A Brief History On Mykel Hawke

Just in case you missed it, several weeks ago Survival Life announced a brand new partnership with Mykel Hawke and Ruth England (Stars of “Man, Woman, Wild “and the soon to be airing Travel Channel series “Lost Survivors”).

Mykel wanted to extend his welcome and give you a brief history of who he is and why he does what he does.

Read below to find out a little more about Mykel:

Howdy, everyone, I hope this message finds you well!

I’d like to thank you for joining us and welcome you to something I’m very proud of.

Namely, I’ve decided to partner with the good folks over at Survival Life.com in hopes of bringing our message of “Survival For All” to the good folks who want to be more prepped and ready for what life has coming at them.

Check out this video for just a sneak peak at some of what I plan on bringing you:

**Editors Note: This is just one way to get a fire going when you need it. But it's not the only one…

(Click here to learn more)

Now, there’s a lot of hoopla surrounding survival and preparedness these days, so I just like to stick to actionable facts and tactics. I avoid politics, religion and other social issues that often come up because my concern is getting you ready for reality, not a conversation.

We’re all here because we care about surviving and being prepared. For some of us, this means being prepared about potential socioeconomic issues that might pop up.

For others, it is a matter of being practical and prepared for a number of disaster and emergency scenarios. And then there are folks like me, for who it’s a way of life, a passion and quite simply, a way of being.

You see, I grew up pretty poor, so survival was a just part of my daily reality. My folks split up early, and often times we lived without power, water, even without doors and windows in the wintertime. We had to be resilient and creative just to make the next day. Usually, we only got whatever we could get on our own.

Life was hard but for me, but that turned out to be a good thing.

I believe that humans are at our best when we are in survival mode- we NEED to struggle. We need to have that challenge in our lives. That is how we learn, grow, get confident and give our lives meaning and value. In my humble opinion, we come from a history of surviving as a human race and therefore, it is hard wired in our DNA to strive to overcome obstacles and challenges.

Survival is in ALL of us. We are here today, each and every one of us, because our ancestors had that ability to adapt to the environment to survive. That is why I know that everyone out there can survive. But first, they have to want to. Will is a key ingredient, and everyone wants to live. However, hard won experience in life and war has taught me, that not everyone will. A large part of survival is preparedness.

And from this point forward, I am going to provide you good folks with the knowledge and expertise you need to do so on your own. No more excuses, no more chitchat, let’s get down to it…

Preparedness comes in 2 forms-

1)    Training – Everything you can do to learn the skills you need or want.

2)    Supplies- Everything you need for you & yours for any duration or exigency.

Training comes in 2 forms:

1)    Book learning – All forms of study, manuals, on-line, DVD’s, etc.

2)    Real learning. – Schools, Practice, Dirt Time Experience.

Book Learning comes in 2 forms:

1)    Self Study – When you read books on your own with no counsel/advice.

2)    Classroom Study  – When you learn from a teacher or peers.

Real Learning comes in 2 forms:

1)    Practical Application – When you practice in a control environment.

2)    Tactical Application- When you survive for real or near to real as possible.

So, that said, I’ll save all the political and social discussions for other places and times. For us here at Survival Life, we’re going to talk specifically and only about survival. All things survival, in all its forms, from growing food and going off grid, to making fire and much, much more.

From my time with the military, we learned a basic model for teaching-

“Tell folks what you’re gonna’ tell’em. Then tell’em. Then tell them whatcha’ told them.”

That way, you know the message was transmitted and received. That is good communication. And that’s what I’m going to do here with Survival Life.

Every month, we’re going to share some info, knowledge, tips and techniques. We are going to do it in many forms including writing, images and video. We’re going to cover everything we can think of to share with you to help you be better prepared for anything and everything.

Sometimes, I may talk about our shows. I’ll always have to respect their proprietary info, so a can never speak about the network or the making of the show.

However, we can always speak about the principles and techniques we do as those things are meant to be shared for the edification of everyone willing and wanting to learn.

The main things I’ll be speaking about will be the fundamental tenants of survival and some of the advanced adjuncts to those. We may focus on some things very heavily if there is a lot of interest and positive feed back from you, the reader, viewer and member of the Survival Life Family as I see it.

And that gets me to why I am here, now, with Survival Life. I have watched them for a while now and I have liked what I’ve seen- very much. I know that Joe has the right heart and mind towards survival as a way of life and Survival Life has the right approach and attitude towards the ways of survival.

