My focus is on casual prepping as a hobby that in the worst case can one day turn out to have been useful. Actual self-reliance is a full-time job. The vast majority of people have virtually nothing stocked up. Someone who has intentionally put aside supplies for even a week is ahead of 99% of people. It takes surprisingly little to cover one's basics and anything extra is a luxury.
Being able to hunker down the first week or two is critical. Fist-fighting at the gas station is not what one wants to be doing during the early days of collapse.