Guest Article – Page 22 – Conflict Manager

Overtly Covert: Stepping Out of the Shadows – Karl Thornton

My World is a juggling act of the Overt and Covert Worlds, and it is not a position I want to be in, more a position I have found myself in.

An overt World of training and advocating the need to deal with the global child trafficking epidemic. And the Covert World of dealing directly with the dangerous undercover world of fighting child trafficking and rescue operations.

I run MDTA (Modern Defensive Tactics Australia), my training services business. Part of my service is to train NGO (Non-Government Organisations) Field Personnel, Covert Special Operations Operatives as well as Law Enforcement personnel.

I provide a specialised training program for personnel deployed into high risk environments. Training for covert surveillance, intelligence gathering and physical response personnel. Also training Law Enforcement in Anti-Human Trafficking.

This obviously puts me in an overt environment where my face and services are known Worldwide.

I train undercover operatives for operations that many times are one-up missions, where our training in the physiology and psychology of the realities of the environments and dangers faced, is based on individual survival skills. We train for the specific environment faced by one-up operatives that have minimal if any help and or support when it hits the fan. Depending on the mission involved, and the organisation they are deployed by.

Then on the other hand, I run an NGO myself. Silent Integrity.

Silent Integrity’s mission is to raise funds for training, deployment and rescue missions globally to help fight child trafficking. Silent Integrity also provides volunteer personnel to complete these services. My team and I are directly involved in rescuing children from child trafficking specialising in rescues from the child sex trade.

Once again I train operatives that will deploy with my team and I in the skill sets required for covert undercover operations that place us in high risk environments, where survival can be a based on WILL and SKILL. Training not only in the physical aspects of unarmed combat and weapons defence, but in optimal situational awareness.

In the Covert world of dealing with undercover operations you need to be trained in intelligence gathering, and a unique set of combative skills. You also need to be trained in rapid acclimatization and being able to think and respond under pressure. You need to be trained in Observation skills, Behavioural Analysis and your survival skills will be based on training in RPD (Rapid Prime Decision) Making.

So what qualifies me in this area? Other than my formal qualifications.

Been there – Done that.

For many years now, I have been working in High Risk CPP. Specialising in mainly 1 up protection in the area of Anti-Human Trafficking. Entering high risk zones, offering CPP to NGO (Non-Government Organisations) personnel and individuals that need to enter high risk areas. Obviously this is mainly what we classify as low profile. Covert.

It takes a different set of specialist skills to undertake this type of role, and one I have had to adapt many existing policies, procedures, and learn skills to deal with this specialist role.

Blitz Martial Arts Magazine.

“A lifelong martial artist and security professional’ Karl Thornton today teaches the Modern Defensive Tactics Australia system to security and law-enforcement personnel. Karl is one of Australia’s most accomplished, security professionals, Karl Thornton used his 30 years of martial arts training to create Modern Defensive Tactics Australia.”

Although my job description has changed over the years where I offer a unique service. A service that grew out of what I do dealing in high risk environments, in a one up situation, taking individuals into high risk areas. I am still always aware of the precarious position I have found myself in.

On the Overt side, I am training specialist personnel, raising awareness about child trafficking, and providing services throughout the anti-human trafficking environment. All you have to do is Google “Karl Thornton and child trafficking“ and there I am.

Then on the Covert side, I am undertaking Intelligence and surveillance operations and rescue operations, saving underage children from the child trafficking epidemic. Placing myself in environments and situations that are basically do or die.

I have been personally and directly responsible for the rescue of 23 children from the child sex trade, and indirectly responsible for hundreds of rescued children.

Unfortunately, as I stated earlier, I am not in a position I want to be in, more a position I have found myself in.

My fight to help eradicate child trafficking has led to the need to be overt in my push to effect change and to offer my services wherever I can to deal with this epidemic. Yet on the other hand, I am still active in operational missions where I am “hands on” in environments that I may not return from.

My team and I, are under no illusion that we are not placing ourselves in harm’s way, we deal with and against individuals and criminal syndicates that will do whatever it takes to stop us from disturbing the cash flow. Taking what they classify as assets, the children they are trafficking.

We know we work in areas where professionals like us disappear and are later found murdered, dismembered, burnt and just simply disappear. But the fight MUST continue.

So why am I writing this article. Well, two reasons really.

One, to give those in the martial arts, defensive tactics, and reality based self-defence world an insight to the diversity of work that can be achieved with their skill set.

Two, and more importantly, in my overt role, push awareness of the realities of child trafficking and that it is a growing epidemic that needs the world’s attention to try and stamp it out. I know we will never stop it, but we can fight to make a difference. Even for one child, and that is our belief. If we can save one child at a time, then we are making changes. I have been involved in operations that have saved one child, as well as operations that have saved more than one child. The point is we need to fight for these children.

For more information on what I do, and what my team do. Visit www.mdta.com.au as well as www.silentintegrity.org.au

The Fear Factor, Part II: Mind-Set and the Martial Arts Spectrum – Paul McRedmond

Goal

COMBAT: Kill High adrenaline, emotional commitment and

SELF-DEFENSE: Escape ‘spiritual’ cost, extreme legal repercussions

DEFENSIVE TACTICS: Control

SPORT: Win

ART: Coordination

FITNESS: Fitness Low adrenaline, emotional commitment and

PHILOSOPHY: Knowledge spiritual cost, no legal repercussions

The purpose of combat is to kill the ‘enemy.’ The issue here is that a modern, ethical martial artist is not trained to kill or to deal with someone trying to kill them while a wolf (one of the three categories of criminals, the other two being coyote and weasel) has no compunction about killing you, nor any concern for legal repercussions. The mind-set here is ONE AND DONE and the ambush the best tactic.

Most martial arts are advertised as self-defense styles but the training is based on staying engaged – multiple strikes, locks and holds, takedowns and pins, etc. This is fighting, not self-defense. The mind-set, and tactic, is “STUN AND RUN.”