I have teamed up with Survival Life as a way to help more folks get and be prepared with better training, learning and equipping. In short, we can do more good for more people working together when the team members all share the same feelings and mindset about their mission and goals.

So, for me, the biggest part of survival falls into 2 main categories:

1)    Fundamentals

2)    Auxiliary

FUNDAMENTALS are those things that every human will need in every environment regardless of any situation.

FUNDAMENTALS:

FOOD – We all have to eat and every environment has different options

WATER – One absolute essential and actually difficult in many environments

FIRE- The real key to survival for most folks as it provides most things

SHELTER- Another critical element for all human beings no matter what situation

And they are not always in that order of priority. A lot will depend on what you may already have or where you may be or what time of day or current weather.

AUXILIARY are those things that directly support the survivor in the survival scenario that leads towards getting them OUT of that situation as that is the real key to survival- getting home!

AUXILIARY:

SIGNAL- This is the key to getting rescued or getting help

NAVIGATION- This is the main way to get home or get out.

MEDICAL- Primarily this is preventive but is essential for when things go wrong

TOOLS- From weapons like knives and spears to bowl and spoons, we need them.

And finally, we get to peripheral survival. These are the things that are more like living off the grid, which is a form of survival or primitive living skills and getting back to nature, which is also a form of survival.

I plan to speak on these, introduce other specialists, experts and technicians on these subjects when they exceed my skill sets and knowledge base, but want to have all the elements of survival knowledge available to us for discussion. But the reasons might not be why you think.

You see, my idea of surviving is not my idea of living.

I have been in enough poor, underdeveloped and destroyed civilizations to know what misery and hardship look and feel like. I enjoy my creature comforts and all the wonderful benefits of technology and modern society. I am writing on a machine and communicating over the net all because of these advancements. So, make no mistake, I like our life in America and thoroughly enjoy simple things like movies and refrigerators.

So, my reasons for being willing to talk about these peripheral survival skills is not because I want to get back to our ancestral roots, or live off the grid and under the radar. I want to discuss these topics as well so that folks can learn, not only what’s out there, should they decide that is right for them. But the main reason I cover those topics, is so that when someone is actually faced with bona fide survival situation, the more info they have, the more options they have been exposed to, the more alternative ways of doing things they have seen, the better equipped they will be to have ideas and find creative solutions to their own circumstances based on those inherent idiosyncrasies of every true survival experience. No one can ever predict what resources one will have in terms of material supplies, terrain offerings, physical capabilities, mental know how and psychological challenges that will all be encountered, one way or another in every survival hardship. Therefore, the more knowledge we share here and now, the better chances you’ll have of coming through alive then and there.

As I close, I have told you why I am with Survival Life and what we are going to do. We are going to teach all things survival related and share tools that will help.

My wife, life and survival partner, Ruth, will also be with us, sharing her unique insights and perspectives as a woman who has done it all. Because she has traveled the world with me, completing well almost 30 survival missions, she actually has more experience in this subject matter, than most special operations vets ever will, because they have many other tasks and jobs, she has focused on this one, and being a mother all the while. That makes her a hero in my book, a warrioress and a true survivor. So between us, and the survival life staff and experts, we are bringing some mighty powerful good stuff your way. I, for one, can’t wait! J

And for more good learning, be sure to check out our newest show, out this FALL on TRAVEL Channel, called GET LOST, where Ruth and I get dropped off in the middle of nowhere, blindfolded, and we have to solve the mystery of where we think we are, based on environmental clues. Then we have to overcome the challenge of navigating our way out and back to civilization, all the while, surviving along the way. It’s sure to be educational and entertaining.

So, I look forward to sharing my 30 years of experience, my 20 years of teaching and my lifelong passion for survival with you. I am thankful to be part of the Survival Life Family bring all these learning and equipment options to you. I am glad you are here with us to increase your skills and tools as we all share the same passion for the same topic. This is the type of synergy where the magic happens.

Here’s sending my respects to you, for taking and making the time, to make yourself better prepared for you and yours, and to my way of thinking, that makes you, a hero, too! All the best for now and until the next, happy survivalin’!

Want more? Check out other articles on our site:

Dallas Seavey – The Ultimate Survivalist

Nicole Apelian: A True Survivor

Arizona Hiker Survives Three Days Without Food or Water