Produce adequate food. Depending upon your environment this could be quite challenging. Iron Age peoples ate a variety of foods, including grains, produce and meat. In Britain, wheat, spelt, barley and oats were all grown. Cattle and sheep were most commonly raised in Britain, but pigs were not uncommon. In other regions, including the Mediterranean, grapes, olives and wheat were all cultivated very early on historically. Dairy products from cattle, sheep and goats were also a part of their diet. Additional skill in metalworking during the Iron Age allowed for improved agricultural tools, including more durable iron hoes. The majority of people in this period throughout the world were farmers, growing their own food on small farmsteads.
Acquire shelter. The requirements for adequate shelter are, of course, dependent upon the environment. Shelter must provide a space that is both warm and dry. Furthermore, it must allow space to prepare food and do at least some of the work of daily living, including producing both pottery and cloth. Architecture ranged from early hill forts providing space for warriors and community leaders to longhouses and roundhouses. While many people lived in a single small room, in other areas homes with several defined rooms were common. The majority of homes were built with materials easily and freely accessible in the surrounding area. Timber, wattle and daub, and mudbrick are all found in the everyday architecture of the Iron Age throughout the world. Houses often served to house both human and animal inhabitants in a single space, depending upon the area. All shelter included a fireplace or fire pit since fire was essential for warmth and light.
Make the goods necessary for daily life. Certain items are basic needs for nearly everyone. These include clothing, pots for cooking and minimal furnishings, as well as tools and weapons. Metalworking was a skilled trade, by all evidence, and metal items were not typically produced within the home. Pots, baskets and fabric for clothing were all produced at home. Many of these skills were considered women's work. Pottery could be hand-sculpted or wheel-thrown by the end of the Iron Age throughout most of the world. Basket making, spinning thread and weaving were all essential skills for family survival.
Reproduce. High infant mortality rates, as well as a generally short lifespan, meant that families needed to have multiple children to ensure that there were enough people to care for the land and provide for the community. While we have little evidence of the social norms surrounding relationships in this period, burials do show that infants were valued, and there is clear evidence of familial structures in all areas. It is likely that early marriage was favored and that most Iron Age communities were largely patriarchal.
Create culture, society and religion. While these are not essential to life, they do unify communities, bring you together with your neighbors and provide the motivation to continue struggling when daily existence is difficult. Iron Age culture was rich and elaborate, and communities had strong oral storytelling traditions. Much of what we think of as classical mythologies of various cultures developed during the Iron Age. The extant art and mythology from the Iron Age tells us that even among challenging living conditions, communities did have the time and energy to try new things, tell stories and create beauty.