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How to Make Your Home More Secure

Overview

Season 1, Episode 7

We dive deep into practical and actionable strategies to make your home more of a fortress of safety.

We take you on an engaging journey, starting from the street view of your house to the intricate details inside. From simple acts like bringing in your mail and mowing your lawn to more sophisticated measures like installing floodlights and setting up a security system, we cover it all. We emphasize the importance of developing routines and habits that enhance your home’s security and offer valuable insights into choosing and maintaining security devices.

As we guide you through creating a safer home, we also touch on the importance of having a family plan and a designated safe room. Our approach is not just about adding layers of security but also about ensuring that everyone in your household knows what to do in case of an emergency. This episode is packed with tips and advice that will help you and your loved ones feel more secure in your home.

Whether you’re a homeowner or renting, there’s something in this episode for everyone. So, tune in, take notes, and start fortifying your castle!

Transcript

View podcast transcript

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Music.

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Hello, and welcome to another episode of the Self-Initiative Project Podcast.

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I’m your host, Jim O’Brien.

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This episode, we’re going to be talking about things that we can do to make our homes more secure.

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If you’ve been following us on Instagram, and if you’re not,

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I hope that you do, you can find us easily enough at the Self-Initiative Project.

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But if you’ve been following us there, you know that probably around the first

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week of August, we started a series on things that we could do to make the home

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more secure for ourselves and our loved ones.

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So go out there and find that. But I thought, you know, what better way to put

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all the information, gather all the information in one spot and just put it

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all in a podcast to put out there for you guys.

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So I hope that you enjoy it. And if you do be sure and tell your friends and

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family about us so they can come learn some information too.

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And so look, I hate, I know I’m going to disappoint some of you. I know it.

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I’m probably not going to cover every single tip that’s out there that’s possible.

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Some of these tips may or may not be applicable to you, though I suspect that

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most of them will be, especially if you’re not following very many of them already.

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And I can’t claim this information to be mine. I’m not saying that any of this

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information is unique or original.

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I’m just saying that I’m putting it together for you idea to hopefully give

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it to you so you can act on it.

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And look, it doesn’t do any good just to listen to the information.

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It’s important that you go and like I said, act upon it, develop the routines

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and the habit to follow these tips and advice that we’re giving you to make

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your home more secure for you and your family.

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So the way that I thought that we would break this down and depending on the

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source, you know, again, this is an original content, but the way I kind of

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think of it is I wanted to start out at the street.

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If you imagine being outside your home looking up your driveway or maybe you’re

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in the backyard looking towards your house,

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I want to start on the exterior of the house and I want to start at the street

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level and kind of move up and work my way around the house and then move to the inside.

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And in my mind, that’s about as complex as it needs to be.

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And after we talk about some of the things that we can do on the inside,

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on the interior of our homes to make our houses and homes more secure,

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I want to talk about the safe room.

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And there’s a specific reason why we talk about the safe room.

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And we’ll talk more of that in a little bit.

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But with that, we can get started again, starting with the exterior of the house

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and working our way down the street.

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And look, these tips by them, you know, on their own, it’s like details, right?

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Details are details and they seem trivial, but you add them all together.

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And that’s what’s really going to help make the difference and making your home

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more secure. So don’t think about these on an individual basis.

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Think about which ones you can do together that in totality go towards making a safer home.

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And again, it’s not just about you listening to the information and knowing

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and having the information. It’s about…

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Implementing the tips that you hear with us during this podcast or that you

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see on our Instagram account.

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And it’s about, again, developing the habits and routines to lock the doors

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and turn on the lights and make sure your kids know what to do, too.

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That’s just as important in a family scenario or roommate scenario,

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significant other, whatever.

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It’s important that they know what to do. And you guys kind of work together

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to have a game plan. And if you’re living alone, it gets a little bit easier,

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but it’s also critically important that you have a game plan for yourself.

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So, again, starting at the street, you know, it sounds simple enough,

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but, you know, you can start by

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bringing your mail in and bringing the newspaper in out of the driveway.

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And after the garbage men or garbage people take away your garbage,

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bringing your garbage can, your recycling bin back up to the house.

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And what that does is that gives anybody that’s looking at your property or

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considering your place as a potential target,

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someone casing the joint, the house, as they say, this gives,

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this lets them know that, hey, I’m home. I take care of things.

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I care about how things look and I’m paying attention.

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And, you know, it’s easy enough to bring in the mail every day or every other day.

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When you go on vacation, you can even put in a notice with the United States

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Postal Office, having them hold back your mail while you’re gone.

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And then, you know, in that same form, and you can fill it out online on the USPS website.

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You also let them know when you’re expected back and when they can deliver it again.

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And when they deliver it, there’s usually a few rubber bands around,

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you know, stockpiles of your mail, but you can have it postponed while you’re away.

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An alternative, if you can’t bring in your mail, is have your neighbor do it

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or a trusted friend do it while you’re away so you keep up appearances.

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Don’t let newspapers collect at the end of the driveway because that looks like

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at the very least you’re lazy and neglecting your place.

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And it could be an indication for someone, again, looking at the property casing

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it that no one’s home because there’s 12 newspapers in the the driveway.

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And again, bringing up the garbage can and recycle bins.

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And those things in and of themselves, again, don’t seem like a big deal,

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but it goes towards making the place look like it’s kept up and that someone’s home.

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And if you can’t do it, there’s ways to have other people do it for you.

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And if nothing else, it just goes towards making the neighborhood look better as well.

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So, you know, one of the devices they make is the earliest warning sign that

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you can give yourself, or I guess alert that you can give yourself,

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I should say, is they make these driveway alarms, if you will.

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And what they are is they’re general sensors that send a beam across wherever you aim them, right?

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And they’re usually good from zero out to upwards of 20 feet.

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My limited experience with them is it’s more like zero to 12,

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zero to 15 feet in depth and distance, distance enough to get across your driveway more than likely.

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You put one of these weatherproof or mostly weatherproof sensors,

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they’re battery operated, out on a post of some sort.

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And then what it does when the signal’s broken, it sends an alert back to the

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base unit that you keep in the house, obviously, and it beeps.

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And it lets you know when someone’s either walking up your driveway or driving up your driveway.

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I think, you know, unless you have a super long driveway or a really large piece

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of property that you’re trying to monitor, but obviously you can’t see everything

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all the time and you can’t be everywhere at one time.

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I think, you know, you may or may not look into these types of things.

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You can find them on Amazon.

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There’s a whole slew of them on Amazon, like everything is these days.

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And certainly on a larger piece of property or a super long driveway,

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you might want to consider this as being one of the earliest warning warning

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indicators, alerts that you could possibly put into place for yourself.

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One of the things that you can do that’s really easy is work your lights.

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Your house generally has some sort of exterior lights, whether it’s right at

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the porch, over the garage, on the side of the house.

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And if you don’t have floodlights on your house, I highly recommend this.

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They’re relatively cheap. I think as some of the big, big box home stores,

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you can pick up basic floodlight units, you you know, that have the two big

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bulbs in them and a motion sensor in them for roughly 20, 25 bucks at the most.

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And then they go up from there and you can get fairly fancy pants with them.

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But for 20 bucks, you can get a basic floodlight that has motion detection into place.

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And, you know, it’s nice to light up the place after dark when you need to,

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especially if you hear spooky bumps in the dark, boogeyman out in the front

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yard or whatever. It’s nice to be able able to turn on lights.

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But the nice thing about the motion detection lights is, is that they’re off until they are not.

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And, you know, yes, dogs and sometimes flying insects and, and whatever can,

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can set them off, but generally they’re not quite that sensitive.

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You know, they’re going to pick up on motion and or infrared heat,

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sensing some of them to trip when someone moves on your property,

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depending on where you have the lights aimed and where you have that motion sensor aimed.

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You can get some pretty early indicators.

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And, you know, I like the idea of the motion sensor too, because that means

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I don’t have to leave my lights on all night long, which my neighbors really

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appreciate because I’m not shining bright LED floodlights in their front or

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back windows all the time.

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And the other thing is, is that at least I’m kind of the of the mindset that

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That if a light turns on suddenly because someone walks up and trips the motion

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sensor, you know, that’s likely to startle them.

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And bad people like to operate in the dark. They don’t like to be lit up and

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have the spotlight put on, so to speak.

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I highly recommend motion detection floodlights, particularly over the garage,

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on the sides of the house, up towards the top, you know, the,

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not the awning, but you know what I mean, at the roof juncture,

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any place that you feel like that’s a little extra dark or somewhere you wish

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there could be some lights on it, or maybe it’s just a good place that if someone

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did trip, you know, the lights via the motion indicator,

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it’s the earliest point that you could have a light turn on.

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And I, and so I highly recommend the floodlights. Of course,

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the porch lights are great too,

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because if you come in and out from a dinner date with your significant other,

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or the kids are coming home after dark, it’s a good idea to flip on the porch light for them, right?

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And today with the advent of smart bulbs,

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it’s easy enough to screw in a a smart bulb into your outside porch lights and

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be able to have remote access control via your smartphone for those particular

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types of lights and be able to turn them on remotely.

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And for that matter, when you’re home, turn them on via voice command with things

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like OK Google or Amazon Alexa or the handful of other systems that seem to

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be coming out on a daily basis now.

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So you can and have precise control over those lights, including like interior

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lights, which we’ll be talking more about here in a bit, but you know,

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including being able to set those porch lights up on timers even.

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So there’s really a myriad of options as far as lighting goes.

