10 Things You Can Take Back: The Easiest Steps Toward Self-Sufficiency

10 Easiest Steps Toward Self-Sufficiency

In a world of convenience, it’s easy to forget just how capable we really are. We’ve outsourced almost everything — our food, our cleaning supplies, our clothing repairs, even our entertainment. But there’s a quiet movement happening, a rising curiosity to reclaim what we’ve handed over, piece by piece.

Self-sufficiency doesn’t mean living off-grid or making your own shoes (unless you want to). It means knowing you can provide for yourself — at least in part. It’s about confidence, resilience, and remembering how to do things with your own hands.

The good news? You don’t have to do everything at once. Some of the most powerful steps are also the simplest.

Here are 10 of the easiest and most impactful things you can take back, starting today.

1. Your Food — Even Just a Small Part

Food is the most obvious (and rewarding) place to start. You don’t need a homestead or a greenhouse. Start with what you can: herbs in pots, tomatoes in a 5-gallon bucket, lettuce on a windowsill.

A few of the easiest and fastest crops to grow:

Leafy greens: Spinach, kale, arugula, and lettuce grow quickly and don’t need deep soil.

Herbs: Basil, parsley, mint, and chives thrive in small spaces.

Radishes and green onions: Quick-growing and great for beginners.

Even a single salad made from your own garden is empowering. It’s food you didn’t have to buy, grown with your own hands — and that’s a powerful feeling.

2. Soap and Household Products

Most store-bought cleaners and soaps are packed with synthetic chemicals, unnecessary fragrances, and single-use plastic. Making your own is not only cheaper and healthier — it’s surprisingly simple.

A few things you can easily take back:

All-purpose cleaner: Vinegar + citrus peels + water.

Dish soap: A mix of castile soap, essential oils, and baking soda.

Laundry detergent: Borax, washing soda, and grated soap (or liquid castile).

Hand soap: Castile soap, water, and essential oil in a foaming dispenser.

Once you get the basics down, you can customize for your own needs — and ditch dozens of plastic bottles and chemicals.

3. Composting Your Waste

Composting is one of the most underrated tools for building self-sufficiency — and it's free.

Instead of throwing away food scraps, you can turn them into fertile soil for your garden, potted plants, or even to give away to neighbors. You’re literally turning waste into life.

A few beginner options:

Bokashi buckets: Great for indoor use and small spaces.

Worm bins (vermicomposting): Clean, efficient, and odor-free.

Traditional backyard bins or piles: Easy if you have the space.

You’ll reduce landfill waste, feed your plants naturally, and start to see food scraps as part of a cycle — not garbage.

4. Clothing Repairs

A torn hem or missing button used to be a reason to sit down and mend — not toss and replace.

Learning basic sewing and mending skills is one of the simplest but most powerful things you can reclaim. It only takes a few tools: needle, thread, and some patience.

Things you can take back:

Sewing on buttons

Fixing seams or rips

Patching jeans or jackets

Shortening hems

Don’t worry about perfection. The act of repairing something gives it meaning — and keeps it out of the landfill.

5. Energy Awareness and Use

We often feel powerless when it comes to energy — but there’s more control in your hands than you might think. Taking back your energy use starts with mindfulness and small habits.

Simple ways to reduce reliance:

Line-dry clothes when possible

Turn off phantom power (unplug devices not in use)

Use passive heating/cooling: blinds, shade, open windows

Install solar lights for outdoor areas

Cook with retained heat (thermal cookers or hay boxes)

Even these small acts can chip away at your monthly bill, and more importantly — increase your awareness of what you actually need.

6. Water Collection and Use

Water is something most of us take for granted. But taking back some control here means becoming more intentional — and maybe even collecting your own.

Ideas to get started:

Rain barrels: Harvest rainwater to use in the garden.

Greywater reuse: Collect water from rinsing veggies or doing dishes to water plants.

Low-flow habits: Install simple aerators or just be more mindful with use.

Water is life. Even just changing your habits can help you waste less, pay less, and think more about what’s flowing through your home.

7. Cooking From Scratch

This is one of the most immediate and satisfying things you can take back. With practice, a home-cooked meal becomes faster, cheaper, and healthier than takeout.

Easy foods to reclaim:

Bread (start with no-knead loaves or flatbreads)

Yogurt or kefir (just milk + starter culture)

Soups and stews (great way to use what you have)

Homemade broth (from food scraps and bones)

The more of your food you can make at home, the more confidence and independence you build — meal by meal.

8. Medicine Cabinet Basics

We’ve outsourced every scrape, sore throat, and sleepless night to over-the-counter bottles. But there’s a whole world of herbal and homemade remedies that are both effective and empowering.

Easy remedies to learn:

Fire cider: A spicy, immune-boosting tonic.

Herbal teas: Chamomile, peppermint, lemon balm, and more for everyday ailments.

Salves and balms: Calendula, comfrey, or arnica for skin healing.

A few plants on a windowsill and a handful of jars can go a long way. Always do your research or consult a professional — but don’t underestimate what you can learn and make at home.

9. Eggs (and Eventually, Chickens)

If you’re allowed to keep them where you live, backyard chickens are one of the most rewarding self-sufficiency upgrades. A few hens can provide:

Fresh eggs

Natural fertilizer (compost gold)

Pest control in gardens

Don’t want to commit yet? Start small:

Find a local egg CSA or small farm to support

Learn about local ordinances

Visit a friend or neighbor’s setup

Even the simple act of buying your eggs locally — or bartering for them — is a step toward taking food production into your own hands.

10. Your Mindset

Last but maybe most important: take back your mindset.

Self-sufficiency starts not with things, but with attitude. It’s the belief that:

You can learn new things.

You don’t need to be perfect.

Small steps are powerful.

You can be part of your own solution.

Each skill you reclaim — even one — chips away at the dependence we’ve been conditioned into. It builds confidence, clarity, and calm. You realize you’re not helpless. You’re actually quite capable.

And that’s something no one can sell you.

Final Thoughts

Living more self-sufficiently doesn’t mean doing everything yourself. It means doing what you can, learning a little more each season, and building a life that isn’t totally dependent on fragile systems.

You don’t need to make soap, grow kale, and build a compost toilet all in one weekend. Just pick one thing from this list — and start.

In time, you’ll have taken back more than you expected. Not just the products or processes, but the joy of doing, the pride of making, and the peace of knowing you’ve got this.