” or any of a wide range of surroundings and conditions (69). This means observing the usual sounds, smells, sights, and general