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And so if you don’t have those lighting options in place yet,

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that would be one of the first things that I’d recommend for you doing. Really important.

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And again, there’s no reason to have to leave them on all night burning electricity

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and ticking off your neighbors.

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One of the biggest tips that I give people all the time, and I think I feel

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like I give it because I’m so adamant about it for myself, and I know so many

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people don’t follow this rule.

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When I was a kid, I remember my teachers too, probably, but I remember my parents

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saying, look, you don’t open up the door for people, for strangers you don’t know at our front door.

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And of course, we had salesmen and other peddlers walk up to the house all the

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time and knock on the front door. And I knew better than to open that door.

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So that was never a problem for me. But as an adult now, and I guess as I become

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kind of more antisocial when I’m home, is I really have developed the habit

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of not answering the door.

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If I’m not expecting you, I can’t see who it is or, you know,

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I just don’t know who you are. Right.

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And what I mean by answering, someone wanted me to clarify this.

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So what I mean by answering is opening. You know, I’m from the South.

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So I guess here, at least for me, answering means opening. But I get it semantically.

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It’s semantics, but it is a little different.

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If you’re home alone, especially if you’re a female,

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someone knocks on the door and you can’t see them, you’re not expecting them,

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and you don’t know who it is,

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there is nothing wrong with, so long as you don’t open the door,

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Therefore, there is nothing wrong with you in a very firm, loudish voice answering

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them verbally to let them know that you’re home.

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Tell them, you know, tell them you’re on the phone and can’t answer.

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Come to the door that, you know, if they have a brochure or something, leave it.

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Let them know that your boyfriend or your husband’s going to be home or whoever’s

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going to be home in about five minutes.

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And, you know, they can come back later. there is

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some merit to announcing your presence so they’re

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not tempted to kick in that front door thinking that no one’s

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home home invasions are rare but when a home invasion occurs it’s a little bit

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different because the people and usually it’s done in teams of are two or three

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or more usually when a home invasion is committed they’re not afraid of people

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being home and and they know your home and they’re coming in one way or the other.

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But burglaries, for example, are more, you know, they’re not looking for trouble.

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They’re looking for easy targets. They’re looking for the homes that don’t have

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the lights, that don’t have the security signs, that it’s apparent,

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you know, have 12 newspapers down at the end of the driveway,

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it’s apparent no one’s home.

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Those are the types of houses that those types of bad people are looking for

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because those guys don’t want any trouble.

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So if you announce yourself, If you’re home alone, that is an approach you can take.

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My personal policy is, is not only do I not open the door, I just simply don’t answer.

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I let my dogs bark, which if you don’t have big dogs, that’s a good idea too.

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We’ll talk about that more here in a minute, but I just let it go.

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So don’t open the door for anyone you’re not expecting, can’t see, or don’t know.

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I just touched on it briefly, but one of the things you can do on the exterior house,

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whether you actually have a security system or not, is to put stickers and signs

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in your yard, on your property, to let others know that you’ve got a secure home.

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And I recommend having a security system, which again, kind of jumps ahead here.

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But I recommend having a security system. But again, the sign is just more to detour.

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And that’s an important piece of these layers of security we’re building for

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ourselves around the exterior of the home is why not, what’s a little white

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lie in letting the bad guys know that your place is secure?

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Because again, they’re looking more times than not, they’re looking for easy targets.

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And if they see or they think or they believe that you have a security system,

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they can go right next door or a couple of houses down and potentially find

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a much easier house, one that doesn’t have a security system.

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So that’s a great little tip for you, too.

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So there’s been some I’ve seen some back and forth a little bit about whether

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or not security cameras do any good or not. And I get it, right?

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So the question is, and this is a recent post of ours on Instagram,

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is whether or not to camera or not.

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Some believe that today cameras don’t do a lot of good because people that are,

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you know, intent on doing something they shouldn’t be doing aren’t even going

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to pay attention to them and don’t even care, especially if there’s people involved.

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And I think that’s an important differentiation.

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So I personally believe that security cameras on the exterior of the house is a good idea.

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If nothing else, it lets me see the package delivery people kicking my package

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to the front door instead of coming up and setting it down gingerly on my front stoop.

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Allows me to see who’s knocking at my door.

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A lot of times I’ve, you know, because my policy is strict, I don’t open the door.

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Sometimes I’ve logged into my camera, pulled up my camera on my smartphone just

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to see that it’s my neighbor knocking on the door and they, you know,

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they need a cup of sugar or whatever it is, right?

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And there is the chance that you could catch an image of the person that broke into your house or,

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you know, breaking into your car in the driveway, etc

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there is the chance that you can get them captured on

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film you know cameras vary today and vary

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in cost with feature with their features but cameras can record remotely they

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can record on hardware they can record to the internet cloud you know the interwebs

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they can record to themselves with smart cards that are in the side or back

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of the camera they trigger you know they can be

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triggered to begin recording when something does trip them to go off.

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They can send you emails of images during the day.

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So I think they do a lot of good. I think the reason some folks believe that

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cameras don’t good, and I understand why and tend to agree, is that out in public,

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there are so many cameras today and everyone,

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even the bad guys, have gotten so used to cameras being up anywhere,

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no one even thinks about them anymore, right?

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I also think that when crimes are committed out in public versus on someone’s

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private property, I think when there are people involved,

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I think the key differentiation of why cameras are overlooked slash ignored

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is because emotions are involved when people are involved.

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It’s a lot different than taking a piece of a property, right?

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When you’re at the convenience store and you’re intent on robbing it,

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robbing the person behind the counter, or it’s a gang related and you’re having

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a shootout in the parking lot.

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I don’t think any of those scenarios, the people committing those crimes are

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even concerned about video cameras that might be on that property.

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So I think when it comes to public and there’s people involved,

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the emotions are there, which kind of tunes out everything around you anyway

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when you’re focused on an individual person versus around the home.

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It’s probably likely going to be more property related.

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00:18:31,225 –> 00:18:34,685
And again, home invasions are a little different. That’s when people are involved.

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00:18:35,105 –> 00:18:40,585
You can see plenty of videos of people involved in home invasions when the guys

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kick in the front door knowing that they’re home and come in.

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And you can see then that the cameras or the thought of there possibly being

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cameras doesn’t seem to really register.

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So I think the differentiation is emotions. But I think the benefit,

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so the point of that is, is that the benefit of having cameras on the exterior

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of your home is greater than not having them.

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In other words, you have the potential of catching footage of bad things happening potentially.

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And you can see who is at the door when you have cameras. And now they even

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have systems not to promote any one system, but they have the doorbells,

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you know, that when you bring the doorbell, the camera flips on so you can immediately see.

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Now, I don’t, I’m not necessarily recommending one of those,

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but it is another option that conveniently lets you see who’s ringing that doorbell.

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So just some food for thought there on the camera scenarios.

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00:19:33,505 –> 00:19:38,285
And again, the pricing’s all over the board depending on the features. I recommend wireless.

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I recommend the ability to record and or send emails.

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00:19:42,865 –> 00:19:45,725
A lot of options out there to explore for sure.

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So while we’re out in the front yard, kind of stepping back again,

283
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and I know I’m all over the place because there’s a lot of tips to point out and talk about,

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is I think in addition to bringing in the mail, keeping the driveway free of

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newspaper and bringing in your garbage can is keep your grass cut.

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If you have a home and you’re in charge of your property, Keep your grass cut. Don’t be lazy.

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If nothing else, this goes a long way towards making your neighborhood look better.

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And if you’re lucky, maybe if your neighbor sees that you’re keeping up your

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place, they’ll start keeping up their place too.

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00:20:21,025 –> 00:20:24,705
And, you know, play catch up with you and mow their grass too that week.

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The reason why I say mow your grass is just like the mail and everything else.

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It just goes towards, it looks like somebody’s home. home, it looks like the

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00:20:34,385 –> 00:20:36,965
place is kept up and that you care about your property.

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So, you know, if you’re not big out and working in the yard or,

295
00:20:41,225 –> 00:20:44,525
you know, you have an illness that keeps you from working out in the sun or

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00:20:44,525 –> 00:20:48,805
whatever it is, pay a kid to come and mow it for you.

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00:20:48,865 –> 00:20:53,505
And again, it just goes towards keeping things neat and tidy in the neighborhood, if nothing else.

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00:20:54,360 –> 00:20:58,280
Let’s talk about the driveway some more. So a lot of us, myself included,

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00:20:58,460 –> 00:21:00,340
I have a car that I park in the driveway.

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00:21:00,520 –> 00:21:04,940
And you know, it’s easy when you’re home and the car’s parked right up against

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the house in the driveway.

302
00:21:06,160 –> 00:21:08,800
It’s easy enough to leave the doors unlocked, right?

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00:21:08,920 –> 00:21:11,480
Or even leave the keys in it, potentially.

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00:21:11,920 –> 00:21:17,000
And this is just a big no-no. Your driveway, even though we would like it to

305
00:21:17,000 –> 00:21:21,460
be different, at the end of the day, isn’t a whole lot different than a public parking lot.

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00:21:21,640 –> 00:21:28,300
It is, but it isn’t. The amount of crime that could be cut down simply by locking

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00:21:28,300 –> 00:21:31,580
up our personal property could be tremendous.

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00:21:32,140 –> 00:21:36,360
It’s important to keep your car doors locked wherever it is.

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A couple of other tips is don’t leave your keys in the ignition and don’t even

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00:21:40,880 –> 00:21:45,800
leave your keys in or on that car.

