Photo by Jean van der Meulen
Self defense, which may also be referred to as “self preservation,” starts with awareness. In order to avoid becoming a target, it is quite useful to develop your skills of awareness.
In the Self Defense Company curriculum, we start with the AWARE model… Alert, Watch, Assess, React, Execute. This model is based upon similar type combat models such as Cooper’s Color Codes and Colonel John Boyd’s (deceased Air Force Colonel) OODA Loop (Observation, Orientation, Decision, Action).
Learning to become more alert and aware of your surroundings takes a bit of practice, but it’s really not difficult.
When you leave your home, it’s simply good habit to start paying more attention to what’s going on around you.
If you park in the driveway or in the street, get in the habit of observing what’s going on up and down the street, and in your immediate surroundings before you even approach your vehicle. You should do the same if you walk to work or walk to public transportation.
When something out of the ordinary catches your eye, observe.
Just as an example…yesterday I was walking my dog in the neighborhood. As we were walking down one particular street, a young family with their small dog was walking in the opposite direction on the opposite side. I spotted them about 100 yards ahead, so I knew not to cross over.
Shortly thereafter, out of the corner of my eye, at least 50 yards to my right, I noticed an unusual figure. I stopped for a better look, and it ultimately turned out to be a deer.
That was the first time I had spotted a deer in my neighborhood, which is a fairly densely populated neighborhood with tight packed single family homes.
I was able to spot both situations simply by keeping my head up. These days, I even observe people walking their dogs while looking at their cell phones. That’s just a bad habit.
In both of these situations, I was alert to my surroundings, I observed, assessed the situation, and simply reacted by continuing on my way.
If danger was present with either of these situations, I would need to execute a plan of action. That action could simply be to run away, or if that opportunity was not available, deal with my potential assailant.
The bottom line is that once you start learning to become more alert and aware of your surroundings, you’ll start becoming more like a predator. When you start acting like a predator, you’ll be respected as such.
Other predators are not interested in dealing a predator…they are searching for potential prey. Act like a predator, and they’ll pick someone else.
This is the first step in building a plan for self preservation.
