I've recently been CERT certified through the City of Phoenix Fire Department's program and want to share some of the important take-aways that I've learned. 

I want to start by stating for the record that I'm not a doomsday prepper.  Those people are nuts.  But I am a big proponent of being ready for a disruption in our daily lives and managing the risks associated with a disruption.

Phoenix FD offers a lot of training on the topic, and opportunities to practice the skills and apply the knowledge gained.   For example, Jena and I have current CPR/AED and basic first aid cards in our wallets.  Bottom line is that we're prepared to take care of ourselves personally first, then reach into the community and assist as needed.

Phoenix's CERT program, administered by the fire department, is part of the national FEMA program on disaster preparedness.  You can learn about being personally prepared by visiting ready.gov. I'm including a few of the recommendations below.

build a 3-day kit for each member of the family (including infants, children, and pet)

• food, water, and medications
• clothing (including diapers, toiletries, etc)
• shelter (sleeping bags, tent, etc)
• important paperwork (copies of insurance policies, etc)
• flashlights, candles, a hand crank weather radio
• keep vehicles above 1/2 tank of gas
• the 3 day kits can be used if staying home (sheltering in place) or grabbing and going (bugging out)

As an added bonus, have 30 days of food, water, and medication at home

Too often we don't plan for our pets.  Even if we think we are ready to either shelter in place at home with our pets or move out to an evacuation site if needed, there are aspects of that most of us don't think about.

Some of the most important pet-related items that I learned about:

• every pet should be micro chipped if possible
• keep documentation on the manufacturer and chip ID.  Your vet can scan and provide you with this information if you don't have it
• verify your contact information is current with the chip manufacturer's database.  If you and your pets are separated, this increases your chances of being reunited.
• visit FreePetChipRegistry.com and add your information to their database, adding another layer of assurance that you might be reunited.
• plan ahead now and visit BringFido.com to find local accommodations if you need to leave home with your pets during a personal emergency (kitchen fire for instance)
• BringFido.com is also a great resource if you are traveling out of your area
• as you build 3-day kits for your pets, include your contact info, their veterinarian's info, and the animal's godparents info.
• keep a card in your wallet that says "my pets are home alone" that first responders can find.  Be sure to include the address of where to find your pets and contact info of a neighbor or someone else that has access to your home.

This article is about personal preparedness.  In a future article, I'll talk about business continuity planning.  For now, I just want all of us to be thinking about the topic.  I want you, your family, and your employees to not become victims of a bad situation.  Learn to take care of yourself and pass this information on to anyone else that you care about.

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More about CERT: Any citizen can become part of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) with 20 hours of basic training on a weekend.  Phoenix Fire Department hosts CERT training on a regular basis. Here's a link to their calendar.
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https://www.phoenix.gov/fire/directory/cert

Excerpts from Michael Georgiou
Business.com

One in six Americans, or around 39 million people, have a smart home speaker. Alexa and Google Home aren’t just for the house. Businesses are finding uses for smart bots around the office, too, from assisting with online searches to taking notes and even integrating AI. Put a smart device in your office and try one of these useful skills: 

1. Web analytics. You no longer need to check your analytics every day to monitor traffic to your website. Ask Alexa for your analytics for a certain day or even a particular hour. The device can also fetch metrics for you. 
2. Quick events. This skill allows you to add events to your Google Calendar with one voice command. You can set date, time, length and location, so you have all of the details at your fingertips. Example: “Alexa, tell quick events to schedule a meeting at the office for 3 p.m.”
3. Welto. This skill acts as a finance tracker. This skill can show your current balance and track your income versus expenses. You can even use this skill to pay bills on time, so you never have to pay another late fee.
4. Intently.co. Have a leaky sink at your office? WiFi not working properly? This skill is for you. The skill has more than 1 million service professionals in a database. Services include plumbers, hotels, caterers, photographers, venue services and many more. 
5. Shopify. If you already use Shopify with your website, take it to the next level. The app will give you information about your inventory and store performance. You can ask Shopify which orders you need to fill, which products are selling the best and access analytics.
6. Expedia. Prepare for your trips by checking your flight status, booking a hotel, keeping up with your itinerary, reserving a rental car. You can even ask for packing tips!
7. Time Tracker. If your team members bill by the hour, try this to track exactly how long you work for each client. 
8. Conference Manager. Audio and video conference calls are critical to your collaboration efforts. This skill can get the information and dial the bridge number, so all you have to do is pick up the phone.
9. OpenTable. Request a reservation by saying the place, time and number of people, and it’ll book it and send you a confirmation email. You can also modify or cancel reservations if your plans change. 
10. EditDocs. This skill allows you to edit documents with a voice command. It works with Google Docs, Google Sheets and Google Presentations.
11. Email Assistant. Organize your inbox. This app creates a priority inbox based on people you interact with frequently. The skill reads your emails to you; you can star them, snooze them or delete them. There are a few quick replies you can say to get your reply message started.
12. Intercom - Echos can record conversations and send them to other compatible devices in different rooms of your building, making them an intercom system.

Build custom apps for your business
Amazon has released a way for people who don’t code to build their own skills based on about 20 templates. The program is called Blueprints. Useful skills include “Babysitter” and “Pet Sitter,” which offer a rundown of information for those people. 

​By leveraging technology, you can find ways to offload the little things and improve productivity for you and your team.