Defensive Tactics are the realm of the criminal justice and security specialists. The goal is to control the individual; this means either getting him or her into secure custody or to voluntarily alter their behavior. Training here MUST include Verbal Judo (George Thompson), conflict simulations, grappling and counter-assault techniques, behavioral psychology and stress management and inoculation. The mind-set is “I WIN, YOU LOSE’ and the tactic is the swarm-and-pile.

Sport is a formalized contest between one or more players. It has rules, time limits, special environments (like mats), referees, protective gear, restricted techniques, etc. Sure, you can get hurt and many martial artists ARE capable of hurting someone badly, but the training doesn’t include the one most important factor that divides martial arts from ‘shtreet’ fighting – the fear factor. The mind-set is I DON’T LOSE and the tactics, better fitness and force delivery.

Art is for coordination and expression of mind – perception – structure – movement and is also good for developing reflexes that, if trained correctly, can get you past the first punch or rush of a wolf. Modern Arnis is an art. Forms are art. Bagua is an art. Stylized knife and club counters are art, NOT reality. The mind-set here is harmony and the tactic, rhythm.

Fitness is for increasing the available mental, physical and intentional energy so as to live a longer, happier and healthier life OR to prepare you for a sport. The former is about health and longevity, the latter (‘extreme’ fitness) to prepare you for the intense structural stress demanded by most sports. The mind-set here is ONE MORE PUSHUP and the tactic is finding the time to get, and stay, fit.

The purpose of philosophy, the foundation of the spectrum, is the acquisition and use of knowledge. Knowledge is power, purpose and direction and melds the internal and external world into a greater, more inclusive whole by expanding your consciousness via the avenue of focused perception. Knowledge can help you survive in combat, see and avoid the stalking wolf, gain control of confrontational people without incurring liability, be more successful in your chosen sport, reveal greater vistas in your art, help you train smarter, not harder and, perhaps most importantly – know thyself. The mind-set is mindfulness and the tactic, question everything and keep at it until you find an answer.

Calm Down Please, Part I – Iain Abernethy

In this article we will be looking at verbal de-escalation. What I mean by “verbal de-escalation” is what we can do to calm people down, avoid unnecessary physical conflict, and “talk our way out”.

This is a huge subject and to try to cover all aspects of the topic in one article would be like trying cover everything there is to know about punching in one 30 minute session. Nevertheless, I hope to cover some of the core ideas and hopefully encourage you to seek out more information on this fascinating and important topic.

Martial artists train for a whole host of reasons; enjoyment, physical and mental challenge, sport, personal achievement, self-development, to enjoy a common pursuit with other people, to explore “martial culture”, self-defence, and many other reasons besides.

All of these aspects of the martial arts – using that term in its everyday sense – are worthwhile and are perfectly valid reasons to train. However we can have big problems when people mistake the requirements of one aspect with the requirements of another. Perhaps the most common example of this is people training for art, self-development or sport, and believing that, by default, such training will prepare them for dealing with criminal activity and violence (self-defence).

As well as failing to appreciate the many differences between physical “duelling” in the dojo and the realities of the physical side of self-defence, what those to hold to such a view fail to grasp is that true self-defence requires many skills that fall outside the realms of physical conflict. If the student is not given training in these skills then they are not adequately prepared for true self-defence. We need to know about home and mobile security, we need to know the law, we need to be well versed in the nature and type of crimes we are statistically most likely to face, we need training in threat awareness, assessment and avoidance … and we need the verbal skills to defuse and de-escalate situations should it be possible to do so. Believing that physical technique alone is all that is needed for real self-defence is naive in the extreme.

Training solely in the physical, and totally ignoring the more important non-physical aspects of self-defence, also gives us the massive problem that all we have is a physical solution! We therefore could find ourselves in situations we should never have been in, unable to avoid situations that could have been avoided, and running the risk of physical harm (and legal problems) when there was a way to avoid the situation becoming physical. If we truly wish to adequately address the needs of self-protection then we need to include a lot more in our study and teaching than just physical technique.

In this article, we will be discussing the basics of verbal de-escalation and it is my hope that this discussion encourages those new to the subject to explore it in greater depth. It’s not enough to simply give the topic lip service, as many do, with throw away lines such as “talk your way out if you can”. That’s just like saying “punch hard” and expecting students to be able to punch well despite never having being taught punching! There is much to the subject of verbally de-escalating situations and we’ll now move on to cover some of the key points.

The first thing we need to be clear on is that not all situations can be de-escalated! Sometimes there is no verbal “preamble”. Other times, the person will be in such an emotional state as to be beyond reasoning. Alternatively, they may make the decision that they will not be reasoned with. If someone is fully committed to harming you, robbing you, assaulting you, etc then you are not going to be able to talk them out of it. You are not going to be able to talk the career criminal into having an attack of conscience nor are you going to convince the drug addict that they don’t need your money or possessions to feed their habit. If the person is also under the influence of drink or drugs at the time it will make reasoning with them difficult if not impossible. We therefore can’t talk our way out of all situations. Peter Consterdine expressed it very well when he said, “We cannot reason with the unreasonable”.

A year or so a go there was a feature on the 24 hour BBC news channel where it was showing the training of security personnel. In one clip it showed the trainer asking someone playing the role of attacker to “calm down” while they were throwing a barrage of punches at the trainer. If a person is already throwing punches, I would suggest that we are beyond the point of trying to reason with them and we are firmly in the realms of the unreasonable. We need to know when talking is and is not appropriate.

So what we are mainly talking about is those situations where a person is getting angry, frustrated or agitated and hence physical violence is possible, but not inevitable. Of course, you won’t know ahead of time whether a situation can be de-escalated or not. They key therefore is to always be aware and be ready to get physical as it becomes clear that is where the situation is headed. If the person is getting increasingly hostile while trying to close distance, then we should conclude that de-escalation has failed, they cannot be reasoned with, and the correct action at that point would be to pre-emptively strike and escape. There are other times when talking is not appropriate too and we’ll come to those later.