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You know how sometimes they make the magnet carriers, you could put a key in

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00:21:50,560 –> 00:21:53,340
and stick it underneath your car somewhere. Well, that’s old school.

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Everybody knows that trick, right?

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Don’t put them above your sun visors. Don’t put them underneath the front seat.

315
00:22:00,660 –> 00:22:03,000
Don’t put them under the mat and the front floorboard.

316
00:22:03,280 –> 00:22:05,260
Take your keys in and lock your car.

317
00:22:05,940 –> 00:22:10,240
Keep it locked. Don’t leave your keys in it. And when you do go out to get in

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00:22:10,240 –> 00:22:14,560
your car, please take the additional two to three seconds it will take you,

319
00:22:14,620 –> 00:22:19,060
maybe a little bit more if it’s after dark, and do a brief check of the back seat.

320
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Make sure you’ve got no unwanted hitchhikers in the backseat.

321
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And that in and of itself will make you and your car, your automobiles,

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your vehicles in your driveway that much safer.

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00:22:31,620 –> 00:22:37,400
So I kind of consider neighbors as part of the exterior of my house, right?

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00:22:37,500 –> 00:22:43,960
And over the years, I’ve gotten to know most of the neighbors on either side of me and in front of me.

325
00:22:43,960 –> 00:22:48,900
And some recommend, you know, finding a neighbor that you trust well enough

326
00:22:48,900 –> 00:22:52,580
to leave a key with that you can kind of let know when you’re going to be out

327
00:22:52,580 –> 00:22:54,600
of town so they can keep an eye on the place.

328
00:22:54,720 –> 00:22:58,520
I personally think while you don’t have to hang out and party with them all

329
00:22:58,520 –> 00:23:02,040
the time, I personally think it’s a good idea to get to know your neighbors.

330
00:23:02,200 –> 00:23:05,200
It seems like society as a whole has kind of gotten away from this.

331
00:23:05,240 –> 00:23:10,180
I know when I was a kid, neighbors and such talked seems like more than what they do today.

332
00:23:10,260 –> 00:23:16,760
Maybe not, but I think it’s a good idea to get to know your neighbors and do favors for one another.

333
00:23:16,920 –> 00:23:20,900
And I think it’s simple enough to ask them to keep an eye on the place,

334
00:23:20,960 –> 00:23:25,240
even if you’re not comfortable giving them a key to your home just yet.

335
00:23:25,560 –> 00:23:29,280
Comes in handy. I know I do it for some of my neighbors and they do it for me.

336
00:23:29,380 –> 00:23:32,220
And I actually hold the key for a neighbor or two as well.

337
00:23:32,360 –> 00:23:37,760
So that’s a good idea is to get to know your neighbors and use them as needed.

338
00:23:38,320 –> 00:23:42,260
To wrap up the exterior of the home, I want to talk about some other maintenance

339
00:23:42,260 –> 00:23:48,760
items. So one of the things that we can do in addition to the grass is trim your hedges back.

340
00:23:49,887 –> 00:23:52,707
When I say trim your hedges back, I’m talking about two things.

341
00:23:52,887 –> 00:23:54,647
One is the height of the hedges.

342
00:23:54,667 –> 00:23:58,107
And the height, they say, really should be kept at about three feet.

343
00:23:58,227 –> 00:24:03,627
Now, look, I know a lot of hedge types and a lot of hedge styling and landscaping,

344
00:24:03,627 –> 00:24:06,887
you know, has hedges that are taller than that.

345
00:24:06,967 –> 00:24:10,987
And that’s fine. But as a general rule, what you’re trying to do is make it

346
00:24:10,987 –> 00:24:15,267
increasingly more difficult for someone to be hiding out in your bushes,

347
00:24:15,347 –> 00:24:19,307
hiding out in your hedges, waiting on you to get home, especially after dark

348
00:24:19,307 –> 00:24:22,247
when you’re not looking for folks to be behind your hedges.

349
00:24:22,587 –> 00:24:27,307
So the idea, the ideal is to keep them at three feet, three,

350
00:24:27,427 –> 00:24:31,287
three and a half feet, I say there about like I got some azaleas out front.

351
00:24:31,367 –> 00:24:36,587
I keep it about three and a half feet, give or take. and the second and i think

352
00:24:36,587 –> 00:24:41,907
more as important if not more important is keep your shrubs and hedges off of

353
00:24:41,907 –> 00:24:48,627
your house keep at least i would say a foot between your house and the bush and again this just.

354
00:24:49,327 –> 00:24:54,287
Keeps things it allows air and maybe even a little sunlight to get back there

355
00:24:54,287 –> 00:24:58,167
so moisture doesn’t build up so you’re really again just taking care of your

356
00:24:58,167 –> 00:25:02,407
property which is a which is a side benefit it to security, right?

357
00:25:02,987 –> 00:25:08,247
But it’s enabling it to be a clear side of path so that when you walk by,

358
00:25:08,447 –> 00:25:12,887
you can see everything and don’t have any points of blockage.

359
00:25:13,127 –> 00:25:17,587
So keep them trimmed to about three, three and a half feet and keep them at

360
00:25:17,587 –> 00:25:20,027
least about a foot off of your house.

361
00:25:20,607 –> 00:25:23,967
I know we kind of talked about a lot of different things with the exterior of

362
00:25:23,967 –> 00:25:25,727
the home. And again, I’m not trying to cover everything.

363
00:25:25,987 –> 00:25:31,987
I’m sure there’s a lot of other tips, but I do want to move on to the interior of the house.

364
00:25:32,207 –> 00:25:36,727
And a lot of the same tips and advice are going to be given for the interior.

365
00:25:36,987 –> 00:25:42,447
We have the door to talk about and locks. We have security cameras.

366
00:25:42,647 –> 00:25:44,167
We have security systems.

367
00:25:44,547 –> 00:25:48,547
So a lot of the things that we’re going to do on the interior of the house are

368
00:25:48,547 –> 00:25:52,947
like the things that we did on on the exterior with some new items.

369
00:25:53,087 –> 00:25:57,467
So starting out with cameras, again, I think.

370
00:25:58,430 –> 00:26:01,470
Cameras are a good idea, especially on the interior house.

371
00:26:01,830 –> 00:26:05,250
Of course, you know, you don’t want to be recording guests and things like that

372
00:26:05,250 –> 00:26:08,450
when they’re over, but they’re really good because if someone were to get inside

373
00:26:08,450 –> 00:26:12,070
your house, you have a potential means of capturing their actions.

374
00:26:12,290 –> 00:26:15,510
Obviously you’re going to be able to know when it’s a stranger versus someone,

375
00:26:15,590 –> 00:26:21,090
you know, and who knows, maybe, maybe in the unfortunate event that your babysitter’s

376
00:26:21,090 –> 00:26:24,270
done something they shouldn’t have, you’ll have it on film and thank yourself

377
00:26:24,270 –> 00:26:26,710
later for that to help the case.

378
00:26:26,710 –> 00:26:32,950
But I think cameras have a place inside the house as much, if not more, than on the outside.

379
00:26:33,410 –> 00:26:39,050
And it doesn’t mean that you have to have $300 cameras in every single room,

380
00:26:39,190 –> 00:26:44,530
but you do want to think about points of entrance and egress that make sense

381
00:26:44,530 –> 00:26:48,330
to potentially point a recording camera there, too.

382
00:26:48,890 –> 00:26:55,050
Talking about security systems, buy yourself a security system,

383
00:26:55,150 –> 00:26:57,230
a security alarm, whatever you want to call it.

384
00:26:57,770 –> 00:27:04,410
Cellular is the way to go now, but get a security system installed if you haven’t already.

385
00:27:05,070 –> 00:27:11,070
This can be your number one guard against someone coming into your house.

386
00:27:11,130 –> 00:27:14,890
Again, we’ve talked about the security signs being all over the windows and

387
00:27:14,890 –> 00:27:17,150
signs in the front yard and the backyard, et cetera.

388
00:27:17,290 –> 00:27:20,550
But when it comes down to it, you really should have a security system,

389
00:27:20,610 –> 00:27:23,930
especially in this day and age, because you just don’t know.

390
00:27:24,370 –> 00:27:27,850
You should have your security system monitored. In other words,

391
00:27:27,970 –> 00:27:30,750
tie it into a monitoring station.

392
00:27:30,910 –> 00:27:34,730
And the monitoring station, their job is when your alarm is triggered,

393
00:27:35,010 –> 00:27:37,730
they call you to make sure everything’s okay.

394
00:27:37,890 –> 00:27:41,970
And if you don’t answer or you can’t provide them the information they ask you

395
00:27:41,970 –> 00:27:45,430
to provide, they’re going to send the local police. And that’s a good thing.

396
00:27:45,670 –> 00:27:50,670
This is especially critical if you live out in the middle of nowhere or further out away.

397
00:27:51,070 –> 00:27:56,510
I can’t emphasize the importance of having your system monitored.

398
00:27:56,970 –> 00:28:04,010
And I know there may be instances where you don’t want to have to afford monthly monitoring fees.

399
00:28:04,210 –> 00:28:09,170
Monitoring fees can be as little as I’ve seen $14 a month,

400
00:28:09,330 –> 00:28:13,310
usually paid quarterly, temporarily all the way up to 60 plus a month,

401
00:28:13,410 –> 00:28:18,670
depending on what type of system and the company that installs the system for

402
00:28:18,670 –> 00:28:21,030
you. I would just caution you that.

