What Does It Mean to Be a Gray Man During a Bug Out Event?
You’ve probably heard the advice that you should make a good first impression. That’s great advice – except when it comes to a bug out event. During the time when you’re bugging out, making an impression could cost you your life.
If you look at a crowd of people, you’ll notice that some of them stand out from others. It could be because of their actions or how they’re dressed, their facial features, body marks or jewelry, what their voice sounds like, the color of their hair or their mannerisms. They stand out because they’re noticeably different from the others around them.
It’s not a good idea to be noticed during a SHTF event. You want to be a gray man. That means you don’t stand out in the mind of anyone else.
You aren’t wanting to make an impression. You can still move through a crowd and even speak to others, but no one will recall you once you’re gone. It’s as if you disappear from the thoughts of others.
To be a gray man, you don’t dress in a way that attracts any attention. The clothes that a gray man wears are bland without a color that even registers with someone else. The clothes a gray man wears don’t carry the scent of any laundry detergent – no soap smells or clothes softener scents.
A gray man has nothing about his clothing or his looks that can be recalled to mind. His hair doesn’t carry a shampoo scent. His clothes fade into the crowd. He’s not noticeable for his actions, either. You won’t see him obviously checking the people around him or the area. A gray man isn’t recognized because nothing he wears, does or says is worth noticing. That’s how other people miss observing a gray man.
A gray man doesn’t wear cologne. He doesn’t have jewelry. He doesn’t wear any logos, or designs. Nothing can identify him. Nothing is memorable. A gray man keeps his expression bland.
He doesn’t look like he’s focusing on any one person, thing or place. None of his actions will be anything that anyone will pay attention to. It doesn’t mean that you’re not on alert. You just don’t stick out.
You have to pay attention, stay calm and journey slowly toward your end goal. You don’t push other people out of your way. You move at a regular pace – not hurried – like you have nowhere to go and nothing to do.
A gray man makes sure that his face doesn’t stand out. If there’s something definable about his hair, he wears a plain ball cap. If he has arresting eyes, he wears sunglasses. He makes sure that any distinguishing marks like scars or tattoos are hidden from view. He keeps his voice calm. His mannerisms are bland. He doesn’t interject emotion into his words when he speaks.
The person who is a gray man is one people don’t notice because to them, he’s not doing anything and he doesn’t look like anything worth noticing. He triggers no reaction within them, which, is what allows him to be safe during a bug out event.