So there are times were verbal de-escalation is neither possible nor appropriate. However, assuming that it is possible to reason with a person, there are methods we can use to help calm people down should they start to get aggressive, and prevent people from getting overly agitated in the first place.

One simple, but effective way to help defuse potentially violent situations is to employ the LEAPS model. LEAPS is an acronym to remind us of the key points of a communication style that can help stop people getting more aggressive and calm them down (providing they are not so emotional as to have reached the state of being “unreasonable”).

The “L” stands for “Listen”. If a person feels they are being listened to it can help remove any sense of frustration. The fact you are silent and listening also gives the person the chance to verbally vent any frustrations they have. Letting a person “get it all out” can be very effective if done right. Listening also gives you the chance to understand why the person is agitated and hence what would be the best things to say and do to help reduce that agitation. Silently listening can also help (delude) the person talking to feeling in control. This can prevent them feeling the need to physically make it clear who is in control!

The silent listening is of course your way of keeping control of the situation, but there is no harm in making the other person feel they are in charge from both the perspectives of calming the situation down further or “tactically intervening” with a pre-emptive strike should it become necessary. Remember that verbal de-escalation is just as much about listening and staying silent at appropriate times as well as what you actually say.

The “E” stands from “Empathise”. Make it clear to the other person that you understand their position and by doing so you give it validity. Even if you think the person is “wrong” remember that your ego should not lead you into unnecessary conflict. Simply saying something along the lines of, “I understand where you are coming from. In your situation I would feel the same way” can help a person feel there is common ground between you and that there is no need for them to get more and more forceful as they try to get their point across. Saying “I’m so sorry I was not looking where I was walking. I understand: I’d be unhappy too if someone split my drink by being careless. Please let me put that right and buy you another.” will be far more effective than a simple, “sorry mate”.

The “A” stands for “Ask”. By asking the right questions you can better understand what stimulated the aggression. You can encourage the person to “get it all out” verbally, buy time, and make it clear that you wish to understand the other person’s viewpoint. They are less likely to escalate to physical violence if they feel there is no need to do so. Frustration is often a trigger for violence. When asking questions it is generally better to keep the question open ended i.e. ones that cannot be answered with a “yes” or a “no”. This encourages them to keep talking and keeps their mind focused on talking. Better they talk than getting physical. Asking, “Will you explain the problem so can I understand?” is not good because it can be answered with an aggressive, “No!”. It is better to ask, “What is your key concern as I want to be sure I fully understand?” It is also a good idea to avoid loaded or accusatory questions. It should be obvious that asking “What is your problem?!” or “Can you please calm down?” are unlikely to have the effect we want.

The “P” is for “Paraphrase”. If you can state the person’s concerns back to them in an alternative way it shows that you understand. Simply repeating word for word can be seen as mocking a person. If a person was to say, “I’m f-ing angry because you should watch were you’re f-ing driving! You nearly crashed into me!” then stating, “I am sorry and I can understand why you are upset at my carelessness” show that you understand and is more likely to de-escalate than simply stating, “I understand that you are upset because I did not watch where I was f-ing driving”.

The final “S” is for “Summarise”. When the person has “got it all out” it can then be useful to summarise the position and concerns of the other person so that they know they have been understood. The summery also marks the end of the conversion and makes is clear that nothing further is needed.

So to recap; LEAPS: listen, empathise, ask, paraphrase, and when it you feel the time is right summarise.

THE TOP EIGHT MISTAKES PEOPLE MAKE IN DEALING WITH HOSTILE AND POTENTIALLY ASSAULTIVE PEOPLE – Peyton Quinn

In this article I write as a self-defense instructor about the mistakes in communications people make in dealing with a hostile person who are testing them verbally with insults etc. in order to see how they respond and if they are a safe victim to assault.

But what we are dealing with here really is human beings and the ‘Wild Kingdom’ we all really live in. I have lived in more than one world in that I was bouncer/cooler in the mid-seventies in a very large and fight prone bar in New Mexico. At the same time I was a High School Mathematics teacher in that desert community too. Later I left teaching in public schools and started a software company that was reasonably successful.

In that work I interfaced with IBM and Hewlett Packard at many different levels of authority and responsibility. I am not at all exaggerating when I say that working in that bar as bouncer, in terms of learning how to better communicate with hostile and aggressive patrons to avoid violence; well to be frank that skill served me well in the business world too.

I was actually surprised to see the extent to which there was so little shared goals by the people in both big firms. Mostly managers and such were first concerned with distancing themselves from any anticipated future problem or crisis. It was politics and self-interest that first motivated most managers and even some higher level executives.

This was real drag on productivity too. And at its root was failure in communications. Few managers wanted to be the one that fist announced a big problem coming up, as then they feared that they would ‘own the problem’. This was not a universal attitude, but any chain of communications is no better than its weakest link.

Remember that there are truly only three types of communications 1-Aggressive and Demanding 2-Passive and subservient and 3- Assertive and effective. But let’s look closer here. In ‘Aggressive and demanding then the person is ‘talking’ to a subordinate. Just as subordinate is receiving that communication or failure at same from a ‘Superior’.

This is similar to responding with FEAR or ANGER at an aggressive person, and that person could be the one assuming the role of the ‘superior’, as in a ‘bully in the bar’ or a ‘pushy’ middle manager. When we respond with either fear or anger we have not chosen our path, we are allowing our biochemistry that is a million years old do the choosing for us!

The only response that is our choice and our decision is to be assertive in the face of aggression.

Now please understand all of this exists on very long continuum. For example, in a prison environment a convict may kill another convict for being ‘disrespected’ or ‘dissed’. In an office situation a manager my fire an ‘insolent’ or ‘disrespectful employee’.