403
00:28:22,034 –> 00:28:26,074
Really pay close attention to the equipment that the company is offering you

404
00:28:26,074 –> 00:28:31,674
and how they’re tying that free equipment or that package deal together with

405
00:28:31,674 –> 00:28:36,154
monitoring because free equipment’s easy for them if they’re charging you 60

406
00:28:36,154 –> 00:28:38,854
plus dollars a month to monitor the system, right?

407
00:28:38,994 –> 00:28:45,834
So pay attention and I won’t mention any names, but consider highly reviewed,

408
00:28:45,974 –> 00:28:52,474
highly ranked, more small mom and pop security shops that really have a good,

409
00:28:52,474 –> 00:28:55,214
a really good reputation in the community.

410
00:28:55,314 –> 00:29:01,014
And you find good reviews in multiple spots, Google, Yelp, et cetera, et cetera.

411
00:29:01,434 –> 00:29:06,354
Because I think ultimately you you’re likely to get maybe a better deal. Yeah.

412
00:29:06,474 –> 00:29:11,014
You might pay potentially more or some for the equipment itself,

413
00:29:11,174 –> 00:29:17,294
but you’ll find that the monitoring fees fees are probably more in line with where they should be.

414
00:29:17,974 –> 00:29:23,154
Look, security equipment today runs the full gamut. I mean, you can get anything you want.

415
00:29:23,294 –> 00:29:26,974
Some of the add-ons that are likely add-ons, because you know,

416
00:29:27,014 –> 00:29:30,694
typically the base packages, if you’re looking at packages of equipment,

417
00:29:30,794 –> 00:29:36,154
just cover basic doors and a few windows, right? So you’re going to add windows more than likely.

418
00:29:36,294 –> 00:29:39,514
If you’ve got a really big house, you’re probably going to add some doors.

419
00:29:40,134 –> 00:29:44,294
You at least want to cover the doors and windows on your first floor, right?

420
00:29:44,434 –> 00:29:48,534
And that’s in addition to the basement. Certainly, if you’re on a basement and

421
00:29:48,534 –> 00:29:52,434
have windows and doors in the basement, you definitely want to have those covers.

422
00:29:52,634 –> 00:29:58,014
But windows and doors on the first floor, at least if you’re in a super big house,

423
00:29:58,274 –> 00:30:03,094
it’s probably diminishing returns to worry about the windows on the second floor

424
00:30:03,094 –> 00:30:07,874
is too much unless you have balconies with French doors and windows those on that balcony,

425
00:30:08,094 –> 00:30:12,294
then those are places you’ll likely want to consider adding additional window

426
00:30:12,294 –> 00:30:14,274
and door sensors that trip.

427
00:30:14,854 –> 00:30:20,374
For windows, they not only make sensors that detect when the window’s been moved

428
00:30:20,374 –> 00:30:23,954
up and down, but they also make glass breaks.

429
00:30:24,094 –> 00:30:26,894
Some of those are sometimes built into those movement sensors.

430
00:30:27,234 –> 00:30:29,754
More modern systems have glass

431
00:30:29,754 –> 00:30:34,334
break, glass motion, whatever they are across the room for the window.

432
00:30:34,814 –> 00:30:38,694
I’m not a security technician, so I can’t tell you exactly how those work,

433
00:30:38,834 –> 00:30:41,334
but there are some options when it comes to glass breaking.

434
00:30:41,514 –> 00:30:46,574
So it’s a good idea, not just installing the movement sensors,

435
00:30:46,874 –> 00:30:50,994
but also ensuring whatever you do, you consider glass breakage because those

436
00:30:50,994 –> 00:30:55,774
sensors are designed to listen for the sound of glass breaking.

437
00:30:56,294 –> 00:31:00,154
So that’s a good idea. Of course, motion detectors in the house are good.

438
00:31:00,294 –> 00:31:04,414
Someone walks through a room, not expecting it, trips the alarm that way.

439
00:31:04,874 –> 00:31:09,234
Especially in a basement scenario, having some motion detectors in places that

440
00:31:09,234 –> 00:31:14,034
are less frequently visited by, you know, you or your family’s a good idea.

441
00:31:14,154 –> 00:31:17,814
So if you know there’s motion, there’s likely something going on or a good chance

442
00:31:17,814 –> 00:31:19,954
there could be something going on that shouldn’t be.

443
00:31:21,071 –> 00:31:25,311
I caution you, they do sell, I’m not sure what the technical name is,

444
00:31:25,391 –> 00:31:30,551
but they do sell more pet-friendly motion detectors, motion sensors.

445
00:31:30,791 –> 00:31:33,331
My experience with those have been hit or miss.

446
00:31:33,711 –> 00:31:38,191
Sometimes they don’t pick up the big dog you have in your house,

447
00:31:38,231 –> 00:31:42,031
and other times, depending on the dog’s movements, I suppose,

448
00:31:42,271 –> 00:31:47,851
or where they move or how they move across the sensor, I have found that they get tripped anyway.

449
00:31:47,851 –> 00:31:52,811
So just remember, if you do have pets in your house, you’ll likely need to bypass.

450
00:31:53,371 –> 00:31:57,431
When you arm your system, you’ll likely need to bypass those motion detectors

451
00:31:57,431 –> 00:32:03,151
where the animals reside mainly, and then be sure they’re on everywhere else.

452
00:32:03,231 –> 00:32:06,751
Because again, security doesn’t work if it’s not on the rest of the time.

453
00:32:06,751 –> 00:32:10,891
The other things that I recommend are a speaker.

454
00:32:11,071 –> 00:32:15,391
You usually get some sort of loud noisemaker inside the house,

455
00:32:15,431 –> 00:32:18,831
as they should, and they scare you to death when they go off,

456
00:32:18,871 –> 00:32:21,171
and they’re good and loud and hurt your ears, as they should,

457
00:32:21,351 –> 00:32:24,951
because that’s what they’re supposed to do is alert you and get your attention

458
00:32:24,951 –> 00:32:28,511
and scare the wits out of the bad guy, too, if they happen to be in the house,

459
00:32:28,551 –> 00:32:29,831
the bad people in your house.

460
00:32:29,831 –> 00:32:34,131
But I also would recommend considering an outside speaker.

461
00:32:34,331 –> 00:32:37,791
And so what they’ll do is they’ll put a weather resistor or weatherproof speaker

462
00:32:37,791 –> 00:32:44,391
up again high on the house so that everybody in the neighborhood knows when your alarm goes off.

463
00:32:44,511 –> 00:32:48,031
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Now, if you’re prone to trip your alarm

464
00:32:48,031 –> 00:32:51,651
and have a lot of false alarms, your neighbors may not appreciate that over time.

465
00:32:51,771 –> 00:32:56,651
But hopefully those are few and far between. between the outdoor speaker I contend

466
00:32:56,651 –> 00:32:57,871
is increasingly important.

467
00:32:58,631 –> 00:33:01,631
Again, if you’re out in the country and kind of out in a way.

468
00:33:02,572 –> 00:33:05,532
You should certainly have your system monitored.

469
00:33:05,692 –> 00:33:10,872
But that outdoor speaker can be just as loud as the indoor and louder,

470
00:33:11,072 –> 00:33:17,112
which alerts folks that could be further away and let them know that you may need help.

471
00:33:17,272 –> 00:33:20,452
And if you’ve reached out to your neighbors, as we talked about earlier,

472
00:33:20,712 –> 00:33:23,612
hopefully they come and check up on you, if nothing else.

473
00:33:23,732 –> 00:33:28,312
So those are kind of the add-ons, the glass break sensors, the motion detectors.

474
00:33:28,432 –> 00:33:31,792
Of course, we talked about the cameras too. And you can tie your security cameras

475
00:33:31,792 –> 00:33:33,372
into your security system.

476
00:33:33,872 –> 00:33:38,712
Those are sometimes part of the package. And that outdoor speaker really are

477
00:33:38,712 –> 00:33:42,092
strong options to consider when you have your system built.

478
00:33:42,412 –> 00:33:45,572
Of course, cellular now is a way to go.

479
00:33:45,812 –> 00:33:49,792
At one point, it was considered for backup and that sort of thing.

480
00:33:49,932 –> 00:33:54,792
Now, it really is the way to go. The thing that you have to be cautious of when

481
00:33:54,792 –> 00:34:00,152
you’re using internet-based security systems is that we remember that 911 works

482
00:34:00,152 –> 00:34:03,872
different over voiceover internet protocol, VOIP.

483
00:34:04,672 –> 00:34:09,252
So that is something to consider if you’re considering an internet-based or

484
00:34:09,252 –> 00:34:11,812
VOIP-based security system.

485
00:34:12,612 –> 00:34:16,692
Cellular is probably still going to have, if not landline, is still going to

486
00:34:16,692 –> 00:34:22,412
have a place for you and your security measures whatever you elect to do there.

487
00:34:23,052 –> 00:34:28,472
Let’s talk about dogs for a minute. I’m a dog lover, so I’ve got two big dogs

488
00:34:28,472 –> 00:34:32,772
in my house. It is highly unlikely that someone knocking on my front door.

489
00:34:32,872 –> 00:34:36,752
Here’s my two big dogs is going to want to come into my house on their own,

490
00:34:36,772 –> 00:34:40,292
not knowing my two big dogs. I recommend it.

491
00:34:41,030 –> 00:34:45,630
They have dogs. Dogs serve a lot of purposes. Not only are they loyal,

492
00:34:45,790 –> 00:34:49,590
loving pets to have and teach kids responsibility,

493
00:34:49,870 –> 00:34:54,570
et cetera, but a dog, whether they’re actually mean and vicious or not,

494
00:34:54,710 –> 00:35:00,970
a big dog’s bark goes a long way towards keeping people out of your house that

495
00:35:00,970 –> 00:35:04,490
don’t otherwise have a reason to be in there, shouldn’t be in there.

