In The Walking Dead universe, we've seen many survivors with a variety of different skillsets. Some of these survivors took skills from their former lives and used them to thrive in the new world, while others learned new skills along the way.
Either way, without them, they would not have survived in the apocalypse. I listed the best skills to have in a zombie apocalypse and the importance they have towards one's survival.
1. Cooking
Eating is one of the most important things you need to do in everyday life in order to survive. In normal life, it can be easy to eat if you don't know how to cook. You can just order something out, have someone else cook for you, or pick up something convenient.
If you find yourself alone in the apocalypse, those options are not very feasible. If you are not skilled in cooking, then certain foods can be deemed unsafe to eat. In The Walking Dead, many of the survivors rely on the meat of animals for sustenance. If you don't know how to cook meat, that could be a big problem for your health and safety. Food poisoning on top of defending yourself against zombies is not ideal.
Another great skill to have that can go along with cooking is knowing how to make a campfire. If you lack certain materials such as a lighter and gasoline, it can be very difficult to start a fire without the right ingredients.
In The Walking Dead we see many survivors start a fire with minimal resources. In season 4 episode 12, titled "Still," Beth starts a fire using a car mirror and a piece of glass. Making a fire can increase your chances at survival, providing warmth, a way to cook food you've scavenged, and a way to boil your water so you can drink safely.
2. Farming
In an apocalypse, it can be super important to have knowledge about farming. When canned food is becoming hard to find and the hunting party returns unable to find any substantial wildlife, you start running out of options. Next thing you know you are eating "mud snakes" and beginning to starve. However, if you know how to farm and can find rich soil, you can create a self-sufficient environment and would no longer have to worry about finding your next meal.
In the show, Rick's group was blessed to come across Hershel and his family, who were great generational farmers. Hershel taught Rick how to farm at the prison, who soon went on to teach his son, Carl. If it weren't for the knowledge that Hershel provided their group, they would have had an even harder time surviving. Farming can be so important to one's survival, especially in a group setting. It can provide you with a wider supply of food at a steady rate, increasing your chances of survival.
3. Hunting and tracking
Hunting and tracking are another important set of skills to have. The best hunter and tracker we see throughout all of The Walking Dead is none other than Daryl Dixon.
His hunting skills are seen the moment he enters the show in season 1 episode 3, titled "Tell it to the Frogs," when he kills a deer. Because of his skills, he is able to safely go out on his own at the beginning of the apocalypse. He gathers more information than the entire group, teaching them that they need to stab the walkers in the brain in order to kill them fully. Daryl continues to be the hunter for the group, and in season 4, we see the importance his hunting provides for the large group when he brings back multiple deer for them to eat. Hunting can provide you with another way to gather food and protect yourself in an apocalypse.
Acquiring the skills of a hunter can also teach you the skill of tracking. Daryl also shows us how important tracking can be when Sophia goes missing in season 2 episode 1, titled "What Lies Ahead." Daryl tracks Sophia down for days and can even distinguish walker tracks from human tracks. Later in the same season, his tracking skills even helped him figure out that Shane's story about Randall was fake. Tracking can also be important when hunting wildlife in the apocalypse, and it can even help you if you find your way to fellow survivors.
4. Weapons training and fighting
Having weapons training and any fighting skills is very helpful against walkers or humans in a zombie apocalypse. You don't want to be like Eugene, who relied on others for survival until he finally learned how to defend himself, thanks to Rosita.
Knowing how to fight can save you if you ever get separated from your group or have your back pinned against a wall of walkers or people. Rick was blessed to have the gun training that came with being a police officer before the apocalypse broke out. He and Shane were able to pass down their skills to other survivors.
The group was able to keep each other safe, providing gun training and weapons training to one another. There are multiple occasions throughout the show where we see skilled survivors teaching others what they know in order to survive. In a world like The Walking Dead, you're definitely going to want to have the skills to successfully kill a walker or two.
5. Medical training
Now this can be a rare commodity to come across in the apocalypse. Not everyone has access to the resources that come with learning medicine. However, it can be a great skill to have in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. This can be helpful for all kinds of injuries and sicknesses you could acquire, especially when it comes to dealing with amputations.
There have been countless times where survivors in The Walking Dead universe have had to perform a quick amputation in order to stop the spread of the wildfire virus. It is important to understand where the main arteries are and how to cauterize/stop the bleeding of a wound.
After Carl was shot, Hershel was able to perform surgery on him and save him with his medical experience of veterinary science. Later in the show we even see survivors learning medical experience from others and reading to acquire the knowledge themselves.
In season 6 of The Walking Dead, after Pete dies, Denise has to step up as Alexandria's doctor with limited medical expertise. Denise begins her new role lacking confidence but is soon encouraged to learn more and be a great doctor by Tara. Any kind of medical experience can be the difference between life and death in an apocalypse, and it's better to know little than to know nothing at all.
Without at least some of these five skills, you probably aren't living long in an apocalypse like they experienced in The Walking Dead.
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