It is mostly the consequences that are radically different in the two examples here, and not the nature of the communication. Both the manager and the ‘homicidal convict’ acted out of a communication that was received as being ‘disrespectful’.

Effective communications can make guy who intends to pound your face into raspberry jam and has articulated that intention to you into a person who decides he does not have to or want to do that. This is no ‘theory’ with me it is experience. And yes, not all such people can be verbally de-escalated but most in my experience can be.

Likewise middle manager or boss who is ‘chewing your ass out royally’ and maybe even in front of others in the office, well if you handle it very well you can sometimes communicate with him or her in productive manner to. By ‘productive’ I mean in way that ‘solves’ or ‘begins to solve’ the problem the ‘Boss’ is chewing you out for. Neither anger nor fear can ever accomplish this. But measured assertiveness might.

So let’s get down to specifics here. Below is truncated version of my newsletter to subscribers whose main interest is self-defense, but true self-defense exists on very long continuum too, from the barroom to the boardroom as I have been in both places good people. I will also say that self-defense is subset of self-improvement and the most powerful form of same I am aware of too when done authentically.

Even martial arts, which is not really self-defense training at least in any comprehensive way, has some real self-improvement benefits too.

Hence below in italics I will give examples of the mistakes people make in dealing with a potentially assaultive bully, to the mistakes and consequences of dealing with the office and corporate environment. If you live in the same worlds I do then you surely know there are disagreeable people there too you must communicate with and yes, even bullies as well.

1- They fail to recognize the intent of the abusive person’s verbal attack behaviors.

The bully’s intent is to determine if a physical attack on you is safe for them or not. In short, you are being ‘interviewed ‘for safe victim potential. The verbal attack and insults and challenges are an ‘interview” of you

Same deal with overbearing manager, once they see they can abuse you one way or another they are encouraged to do so. EXAMPLE” The Boss tells a subordinate to have the Johnson report ready by Friday at 10 AM. The subordinate knows it can be done in that time and the software is not set up for the format he wants. SUBORDINATES FEAR RESPONSE: They say nothing and are not communicating the problem and thus they are worried and unproductive all the way to Friday and then the Boss discovers the people coming in from out of town he will be much less prepared to meet and sell. This could be the last straw for the boss and subordinate well catch Hell and may be terminated.

2- They are in Denial that the verbal assault is really happening

The most common way this is done is just by ignoring the abuser as if he were not there. This means you pass his interview for ‘safe victim potential’ and it’s now much more likely he will get physical\ and attack you. The bully needs to inflate his self-esteem through abusing others with impunity. This is because of his actual weak self-image.

The Boss has not communicated that the situation properly. The subordinate does not realize the gravity of having the report being ready for the important Friday meeting. The subordinate knows that the Boss is always making near impossible demands and time frames and ‘he will just have to learn what is possible and isn’t possible’ Friday.

3- They get angry and return his insults

To the experienced ‘human predator’ this is very close to #3 above. He knows fear and anger are almost the same thing in such a situation. You are also helping him get his courage up to attack you. It is like throwing gasoline on fire to put it out. Showing anger is escalating the situation and shows him he is ‘getting to you’ which to some extent means he is succeeding in controlling you.

To the Boss this is insubordinate and disrespectful and he or she won’t have it. The Boss may terminate the subordinate and find someone in the department that can perform the job rather than complain.

5- They verbally challenge the aggressor

How stupid is this? Both make themselves tactically open for attack. This is ‘Wild Kingdom’ stuff and neither person is really in control of themselves or they would not do this non-sense

Similar to getting angry, it isn’t a rational choice by the subordinate but an emotional response. The subordinate may seem calm but is saying “Boss we have been through this before. The software does not allow the information to be selected and printed out like that and certainly not by Friday you should be aware of these things by now”. In this communication the subordinate as far as the Boss is concerned is just telling him or her what the subordinate can’t do. This is not of interest as much as what the subordinate CAN DO in the time frame. Further the accusation that “you should be aware of these things by now” is insulting and challenging and may be seen easily as being disrespectful and the subordinate being person that is just too hard to deal with and him or she just does not need that.

6-They display an Ignorance of what is happening. If you show fear, indecision and ignorance of the situation then you might say something like: “Hey leave me alone I haven’t done anything to you”. Of course he knows all that already, you have just told him “I am afraid and I do not understand why your acting this way to me as never have dealt with this before and so you can be sure I do not know how to handle it now if you go physical with me”

Here the subordinate is taken off balance by the Boss’s demand. This is partly both parties fault too at that point. The subordinate then will be asking ‘what ifs’ or “are you saying that we have too” or “look it’s not my responsibility to be able to do something the system isn’t programmed to do”. Again the subordinate is communicating to the Boss that it is ‘His problem’ not theirs and what once again simply what ‘can’t be done’. The boss needs a replacement that accepts responsibility and knows there job, this person is headed for potential unemployment.

7- They care what people around them will think about them and let that fear determine their actions.

Suppose you are with friends or your girlfriend or wife when you are confronted by a bully in restaurant. If you are worried or concerned that IF you don’t meet this hostility with ‘manly action’ you will be seen as a coward then you are not in control of yourself, someone else is! If this passes through your mind then you are afraid that you are ‘not really a man’ in the first place and that is the real problem. You are acting like an adolescent boy not a man. Either you are in control of yourself or someone else is. Of course showing fear and freezing up is no good either, it encourages the bully.

The Boss chooses to ‘chew the subordinate out’ in front of other co-workers. This is very seldom by anything but the Boss’s design and purpose so as to amplify the castigation of the subordinate. It is basically the same dynamic communication wise as the dealing with the Bully in the restaurant. The assertive response is best as it discourages the Boss from doing this as it does not met his result does not meet his expectation. An assertive but not insubordinate response might be “Mr. Boss I realize the importance of this problem and we need to go to your office to discuss some sensitive elements of this problem”. If this continues do you really want to work there anyway? WE spend a great really enormous a lot of our life at work. What kind of life do y6ou want? All endings are always also the start of new beginning.