496
00:35:04,870 –> 00:35:09,670
So there’s a place for dogs, big dogs in particular, but even a small yippy

497
00:35:09,670 –> 00:35:14,730
dog may discourage the bad folks trying to do bad to your property.

498
00:35:15,350 –> 00:35:18,230
The other thing that you can do, and I can remember hearing this when I was

499
00:35:18,230 –> 00:35:24,530
a kid, is when you leave, you know, at night on vacation, leave a radio or TV on.

500
00:35:24,630 –> 00:35:29,170
This just simply gives further, you know, the illusion that someone’s home,

501
00:35:29,410 –> 00:35:31,610
especially if it’s part of the normal routine.

502
00:35:31,770 –> 00:35:37,290
And again, a lot of times in the cases of houses being broken in and such, it’s not just random.

503
00:35:37,390 –> 00:35:41,950
These people have cased your house. It could be six months ago when they were

504
00:35:41,950 –> 00:35:46,590
looking at your place last, but you can bet that if they decide to hit you,

505
00:35:46,690 –> 00:35:50,270
they figure that it’s a good place to hit.

506
00:35:50,450 –> 00:35:56,070
And so, you know, following your routine or otherwise, they may think twice

507
00:35:56,070 –> 00:36:02,150
before coming in if they hear that radio in the background or if they hear that TV in the background.

508
00:36:02,990 –> 00:36:07,390
And so especially if you have those dogs, when you’re away from the house,

509
00:36:07,450 –> 00:36:11,310
sometimes dogs enjoy a little music or a little sound in the background to keep

510
00:36:11,310 –> 00:36:12,730
them calm and at ease too.

511
00:36:12,870 –> 00:36:15,110
So it’s really a win-win across the board.

512
00:36:15,670 –> 00:36:21,170
So another part which could have arguably been the exterior of their house is

513
00:36:21,170 –> 00:36:24,130
the garage, especially if you have a carport.

514
00:36:24,310 –> 00:36:27,170
You want to pay special attention to that space.

515
00:36:27,510 –> 00:36:30,330
When you come in, especially after dark, you want to make sure

516
00:36:30,330 –> 00:36:34,410
you get in as quickly as possible and of course with after you’ve turned off

517
00:36:34,410 –> 00:36:39,750
your car you want to close that garage door as quickly as possible if you have

518
00:36:39,750 –> 00:36:44,890
a carport it’s extremely important to make sure your doors are locked your keys

519
00:36:44,890 –> 00:36:49,010
aren’t left in it and and that you’ve checked the backseat prior to getting in.

520
00:36:50,194 –> 00:36:55,534
Some take it to the extreme that say technically you should back into your garage

521
00:36:55,534 –> 00:36:56,994
before you shut the door down.

522
00:36:57,174 –> 00:37:01,234
So you’re facing out all the time and no one can sneak in behind you.

523
00:37:01,434 –> 00:37:05,394
I can tell you, I don’t take things that far. I pull straight into my garage.

524
00:37:05,474 –> 00:37:09,074
I suppose if I wanted to take a step further, I would back into my garage.

525
00:37:09,234 –> 00:37:11,514
So I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you that tip too.

526
00:37:12,014 –> 00:37:16,714
If you want to take things to the next level, you should technically back into your garage.

527
00:37:16,714 –> 00:37:21,594
Again, the idea being is that that keeps you looking forward so that no one

528
00:37:21,594 –> 00:37:26,094
has the opportunity to come in behind you, you know, and sneak up on you and

529
00:37:26,094 –> 00:37:30,314
get you when you’re looking at the tennis ball hanging down to the ceiling,

530
00:37:30,394 –> 00:37:32,954
making sure you don’t drive into your kitchen or living room,

531
00:37:33,054 –> 00:37:34,274
which I know some people have done.

532
00:37:35,014 –> 00:37:38,914
Let’s talk about lights, lighting in general. You know, we’ve talked about the

533
00:37:38,914 –> 00:37:42,554
floodlights and the porch lights and the value of those on the exterior of the house.

534
00:37:42,754 –> 00:37:45,714
They’re just as valuable on the interior of the house.

535
00:37:46,414 –> 00:37:49,594
Obviously, we all want to see in the dark and need to be able to see in the

536
00:37:49,594 –> 00:37:51,374
dark. So lights serve their purpose.

537
00:37:51,554 –> 00:37:57,354
But they’re also another thing that you can do while you’re away that help thwart

538
00:37:57,354 –> 00:38:01,354
people thinking about potentially coming in on your property when you’re not there.

539
00:38:01,494 –> 00:38:03,994
Lights make it seem as though someone’s home.

540
00:38:04,354 –> 00:38:08,874
And what I recommend is putting your lights on timers.

541
00:38:08,934 –> 00:38:13,354
And they make these dial timers that have an on and off switch set on the dial.

542
00:38:13,354 –> 00:38:18,374
And you set the little pins or push in the little pins where you want the turn

543
00:38:18,374 –> 00:38:19,854
on and turn off times to be.

544
00:38:19,934 –> 00:38:25,334
Some allow two or three sets of pins so you can have multiple off and on times,

545
00:38:25,514 –> 00:38:28,394
but you really want to think about having those lamps on.

546
00:38:28,534 –> 00:38:32,374
Plus it’s nice to have them automatically turn on for you in the evenings at

547
00:38:32,374 –> 00:38:35,714
the time that you’ve set anyway, so you don’t have to worry about turning on your lights.

548
00:38:35,754 –> 00:38:39,874
But especially when you’re away, again, whether you’re on a hot date with your

549
00:38:39,874 –> 00:38:43,134
significant other after dark, or you’ve gone away on vacation,

550
00:38:43,374 –> 00:38:44,274
this is really important.

551
00:38:45,468 –> 00:38:50,328
This is the modern age. Forget the timers. Now we’ve got smart outlets and smart

552
00:38:50,328 –> 00:38:52,948
bulbs that connect to our Wi-Fi in our house.

553
00:38:53,048 –> 00:38:58,508
And it’s very easy just to drop a couple of names here. I have no affiliation with them whatsoever.

554
00:38:58,828 –> 00:39:04,628
But TP-Link is one that puts out pretty good stuff, both bulbs and outlets.

555
00:39:04,788 –> 00:39:08,528
And I know the Belkin Wemo is another one that gets talked about quite a bit.

556
00:39:08,588 –> 00:39:12,568
And there’s others, right? And again, you can find a whole slew of them on Amazon. on.

557
00:39:12,708 –> 00:39:16,748
But it’s the time of the smartphone and the smart apps and things like that.

558
00:39:16,868 –> 00:39:21,188
So these smart outlets and bulbs connect to your Wi-Fi.

559
00:39:21,188 –> 00:39:25,508
And then through the power of apps on your smartphone, you can control those

560
00:39:25,508 –> 00:39:30,068
lights individually or even put them in groups and control the entire group,

561
00:39:30,148 –> 00:39:36,148
the entire room or multiple rooms all together with the push of a simple button in the app.

562
00:39:36,148 –> 00:39:43,488
So you can control the lights that you choose through the bulb or the outlet via the app,

563
00:39:43,608 –> 00:39:46,988
simply turning it on and off through the app when you’re away from home makes

564
00:39:46,988 –> 00:39:51,268
it easy to turn on those, even those exterior porch lights remotely.

565
00:39:51,268 –> 00:39:56,588
But the other nice things that it allows for is setting up the timers through the app.

566
00:39:56,708 –> 00:40:02,448
And not only that, giving you the flexibility to set up random times on random days.

567
00:40:02,588 –> 00:40:08,128
So if anybody is paying attention to your home, they don’t necessarily see a

568
00:40:08,128 –> 00:40:12,548
pattern to when the lights, because again, the lights being on in your house

569
00:40:12,548 –> 00:40:15,508
when you’re not home is to give the illusion you’re there.

570
00:40:15,508 –> 00:40:18,988
And I guarantee you don’t set your lights to come on.

571
00:40:19,048 –> 00:40:22,068
You don’t turn on your lights at 6.02 p.m. every day.

572
00:40:22,808 –> 00:40:26,128
So, you know, it kind of makes sense to randomize those times.

573
00:40:26,288 –> 00:40:30,748
The other nice thing about a lot of these or several of these smart outlets

574
00:40:30,748 –> 00:40:34,868
and bulbs now is not only do they connect to the app, but if you have a system

575
00:40:34,868 –> 00:40:37,168
like OK Google or Amazon Alexa,

576
00:40:37,728 –> 00:40:40,088
you can now control those lights

577
00:40:40,088 –> 00:40:43,728
and or those appliances, even for that matter, through voice command.

578
00:40:43,728 –> 00:40:47,368
And that’s really nice. Some people call you lazy.

579
00:40:47,848 –> 00:40:53,168
I enjoy convenience. And it really is because now either through the,

580
00:40:53,228 –> 00:40:56,528
for example, either through the Alexa app, I can speak.

581
00:40:56,808 –> 00:41:01,008
When I’m in my house, I can speak and Alexa picks it up.

582
00:41:01,288 –> 00:41:05,448
Or, again, I can do everything through the Alexa app that I could,

583
00:41:05,548 –> 00:41:08,568
the brand of smart outlet or bulb that I have.

584
00:41:08,668 –> 00:41:11,848
You know, you wind up having a couple of different apps on your phone.

