Theme of the Week: Self Defense

What should you know about self defense? What are the relevant skills to keeping out of trouble? What are the relevant skills to getting out of trouble?

At the center of it all is awareness. If you can’t see the threat, you can’t do anything about it. All the skills, tools and strategies will fail if you do not first open your senses to the incoming data. Don’t expect. Don’t predict. Perceive what is actually there.

If it sounds easy, you’ve got a leg up on the rest of us. It is far too tempting to sink into the whirlpools and pitfalls of one’s own thought processes. Focus out. Look at what is happening. Who is around you? What are they up to? Where is your nearest escape route if things suddenly go funky?

The good news is while self defense situations are rare, paying attention is constantly interesting. You’ll be amazed at the things you notice when you take the time to notice.