8-They allow themselves to become triggered by ‘Name Calling’. This one is both the more challenging to explain physiologically and for many the most challenging response to disengage from. Being ‘triggered’ exists on a continuum. The trigger for a Black Person might be being called the “N” word. Yet the trigger for another person might be something as simple as being called “Sport”. When “triggered’ a person can respond automatically and immediately and thus not under their own self-aware will and rational control.

The OODA loop: concept:

Observation, Orientation, Decision, Action. This is a very key concept to understand. Decision-making occurs in a recurring cycle of observe-orient-decide-act. An entity (whether an individual or an organization) that can process this cycle quickly, observing and reacting to unfolding events more rapidly than an opponent, can thereby “get inside” the opponent’s decision cycle and gain the advantage.

AN Example: Again I am just having a beer on a Harley bike trip through Colorado and New Mexico when I am aware that a guy at a table by himself has the ‘hard eyes’ on me. I judge him to be a ‘regular’ there .I am of course just passing through. I had an unusually strong sense of malice about this guy and possible mental problems. I decided to pre-empt. I smiled at him and sat down at his table and said in a friendly manner “Don’t I know you form “D Block in La Tuna?” La tuna was a prison in New Mexico the State I was now in. He was derailed. His OODA loop was broken.

In the example by asking him this questions about ‘was he not someone I saw in prison’, I interrupted his decision loop and derailed it. He was surprised and told me he had been in jail before but never prison.

I replied he had been ‘smart then’ and wished him well and went back to the bar to have lunch. This was one of those rare incidents where pre-preemption was best and so I went with my gut feeling there.

OK, how does this idea of the OODA Loop apply to business? The short answer is “in every possible aspect of business”. This is because business is about people and commutations and sales in particular is about anticipating and being able to preemptively engage objections to the sale. Now do not say to yourself “But I am not in sales”. Yes you are in sales every human being on the planet is in sales one way or another really regardless of what they do for a living.

One way to grasp this is this idea: A Doctor sells medical services a Lawyer legal service a Plumber fixing your leaking pipes and overflowing toilet services, a politician sells himself in nearly every conceivable way imaginable, a would be lover of another is selling him or herself to that significant other, or would be significant other or spouse as a suitable mate. The list is of course endless.

To the management or CEO you are selling him or her the idea that you are valuable asset to the enterprise. Ok we don’t necessarily think of it those terms or idioms, but isn’t this idea about ‘sales’ a reality?

That is where the OODA Lop and mastering its intricacies with people and prospects becomes paramount. Sales of any kind is mainly the business of educating the prospect to the sale the ‘how and why’ he or she needs your service or product. Of course that ‘prospect’ may be your boss, the CEO, the manager that can promote you or even the person you are hoping to sell a piece of real estate too).

So you want to anticipate objections so you can resolve them in the mind of your sales prospect. Yet the objections to any sale are always one of these three

1-NO NEED, I do not have the problem you solve so I do not need you or you or service or

2-NO HELP, I realize I have a problem but you dot really understand what that problem is so your solution does not apply to me, it is no help.

3- NO HURRY: Hum, I have the problem, your solution seems to fit, but we have gotten along this far without it so there is no hurry to make a decision right now.

You should be prepared to get inside the mind of your prospect OODA Loop wise. This means you know the problem the prospect has as well or better than he or she does. It means you know thus exactly what the benefit you or your solution provide. And for objection number three, NO HURRY, you should be able to meaningfully project to the prospect what it is costing them daily or monthly or yearly just what it is costing them not to have you or your service or product right now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2V7JwS8d_X8

Fit Defence – Douglas Graham

Is Fitness training important in Self Defence? I say yes of course it is. So let us discuss the how and why. We all realise that our cardiovascular performance can be handy for ‘taking it to the trenches’ but let’s face it. The trenches, is a place that few of us ever intend to take a fight. Not to mention that fighting is not the essence of self defence anyway. Conflict management is. So having an element of control over our body and mind is essential yes? Of course.

So how does Fitness training facilitate this process? Let me give you an example.

I was training a young client only a few days prior to writing this blog. We were doing a protocol where his strengths flourish. This lad is solid in structure, strong in body, driven. After a fantastic job on his second movement, exceeding my expectations. He broke down. He was shaking, feeling ill and I could see the energy draining from him. He had pushed himself right to his physical limit. But with excellent form the whole time. But, adrenaline struck hard.

Discomfort shows us we are pushing our limits. Pain shows us we are pushing our luck-

He was extremely uncomfortable. He had never experienced adrenal dump. So we took an extended recovery period to deal with it. To do this we exacted control over the body, using the mind. “YOU are in control” The mind can activate mechanisms in the body to regain control. In This case it was posture and breathing. Sound familiar to anyone?

Ideally we want to release the adrenaline gradually, for the best performance. Rather than saturate the blood with it. Now and again though, it is productive to take ourselves there. He simply pushed his limit and was able to recover then continue without any issue.

As with any reality training(and make no mistake that this is reality training. More real and grinding than a lot of ‘reality based’ self defence I see on the market) You have to push your limits. Body, mind, technique, beliefs. The young warrior learned much of this, in the space of five minutes. Adrenaline is your friend, but it can be your enemy. Physical stress with a functional application is an effective way to tap into this and learn to cope with it, especially on the physical level.

I have personally used my fitness training to supplement my SD for a long time. Mainly technique based, improving quick twitch etc. The stamina aspect is obvious enough. But far more significantly I believe, as do we all at the Art of Functional Movement, is that movement is universal. No matter what modality in which you choose to use it. As much as, if not more than any other part of us, our bio-mechanics have existed almost unchanged since our species came about. The applications are many but the core of functional and efficient human movement is the same. Lines, shapes and patterns.