585
00:41:11,848 –> 00:41:16,448
But it really makes it easy and convenient once you get it set up. So those are options.

586
00:41:17,268 –> 00:41:20,048
I want to go back and talk about doors for a minute.

587
00:41:20,088 –> 00:41:25,388
And specifically, we’ve talked about why you don’t open the door for perfectly

588
00:41:25,388 –> 00:41:28,588
good strangers or someone you’re not expecting, etc.

589
00:41:28,848 –> 00:41:30,908
But I want to talk about the locks on the door.

590
00:41:31,794 –> 00:41:35,314
The short of it is you need to keep your doors locked and you need to keep your

591
00:41:35,314 –> 00:41:38,694
doors locked, especially when you’re away, but you need to keep your doors locked

592
00:41:38,694 –> 00:41:40,454
just as importantly when you’re home.

593
00:41:40,574 –> 00:41:44,814
And this may cross over for some of you to say, oh, that’s paranoid.

594
00:41:44,994 –> 00:41:48,454
I’m not going to have to unlock my door every time I go outside.

595
00:41:48,714 –> 00:41:54,454
Well, it’s a small price to pay to keep yourself safer and more importantly,

596
00:41:54,534 –> 00:41:56,514
your children or your loved ones safe.

597
00:41:56,614 –> 00:42:00,274
And that’s the way you need to look at this. It’s just one more simple step

598
00:42:00,274 –> 00:42:04,614
that sure slows you down a couple of milliseconds, but it’s important.

599
00:42:05,594 –> 00:42:08,894
As far as the types of locks, there’s all types today.

600
00:42:08,974 –> 00:42:14,294
And just like smart bulbs and outlets, there’s now smart locks and smart keypads

601
00:42:14,294 –> 00:42:15,574
and all of that for your doors.

602
00:42:15,674 –> 00:42:18,414
I don’t have any experience with those, so I’m not going to speak to that.

603
00:42:18,534 –> 00:42:22,954
But what I am going to speak to is the good old fashioned deadbolt and the good

604
00:42:22,954 –> 00:42:28,894
old fashioned lock on the actual doorknob itself. if you have a doorknob, say, on your front door.

605
00:42:29,294 –> 00:42:34,594
But at the very least, you need to have a deadbolt, a good, solid deadbolt in store.

606
00:42:34,894 –> 00:42:40,994
And, you know, most of the big box home stores carry decent brands of locks.

607
00:42:41,194 –> 00:42:45,194
Of course, you can get online and find some even more secure,

608
00:42:45,374 –> 00:42:49,214
crazy, expensive locks if you really want to go all out for yourself.

609
00:42:49,614 –> 00:42:54,634
But it’s important you get a good deadbolt. And if you don’t feel like you can

610
00:42:54,634 –> 00:42:59,754
install it yourself, paying someone to have them install it is a good idea.

611
00:43:00,514 –> 00:43:04,634
The key piece to a deadbolt is.

612
00:43:05,814 –> 00:43:13,314
Unless you have a solid wooden door with no glass in it or on either side of

613
00:43:13,314 –> 00:43:20,134
it, basically around it, you want to stay away from what they call single cylinder deadbolts.

614
00:43:20,194 –> 00:43:23,694
And what this is, you’ve seen them and you probably have them in your house

615
00:43:23,694 –> 00:43:28,534
already, is on the outside of the house, it’s a key entry.

616
00:43:28,614 –> 00:43:34,254
You have to have a key to unlock the deadbolt and thus get into the house.

617
00:43:34,854 –> 00:43:39,854
The single cylinder on the inside, though, just has what they call a thumb turn.

618
00:43:40,154 –> 00:43:42,374
It’s the lever that goes back and forth.

619
00:43:43,614 –> 00:43:47,634
Again, for a solid door, solid wooden door, solid metal door,

620
00:43:47,634 –> 00:43:51,514
or whatever it is that has no glass in it or on either side of it,

621
00:43:51,534 –> 00:43:54,434
and I can’t think of what that’s called right now, but it doesn’t matter.

622
00:43:54,614 –> 00:43:59,914
When you don’t have glass, that’s a perfectly acceptable type of deadbolt to

623
00:43:59,914 –> 00:44:05,054
have installed because there’s no way, of course, they could always chainsaw through the door.

624
00:44:05,194 –> 00:44:10,134
Again, nothing’s a hundred percent. If there’s a will, there’s a way to get in, they’ll find it.

625
00:44:10,434 –> 00:44:15,474
But for most of the time, when you’ve got a solid door with no No glass in it

626
00:44:15,474 –> 00:44:17,794
or around it. Single cylinder is good enough.

627
00:44:18,750 –> 00:44:24,010
When you have French doors with glass, when you have these fancy pants front

628
00:44:24,010 –> 00:44:29,750
doors that show off the stained glass or allow folks to look into your house,

629
00:44:29,790 –> 00:44:31,430
frosted glass or otherwise,

630
00:44:31,810 –> 00:44:36,850
or you have the glass running down either side of your front doors or your back

631
00:44:36,850 –> 00:44:40,530
doors for that matter, you need to move to a double cylinder.

632
00:44:40,930 –> 00:44:45,670
And this is the type of deadbolt that you actually need a key to unlock it from

633
00:44:45,670 –> 00:44:49,070
both the outside as well as the inside.

634
00:44:49,190 –> 00:44:53,270
Now you say, well, that really makes it difficult for me to get in and out of

635
00:44:53,270 –> 00:44:54,710
my house, yada, yada, yada.

636
00:44:55,910 –> 00:45:00,230
Well, it’s really not that big of a deal to walk over to the door with a key

637
00:45:00,230 –> 00:45:02,710
to unlock it to let yourself out. It’s really not.

638
00:45:03,190 –> 00:45:08,690
If you’re going to be home, you probably could leave the key in it so long as

639
00:45:08,690 –> 00:45:10,830
you don’t leave it in there at night when you go to bed.

640
00:45:10,970 –> 00:45:13,210
You should be taking your keys to bed with you anyway. way.

641
00:45:13,510 –> 00:45:19,490
But I really recommend and insist on the double cylinder when there’s glass

642
00:45:19,490 –> 00:45:23,950
in the door or around the door, because what that’s going to prevent is someone

643
00:45:23,950 –> 00:45:26,970
simply knocking out the glass, which is what they do.

644
00:45:27,050 –> 00:45:30,350
That’s how they come in. But it’s going to prevent them from simply knocking

645
00:45:30,350 –> 00:45:35,210
out a pain and reaching through and flipping that thumb turn really easily.

646
00:45:35,310 –> 00:45:42,510
Again, look, at the end of the day, there is no 100% guarantee. There’s no such thing.

647
00:45:42,930 –> 00:45:48,450
But the more of these tips and things that you do that I’m telling you to do

648
00:45:48,450 –> 00:45:51,190
that you do, the more secure you’ll make yourself.

649
00:45:51,750 –> 00:45:56,790
But whether individually or together, there’s nothing that’s ever 100%.

650
00:45:56,790 –> 00:46:01,010
I know we all want the magic bullet and the quick fix and the magic pill,

651
00:46:01,170 –> 00:46:02,830
but there’s no such thing.

652
00:46:03,370 –> 00:46:07,610
All we can do is the best we can do and making sure that we’re doing all that

653
00:46:07,610 –> 00:46:10,970
we can do to make our homes secure. And that’s what we’re talking about.

654
00:46:11,790 –> 00:46:16,190
So getting back to the double cylinder, yes, it takes a key to get out from

655
00:46:16,190 –> 00:46:19,450
the inside, but this just makes things that much safer.

656
00:46:19,570 –> 00:46:22,630
With that being said, if you’re renting a house.

657
00:46:23,621 –> 00:46:30,061
You might want to make sure that you aren’t required to use a single cylinder

658
00:46:30,061 –> 00:46:32,141
for fire code or whatever else.

659
00:46:32,321 –> 00:46:36,461
I think that is an issue, at least in some counties or cities,

660
00:46:36,841 –> 00:46:42,181
but you’ll need to investigate that yourself for where you live to see what’s appropriate.

661
00:46:42,501 –> 00:46:46,461
But if there is no ordinances or no codes that you need to be following,

662
00:46:46,741 –> 00:46:52,241
the double cylinder is the way to go when there’s glass in and around the door, period.

663
00:46:52,241 –> 00:46:57,901
Speaking of locks, and this is one that’s overlooked, and I always overlook

664
00:46:57,901 –> 00:47:00,241
it because my windows stay locked all the time.

665
00:47:00,381 –> 00:47:03,121
Your windows have locks on them. Keep them locked.

666
00:47:03,421 –> 00:47:07,981
Matter of fact, let’s just say this. Anything that can be locked should be kept

667
00:47:07,981 –> 00:47:11,961
locked unless you’re home, in it, using it, and going to be around.

668
00:47:12,541 –> 00:47:15,581
So windows are no exception. Keep your windows locked.

669
00:47:15,581 –> 00:47:23,141
Again, so oftentimes crimes happen, burglaries happen because of things being

670
00:47:23,141 –> 00:47:29,701
left unlocked, whether it’s a door, a window, or a car, especially with cars.

671
00:47:29,701 –> 00:47:34,901
Cars, I’ve been on a couple of ride-alongs with local law enforcement,

672
00:47:35,021 –> 00:47:39,421
and I can tell you right now the times that there were car break-ins,

673
00:47:39,481 –> 00:47:41,941
I can’t even really call them break-ins, it was because,

674
00:47:42,221 –> 00:47:49,221
or one of the reasons was because in every, every case, the car was left unlocked. locked.