Functional Fitness training will facilitate every aspect of your life once you see the simplicity of it all. Active core engagement during ‘fence’. The way a simple step turns a straight punch, into a curved one. The difference between squat and deadlift motions can be the difference between dodging a punch, and taking a knee to the head. It is all there. Hiding in plain sight. No secrets, no mysteries, just you and your training. If you can open your mind and apply it right, the world is your oyster full of pearls.

You can check out my other writings via our website at http://www.functional-living.co.uk/

So take care folks. Stay functional, stay safe.

Taking Control – Jari Peuhkurinen

It’s almost dawn and you have been out with your friends celebrating. Your friends took a taxi, but you decided to walk because it’s just a short way home. You are walking down a quiet road. It’s kind of dark still, since the sun hasn’t come up yet. During the night you didn’t drink too much, but you can feel that you are little bit intoxicated, but most of all you are tired. You just want to get home to sleep.

You are just about to cross a road to your home, when you see two men hanging out in front of your apartment building. They are not doing anything, just standing there, but obviously checking you out. You feel how your stress hormones start raging through your bloodstream, those little buggers that make your mind and body wake up… you are feeling fear.

Luckily you had been aware of your surroundings and you spotted the possible threat in time and you have a chance to affect what happens and avoid possible encounter by simply not entering a situation. Perhaps you change a direction or grab your phone and make a call. Maybe you go and get help from somewhere or someone.
When you are able to perceive a threat early it gives you time to react and plan. Time gives you a possibility to control your emotions better if you have the tools for it. This because the stimulus that causes fear, in this case observation of those two guys, is still somehow controllable.

On the other hand the stress hormones can be slowly paralyzing and draining your energy down. This can happen when you have the knowledge of future conflict and you know it cannot be avoided and you have to wait for it. The tools to control your thoughts and affect your emotions in these situations are very practical; concentrate your thoughts and energy on observation and planning.

When you exit the scene and get distance to the threat you can feel that stress is decreasing, since you feel you are going to be safe. You are coping through by your decisions and actions and take charge of the situation at an early stage.

Same thing happens during a physical conflict; stress starts to decrease and you can get some of your cognitive functions back the moment you feel that you are in control of the situation.

Let’s take the scenario further…

You have spotted those two suspicious guys standing in front of your home and you’ve decided to head back the way you came from, to get away from them. As you turn around to head back you see a third guy who’s been following you, but you hadn’t noticed him before. Seems they are all part of the same group and working together.

Situation has developed to a point where you cannot avoid by simply exiting the situation. There is nowhere to escape, not at least without some form of action towards the threats. Some form of encounter with them is unavoidable. You can make a conscious choice and start adapting to the situation.

Firstly you need to assess the situation again with this new information. Make a quick threat analysis; map your options and form a plan of action, make the goal clear for yourself. This is a conscious decision not to let your feelings of fear guide your thinking. You are coping with the situation and your actions will be goal oriented.

Threat analysis gives you information to plan your action. Forming a threat analysis is a skill you can practise everyday and it really helps to take charge of your thoughts and emotions.

With this said it is not always easy to control those thoughts and you may find yourself in situation where your cognitive thinking doesn’t work too well and you seem to be thinking that if I don’t say anything and just ignore them, don’t look them in the eye and just walk away, everything will be fine. “how did I end up here?” what’s going to happen to me?” If I don’t notice them, maybe they don’t notice me” etc. You are denying the reality of the situation.

Denying the situation is our internal defense mechanism. Our internal defense mechanisms can protect our mind, but they also chain our thoughts. Defenses are about denying and distorting the reality around us and adjusting and suppressing our internal reality. It can help to cope with the pressing feeling of fear. When you are submitting yourself into this cycle of denying, you are forcing yourself to just react to everything that happens and that will increase your feeling of fear and you become a victim. All that is left is coping with what has happened after the situation.

It is also possible that fear literally makes you freeze. Makes you incapable to act in anyway. The possibility for this is especially high if the stimulus (the situation) develops without any warning. There is no time for denial. The stress hormones rush to prepare your body to fight or flight so suddenly that you just freeze. Simply you are not coping in anyway. This is no better than previous stage, you become a victim. There are drills to practise braking the freeze, but firstly you need to be able to recognize when you are freezing and that’s not always easy to do under control circumstances.

This was an example of coping in threat of physical conflict, but the same model applies for conflict management in general. Put yourself in a situation where the threat, the factor causing stress, is an upcoming conflict with your boss. You have those same tools at your disposal to cope with the immediate stress; if you have time and tools to avoid, the stress will be decreased. If you cannot avoid, but have time to make a plan of action (how you handle the situation) it will affect the stress levels and your action in a positive way. If, however, you are denying the reality the internal defense mechanisms may kick in and will distort the internal or outside reality to relieve stress. Or you may just freeze, not being able to respond or defend yourself.

It all comes down to two things;

how much you have time to prepare and how you use that time
what tools of coping you have in your disposal.

Both are things that we need to train for and train our students for. If either one of these elements missing and your action and coping will be severely compromised, facing the threat of a physical conflict you need to get your mind working for you, not against you, remaining in control is key.

Is There a Place for Humour In Self Defense? – Chris Roberts

Immediately one might think there is no room for humour in self defense. Self defense is meant to address violence that may result in harm; physically, emotionally, and psychologically. How can humour be part of that you might ask? Well, you’d be correct in thinking there is nothing funny or entertaining about violence. However, in order to teach people how to address potential violence, one should consider the methodology. Enlightening people that humour has a part to play may be one of the missing links, in my opinion. Fear is an often-used strategy to show and motivate people to address violence, but it is not the only strategy. There are so many variables in any self defense scenario, with so many variables in the personalities of the people we teach.

While sharing and providing some of the realities of violence to people may create an atmosphere of fear, which can motivate to some extent, I believe that fear has its limits and must be part of the formula, but not be the only strategy. For me, the use of humour has not only been an integral part of our teaching methodology, but a cornerstone of all SAFE self defense courses.