675
00:47:49,541 –> 00:47:53,661
And I can remember taking that a step further. I can remember in recent past,

676
00:47:53,781 –> 00:47:59,781
I was in a more upscale part of town on the North side of Atlanta and going

677
00:47:59,781 –> 00:48:01,601
to have drinks or dinner.

678
00:48:01,701 –> 00:48:06,641
One evening I was walking through a parking lot in this very upscale part of

679
00:48:06,641 –> 00:48:13,161
town and no less than three cars were running in the parking lot because all

680
00:48:13,161 –> 00:48:15,201
three cars had pets in them.

681
00:48:15,281 –> 00:48:18,441
All three cars precisely had dogs in them.

682
00:48:18,941 –> 00:48:23,261
So I don’t know if the doors were actually locked or not on those cars,

683
00:48:23,361 –> 00:48:24,961
but all three cars were running.

684
00:48:25,401 –> 00:48:30,121
Guess what has had an uptick in car break-ins?

685
00:48:30,181 –> 00:48:34,901
Guess where has had an uptick in car break-ins? That fancy pants part of town

686
00:48:34,901 –> 00:48:38,941
because people are leaving their cars running, which means their keys are not

687
00:48:38,941 –> 00:48:40,761
only in the car, they’re in their ignition.

688
00:48:41,161 –> 00:48:44,581
It just makes it really easy to punch a window out and get in and you’ve got

689
00:48:44,581 –> 00:48:46,121
yourself a joy ride for the evening.

690
00:48:46,401 –> 00:48:51,081
So keep your stuff locked up and keep your keys away. That’s the bottom line there.

691
00:48:52,068 –> 00:48:56,288
So you remember earlier when I mentioned this idea of a safe room and we’re

692
00:48:56,288 –> 00:49:00,828
not talking, I’m trying to remember, I think the movie was safe room or safe house.

693
00:49:00,928 –> 00:49:04,188
And I think if I’m not mistaken, it’s starred Jodie Foster.

694
00:49:04,568 –> 00:49:07,948
We’re not talking about that. I mean, if you’ve got the money and the gumption

695
00:49:07,948 –> 00:49:10,808
and the time to do that, then more power to you.

696
00:49:11,008 –> 00:49:14,748
But that’s not really what we’re talking about in this particular context.

697
00:49:14,828 –> 00:49:17,908
Although I guess it’s an extreme version of it.

698
00:49:18,608 –> 00:49:25,868
We talk about choosing a safe room in your house to be your go-to should someone

699
00:49:25,868 –> 00:49:28,608
come into your house when you happen to be there.

700
00:49:29,148 –> 00:49:34,868
The idea being is that you never, well, I shouldn’t say never because there’s no such thing as never.

701
00:49:34,948 –> 00:49:42,268
You ideally should not go room clearing and do, you know, tactical CQB,

702
00:49:42,408 –> 00:49:48,108
you know, close quarters combat type room clearing because it’s extremely dangerous.

703
00:49:48,348 –> 00:49:52,948
And you can ask any Marine or anyone else that’s been in Iraq or Afghanistan

704
00:49:52,948 –> 00:49:55,868
what the most dangerous job over there was,

705
00:49:56,088 –> 00:50:00,888
and they’re likely to tell you it was room clearing and going door to door and

706
00:50:00,888 –> 00:50:03,688
doing room clearing on these huts and villages there.

707
00:50:03,988 –> 00:50:07,148
It’s no different when we’re home well it is

708
00:50:07,148 –> 00:50:10,048
different when you’re home the biggest difference being is that

709
00:50:10,048 –> 00:50:13,568
a lot of us are not military and and

710
00:50:13,568 –> 00:50:16,348
thank you for your military service for those of you

711
00:50:16,348 –> 00:50:21,488
that have it but for us civilians room clearing is not something that we’re

712
00:50:21,488 –> 00:50:28,188
skilled in and i dare venture that very few of or any of us have had serious

713
00:50:28,188 –> 00:50:33,088
extensive training in room clearing so this is why the concept and the idea

714
00:50:33,088 –> 00:50:34,968
of a safe room becomes important,

715
00:50:35,208 –> 00:50:37,468
especially in family situations.

716
00:50:37,968 –> 00:50:43,288
And this is a matter of picking a room that makes sense for you and or your

717
00:50:43,288 –> 00:50:45,908
family members to get to if they can.

718
00:50:46,168 –> 00:50:49,288
This is the room where you feel most safe.

719
00:50:49,468 –> 00:50:55,108
This is the room that you likely have at least concealment, if not cover.

720
00:50:55,268 –> 00:50:59,048
The difference being concealment hides you, cover not only hide you,

721
00:50:59,128 –> 00:51:01,748
but could stop around if someone was shooting.

722
00:51:02,108 –> 00:51:04,728
This is where you’re going to have your key information.

723
00:51:05,548 –> 00:51:10,848
You’re actually going to have a spare key for your house there to get to officers

724
00:51:10,848 –> 00:51:14,028
when they arrive on the scene, because when you go to your safe room,

725
00:51:14,128 –> 00:51:16,948
you’re going to be calling 911, hopefully sooner than later.

726
00:51:17,508 –> 00:51:20,588
In your safe room, this is basically your gathering spot.

727
00:51:20,748 –> 00:51:24,588
This is where you’re going to stage any weapons. If you have weapons,

728
00:51:24,588 –> 00:51:28,248
If you’re a believer in having guns for home protection, like myself,

729
00:51:28,608 –> 00:51:32,888
this is likely the place that you’re going to have those weapons and have them staged.

730
00:51:33,128 –> 00:51:35,068
And I’m going to emphasize this.

731
00:51:35,428 –> 00:51:39,628
You should keep your weapons locked up at all times, at all times,

732
00:51:39,628 –> 00:51:45,228
unless you’re with them or you’re nearby and or don’t have small children in the house.

733
00:51:46,379 –> 00:51:52,039
If you’re away from home, if you don’t have it nearby, and or you have children,

734
00:51:52,199 –> 00:51:55,059
especially small children, you’ve got to keep them locked up.

735
00:51:55,199 –> 00:51:59,499
So you’ve got to be, you know, you’ve got to think ahead about what type of

736
00:51:59,499 –> 00:52:01,819
safe, what kind of locks you’re going to use.

737
00:52:01,979 –> 00:52:05,019
You need to be practicing getting those locks off and more.

738
00:52:05,219 –> 00:52:09,659
And along with that, you need to know where that gun is and be able to get to

739
00:52:09,659 –> 00:52:13,819
it and be able to efficiently and effectively get it unlocked and ready to go.

740
00:52:13,819 –> 00:52:19,879
But the idea is that you want to retreat to your safe room and stay hidden with

741
00:52:19,879 –> 00:52:21,059
the door locked, ideally.

742
00:52:21,339 –> 00:52:24,939
And, you know, hopefully the bad guys aren’t going to come to you.

743
00:52:24,979 –> 00:52:27,879
But if you do now, you’re prepared, but you’re out of their way.

744
00:52:27,959 –> 00:52:30,299
Let them take your stuff and get out of the house.

745
00:52:30,639 –> 00:52:35,419
That’s what insurance is for. It’s not worth getting hurt or worse,

746
00:52:35,519 –> 00:52:40,039
getting killed because some dude was walking out of of their house,

747
00:52:40,099 –> 00:52:46,059
out of your house with your 70-inch, your brand new 70-inch LED 4K television.

748
00:52:46,299 –> 00:52:47,739
Let them have it. It’s called insurance.

749
00:52:48,219 –> 00:52:52,579
This is also the place that you want to teach your children to come to if they can.

750
00:52:53,419 –> 00:52:57,999
Small children, the exception, the reason why I said never, is you’re not necessarily

751
00:52:57,999 –> 00:53:03,119
going room clearing, but you may have to go get your small children because they may be asleep.

752
00:53:03,259 –> 00:53:06,319
They may just be hanging out in your room. So you have a couple options.

753
00:53:06,859 –> 00:53:12,079
You need to try to get to them to get them back to your chosen safe room without

754
00:53:12,079 –> 00:53:17,979
the bad guys finding you, or you need to make the decision for yourself, and only you can do this,

755
00:53:18,159 –> 00:53:23,619
make the decision that your child’s bedroom is going to be the safe room,

756
00:53:23,719 –> 00:53:27,399
and then you need to stage your weapons and have your goodies in there and make

757
00:53:27,399 –> 00:53:29,299
that your safe room. One or the other.

758
00:53:29,977 –> 00:53:33,357
But you have to make that call and only you can. So you either make it to where

759
00:53:33,357 –> 00:53:37,157
you got to go and get your small children and bring them back to your safe room

760
00:53:37,157 –> 00:53:41,797
or make your small child’s room the safe room, knowing that that’s why you’re doing it.

761
00:53:41,877 –> 00:53:46,537
And then hopefully older children are old enough to be able to make it to the

762
00:53:46,537 –> 00:53:52,057
safe room or you’ve made other plans of where they need to go until the coast

763
00:53:52,057 –> 00:53:55,517
is clear and they know what to do. And that’s part of the family plan.

764
00:53:55,797 –> 00:53:58,637
But in your safe room, you’re going to carry a few things. Hey,

765
00:53:58,677 –> 00:54:02,677
we’ve talked about staging of weapons, guns, knives, whatever your plan is.

766
00:54:02,757 –> 00:54:03,917
Don’t know that’s on you.