I began SAFE International in 1994 and right from the start I utilized humour in my teaching. Did I do it on purpose, knowing it would be so important and instrumental in reaching our clients? Not at all, it was more just who I was, how I liked to be taught, and the way I liked to instruct. Immediately it seemed to work with the teenage girls we were teaching. There is no tougher crowd in my opinion than young teenage girls, they will tune you out in a second if they become bored! In fact, many of the girls on our “Talk Day” (an awareness component whereby everyone shares their personal experiences, no hands-on physical techniques) would ask if we had to talk, wanting instead to start hitting someone rather than being stuck in a classroom talking about safety scenarios. What I found instantly is, through humour, we kept their attention and although they were laughing, we were still discussing some very important topics in regards to their personal safety.

But even with this approach appearing to be the right one, I still had doubts making the topic fun when teaching about sexual assault, abuse, and violence. Then one day I received the confirmation I needed. I was instructing a group of grade 9 girls, who would be about 14-15 years of age, and the teacher asked me if I would mind a woman sitting in to listen, and I happily obliged. Turned out, she was the director of a sexual assault centre for women in the community. The talk went as well as I had become accustomed to, and after the session the woman asked me if she could speak to me. Quite honestly, I was prepared for her to say that my approach was not suitable, in her opinion, for such a serious topic. Well, in fact, it was just the opposite. She asked if I could come speak to the women at her centre. I questioned how the humour would go over with them, and she said the use of humour was exactly why she wanted me to speak to them. I will never forget what she said, which was, “You aren’t making fun of the topic. You are making the topic comfortable to talk about because of the fun atmosphere you create.” That was about 17 years ago and was all the confirmation I needed to carry forward the methodology we use in teaching.

Sadly, many of the women I have taught over the last 20 years have shared some very horrific stories of violence with me. Without exception however, they have told me they felt comfortable sharing many of those horrific details because they felt at ease in doing so due to the safe environment created, with the main reason being the use of humour. Now, I do not want people to think that the discussions are all shits and giggles. Often there are many tears shared, but the humour is what gets us to those special moments. I like to teach like a roller coaster, moving up and down between seriousness and humour at the proper times. Sandwiching in the important points between the laughter is very effective.

Another area where humour has proven to be very effective is in getting people to remember what we have taught them. I believe people are much more likely to remember what they have learned if they are engaged in the conversation in a way that is pleasant and fun. Yes, again fear can motivate, but which would you rather experience if you could still reach the same goals? I like to try and find a balance using whatever methodology people seem to benefit most from.

Perhaps one of the most dramatic examples I can share, regarding humour being an effective way to recall information, took place many years ago. I received a call from a teacher who told me that I had taught her daughter and her daughter’s friend when they were in Grade 9. They were now out of high school, it was approximately 5 years later. Both girls were at a mall in Ottawa, Ontario. It was roughly 3pm and the girls proceeded to their vehicle which was in the mall parking lot. The daughter of this teacher got into the driver’s side of the car while her friend was getting in the passenger side. As the friend opened the door, a man appeared out of nowhere seemingly with a knife to her throat, standing behind her. He demanded she get in the van or he would harm her. The girl on the driver’s side immediately began honking the car horn and screaming. The attacker instantly fled the scene and both girls were fortunately okay. They found out the next day after reporting it to the police that the man had left them and gone to another mall nearby within the hour. He saw a woman putting her child in the back seat of her car. He began to force them in the back, threatening the mother with the same knife. In the meantime, a few men had noticed what was happening and took chase. The attacker fled when he saw them approaching. They eventually caught the man and restrained him until the police arrived. The earlier two young women who also escaped had called the police. The police interviewed the women separately and got very similar descriptions. The police informed the women, after they both identified him from pictures, that he had previously spent time in jail for sexual assault and was just recently released. The police also told them that they had handled the scenario very well.

Now, the mother/teacher of the one girl who called to share this story with me informed me that when she asked her daughter why she honked the horn and attracted attention, was told she had remembered this tip from my safety talk back when she was in grade 9, five years previous. Her mother was impressed with this memory retention and asked her daughter how she remembered this in such a scary situation. Her daughter said all she could think of was how crazy I was when I taught her, and that thankfully, somehow she remembered my advice when she needed it most. Now, I do not share this with you to try and take any credit for their successful escape. Many self defense instructors believe they deserve the credit if a student is successful. I don’t, just as I am not prepared to take the blame if something did not work. I just want to demonstrate the power of humour and how, in even the most adrenaline-driven, frightening scenarios, humour may be what allows a person to remember what they were taught. Can I explain all the details on the human brain and how we learn and remember with the use of humour? No, I just use it as a tool and as long as I continue to receive feedback validating that it works, I will continue to have it as part of my teaching toolbox.

Keep SAFE!

Chris Roberts

Managing Director

SAFE International

www.safeinternational.biz

TAKING A STAB AT VIOLENCE! – Tim Boehlert

Violence. It’s all around us. Everyday. Everywhere we look. You may not see it, nor hear it, nor even experience it. But it’s there. In fact, we will never know of every instance, nor ever be able to stop it all. So, I ask, what will YOU do? Will you pretend it’s NOT your problem, or pretend it doesn’t exist. That’s alright, and it may be the norm. It likely is the norm. You can walk away, or walk by it, but you won’t be able to do that forever either.

I too turned a blind eye to it for a long time. It’s not that I chose to do nothing, or ignore it, I just wasn’t aware of what IT is. Simply put, I had no idea what it looked like – at least on so many other levels that I was never subjected to – up close and personal.

Violence is woven into the thread of our lives. Most of us are lucky enough to not have to deal with some of it, for long, long periods. Some of us may only have to deal with small parts of it, and then only now and again. Some of us choose to welcome it into our lives, via our lifestyle. Some of us choose to invite it in to better understand it. It’s strange to me that violence has so many faces that I have either been unaware of, OR, not been exposed to. Being white, middle-class, I’ve been buffered for much of my life.