767
00:54:04,137 –> 00:54:09,317
I would just say keep them locked up and just plan on you need to account for

768
00:54:09,317 –> 00:54:13,237
that in the scenario that something happens in your safe room.

769
00:54:13,377 –> 00:54:14,477
You’re going to keep lights.

770
00:54:14,737 –> 00:54:16,597
You know, you’re going to keep flashlights.

771
00:54:16,997 –> 00:54:20,897
I also recommend this as a tip. And again, this is not original information

772
00:54:20,897 –> 00:54:24,677
for me, but a tip that I picked up was keeping glow sticks in there because

773
00:54:24,677 –> 00:54:29,637
what I’m going to do when an officer comes and comes around and looks in my back bedroom,

774
00:54:29,877 –> 00:54:33,277
I’m likely going to open up the window and I’m going to toss him my house key

775
00:54:33,277 –> 00:54:36,297
so he can get in and get to the bad guy where I don’t have to.

776
00:54:36,717 –> 00:54:39,857
And so a glow stick, I might tie to that key.

777
00:54:40,137 –> 00:54:43,937
Or when I toss the key out the window and he drops it, I can toss,

778
00:54:44,217 –> 00:54:46,577
you know, a glow stick out there in the area.

779
00:54:46,677 –> 00:54:49,657
Maybe they haven’t come around the house yet. You know, whatever the scenario

780
00:54:49,657 –> 00:54:53,177
is, I don’t know if that was kind of silly, but whatever the scenario is tie

781
00:54:53,177 –> 00:54:58,057
your freaking house key to a glow stick, snap it, throw it out there and let them get to it.

782
00:54:58,237 –> 00:55:03,177
You want to keep copies of your driver’s license and or your passport in your

783
00:55:03,177 –> 00:55:06,037
safe room so that you can readily identify yourself.

784
00:55:06,077 –> 00:55:09,717
Maybe your wallet’s in the purse that you left in your car, which you shouldn’t have.

785
00:55:10,569 –> 00:55:13,849
But who knows, maybe you’re comfortable leaving your purse in your car because

786
00:55:13,849 –> 00:55:17,629
you parked it in the garage and the garage door’s down and you know that’s okay.

787
00:55:18,269 –> 00:55:22,389
But you don’t have your wallet on you when you’re in your house, usually, right?

788
00:55:22,529 –> 00:55:26,409
Or at least some of the time. You may not be, you may not have access to your

789
00:55:26,409 –> 00:55:27,729
concealed carry permit.

790
00:55:27,909 –> 00:55:31,469
You may not have immediate access to your driver’s license.

791
00:55:31,529 –> 00:55:37,329
So the idea is to keep a copy of these documents so that when the officers do

792
00:55:37,329 –> 00:55:40,589
arrive on scene, and you’ve got a quick way of showing them who you are and

793
00:55:40,589 –> 00:55:44,049
more importantly, proving that it’s your house because your address should be

794
00:55:44,049 –> 00:55:45,429
on those documents for sure.

795
00:55:46,469 –> 00:55:52,109
So flashlights, glow sticks, a spare house key, copies of your driver’s license,

796
00:55:52,309 –> 00:55:57,969
et cetera, are all things in addition to weapons and the weapons being staged.

797
00:55:58,169 –> 00:56:02,309
The idea being, again, you don’t want to be moving around your house a lot.

798
00:56:02,469 –> 00:56:05,529
It’s not Hollywood. I can’t emphasize this enough.

799
00:56:06,409 –> 00:56:11,049
Don’t get your information from TV shows, the media, or Hollywood movies.

800
00:56:11,329 –> 00:56:15,769
It’s bad. It’s wrong. And you’ll get yourself hurt. This is about not moving.

801
00:56:15,989 –> 00:56:19,369
You’re not trying to be the bad, you know, the really slick,

802
00:56:19,469 –> 00:56:24,549
cool, tactical military dude like in the movies that’s going to sweep and clear

803
00:56:24,549 –> 00:56:27,929
his house with this fully automatic silenced AR-15.

804
00:56:28,429 –> 00:56:31,929
That’s not what this is about. This is about getting yourself and your loved

805
00:56:31,929 –> 00:56:36,809
ones to a safe spot, waiting until the law enforcement arrives.

806
00:56:37,189 –> 00:56:40,409
And then, you know, if, if the bad guys come into your space,

807
00:56:40,649 –> 00:56:43,409
then, you know, you’ve got to have a plan to deal with them,

808
00:56:43,469 –> 00:56:48,589
which I’m assuming you will and do, but that’s something that only you can decide.

809
00:56:49,089 –> 00:56:54,389
So you want to have a phone because again, hopefully you’re calling 911.

810
00:56:54,609 –> 00:56:58,709
So hopefully you keep your cell phone in your bedroom and you know,

811
00:56:58,709 –> 00:57:01,589
your safe places where you’re going to have your kids ultimately,

812
00:57:01,789 –> 00:57:04,389
right? That’s the most important thing you’ve got is your kids.

813
00:57:04,609 –> 00:57:07,849
You can replace your TV. You can’t replace your kids.

814
00:57:08,813 –> 00:57:12,973
And then, you know, along with the safe room, look, guys, it does no good if

815
00:57:12,973 –> 00:57:17,913
other members of the family don’t know what you’re doing, what your plan is, or anything like that.

816
00:57:18,013 –> 00:57:21,413
So I can’t emphasize the need to have a family plan put together.

817
00:57:21,853 –> 00:57:25,333
You guys have open, honest communication with one another.

818
00:57:25,513 –> 00:57:31,373
So everyone’s on the same page. And so when and if the small percent of time

819
00:57:31,373 –> 00:57:34,493
that something bad’s going to happen with you and your house,

820
00:57:34,673 –> 00:57:39,153
you guys know what’s going on. And look, it’s not even about something bad happening

821
00:57:39,153 –> 00:57:40,213
while you’re in your house.

822
00:57:40,273 –> 00:57:42,513
It’s just about home security in general.

823
00:57:42,613 –> 00:57:46,353
It’s no different than what happens if the house catches on fire.

824
00:57:46,513 –> 00:57:49,533
Surely you’ve got a plan for that. Where is everyone going to meet?

825
00:57:49,593 –> 00:57:53,233
How is little Timmy going to get out of his bedroom window?

826
00:57:53,533 –> 00:57:58,553
You know, what’s the game plan? What’s the meeting place in the front yard? Is it in the backyard?

827
00:57:58,973 –> 00:58:04,313
Does everybody know how to operate a fire extinguisher? Does everyone know how to dial 911?

828
00:58:04,313 –> 00:58:07,353
911 does everybody know that when you dial 911

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00:58:07,353 –> 00:58:10,833
you give your address very first thing because

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00:58:10,833 –> 00:58:14,253
if the call is dropped or something else you want to make sure they get that

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00:58:14,253 –> 00:58:21,133
information them triangulating your location is not a sure thing and even if

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00:58:21,133 –> 00:58:26,253
they are able to triangulate your location it’s not pinpoint accurate so the

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00:58:26,253 –> 00:58:29,173
first thing you do when you call 911 is give them your address.

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00:58:29,373 –> 00:58:34,213
So having a family plan, communicating that plan, getting everybody on board,

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00:58:34,333 –> 00:58:37,933
running through scenarios, practicing that plan if you feel like it,

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00:58:37,973 –> 00:58:41,673
those are all things that need to be part of the consideration set as well.

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00:58:42,193 –> 00:58:47,513
So with that, we’ve covered some tips and pointers and strategies that you can

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00:58:47,513 –> 00:58:49,353
use to make your home more secure.

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00:58:49,933 –> 00:58:53,373
We’ve kind of talked about the, we’ve been all over the place,

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00:58:53,453 –> 00:58:57,073
but we started talking about the exterior of the home and what we can do there,

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00:58:57,073 –> 00:59:01,593
moving into the interior home with a lot of overlap between those two.

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00:59:01,713 –> 00:59:07,613
And then we’ve talked about one of the most important is having a safe room and a game plan for that.

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00:59:08,093 –> 00:59:13,053
And so we hope you’ve had at least a couple of takeaways from this podcast.

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00:59:13,173 –> 00:59:17,813
Like we said, we’ve been running this series of posts on Instagram now since

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00:59:17,813 –> 00:59:22,113
the first week of August, and we just thought we’d put it all together in one place.

846
00:59:22,193 –> 00:59:26,333
We’re going to continue those posts on Instagram until we run out of things

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00:59:26,333 –> 00:59:31,413
to post relative to home security, but we really hope that you’ve gotten some

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00:59:31,413 –> 00:59:32,893
good information out of this.

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00:59:33,033 –> 00:59:37,333
And look, if you have, feel free to share this podcast with your friends and

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00:59:37,333 –> 00:59:42,113
family or anyone else you think you would benefit that would benefit from it.

851
00:59:42,153 –> 00:59:46,473
Share it with your church, share it with your schools, share it with your business people, whatever.

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00:59:47,133 –> 00:59:51,773
And we would greatly appreciate it. But most importantly, we hope that you’ve

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00:59:51,773 –> 00:59:55,093
gotten something good from it and that you make your home more secure.

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00:59:56,033 –> 01:00:00,473
So with that, we want to thank you for listening in again to our episode six

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01:00:00,473 –> 01:00:02,553
of the Self-Initiative Project podcast.

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01:00:03,153 –> 01:00:07,153
I’m your host, Jim O’Brien. Thanks so much for listening and we’ll see you next time.

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01:00:07,120 –> 01:00:26,573
Music.

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