Who’d have thought that you could go into a bookstore and BUY a book about violence? Who’d have thought that not only that would be possible, but that it would have it’s own ‘section?’ Who would even KNOW enough about it to WRITE about it? Who’d have thought that any one man could not only write several books about it, but earn a living teaching others about it – through seminars, on-line blogging, e-books and in dojo training. Or several men? Or all over the world?

Yes, violence IS that big. It’s a money-maker now. In the same breath, it’s also a treasure trove of great information, and maybe NOT so great information. I guess it all depends on how familiar you are with the subject matter. Of course it’s also susceptible to the same problems that many subjects are subject to – opinions.

There’s some great information in the marketplace, and there’s also some very poor information out there. The problem here is HOW do you determine what’s good, and what’s not? I think that like many other subjects, context is important. Familiarity with the subject can be key, but how do you find the RIGHT answers? And again, it’s dependent on context. There are no right answers, because context is always changing, evolving. There are NO RIGHT ANSWERS. Maybe, maybe not. It’s debatable, like everything that involves opinions. Simply that.

Violence is something that I now pursue. For a living. As a course of what my job requires. To quote a very good source, “The only way to deal with violence, is to be better at it than THEY are.” Wow! That quote changed my life. Unfortunately, those that NEED to hear this, and to understand it, don’t and can’t – they don’t do what we do. Asking someone to watch you while you do your job makes them uncomfortable. And since you can’t schedule when someone chooses to use violence, you can’t ask them to watch, and maybe either comment or critique what just happened. One thing about it is that THEY will probably think you are LOOKING for violent outcomes. Yeah, it’s like that. They don’t understand, so they won’t understand. Simple. If they do happen to ‘see’ it, likely on a video (sans audio, as is most often the case), they can play monday-morning quarterback to affect their analysis, and justifications. They weren’t there, so they’ll never really know: what, why, how.

To experience physical violence, you usually have to be involved. You HAVE to be there. To understand it is a whole different thing. There are many factors and facets to a violent act. There are underlying issues, underlying emotions, and unknowns – those things that makes us who we are. Violence can never really been quantified or quantized. It’s a fluid thing, with no outline, no boundaries, and maybe no real beginning – or ending. It’s a slice of life. Complex doesn’t even cover it.

Violence does do one thing well – it sends a message. It conveys meaning, it defines an action, it makes progress happen – for one side or the other, or maybe even both. I’ve spent five years studying to deal with it. Scared? Yes. Indecisive? Yes. Reluctant? Yes. Willing to go there? Again, yes. Someone HAS to go there. It’s our way of being a stop-gap for those that would use this tool for their benefit, to your detriment. I’m an unlikely candidate to be here, now, but if I don’t, who will? And will they do it the way I’d do it? Not likely. Too many go there for the wrong reasons. It’s NOT about being a bigger man, but it is about being a better man. To stand up for what’s right, and to stand for those that can’t or won’t stand on their own. Because, they don’t feel they can, or should perhaps.

Too many ‘people’ use violence as a tool against us or those that we love, care for, care about, or are responsible for. That’s not to say it’s always on purpose, or willingly with bad intent. It’s a tool – and can be misused, used for the wrong purpose or for the right purpose, but wrong circumstance I suppose. Many know what they’re doing, many don’t, or may have underlying issues that change their perspective. Drugs, alcohol, mental health issues, emotional distress.

Violence as a tool – what a concept. It was hard for me to wrap my head around this one! But it now makes ‘perfect sense.’ Odd how five years of constant reading, viewing, and discussing this subject has changed my outlook, my mindset, and my humanity. I’m often sad about it, but also proud that I now possess some of the things I need to deal with violence. I have many sources that ALL have contributed in many special ways to getting me ‘here.’

Martial Arts has provided me with new insights and a different perspective on violence. I first tried MA when I was in my early teen years. Karate was what was available, so Karate it was. I got my White Belt, and that seemed like a lot of work to get there! The stretching required alone about broke me! What finalized my first brush with MA was not the work necessary, but the ability to get to it. Suffice to say that I and MA parted ways, too early for me. It was not until late in life that I re-discovered MA – this time with a purpose. I now had what I felt was a real need. In fact, it was a requirement as far as I was concerned, no two ways about it.

Five years in and I don’t consider myself a Martial Artist – I’m a believer in positive MA, and try to avoid all of the negative associated with it, and sadly there’s way too much negativity flowing through the arts – mostly due to ego, in my opinion. I’m not sure what I’d consider myself – I do practice, but not enough in a dojo, and certainly not with a partner most of the time. I do spend a lot of my income on educational materials – books, DVD’s, seminars however. I’m also of the belief that you CAN do some of it, even without practice, as I have clearly proven to myself. I don’t need to prove it to anyone else, despite their claims to the other viewpoint. I have experienced MUSHIN, once specifically that I can clearly recall, and likely many other times when I was too busy trying to effect a positive outcome to a violent outburst.

What I do consider myself is a voice to promote the positive in a new era of MA awareness. I specifically refer to my co-writing and experiences with my Sensei, Avi Nardia and my good friend, Hanshi Patrick McCarthy. The short story is this: in 2008, I took on a job that I had no idea about – well, not a very good understanding of, shall we agree on that? At that time I enrolled in a MA Dojo, Karate again, as that is what I ‘knew’, or thought of at that time, and with what I thought would be a good solution to an immediate problem. It wasn’t the right solution, but it did give me some grounding, and a lot of self-confidence – something I was lacking in, and won’t likely always fully acquire.

Before obtaining my Purple Belt, I’d determined that the training wasn’t what I needed. I didn’t know what I needed, but I knew this wasn’t it. That’s not to knock the style at all, as I did take away some very important pieces to MY puzzle. It’s just that I didn’t feel this was going to get me to where I needed, and specifically FAST enough! In doing some background searching, and after learning one joint lock combination, THEN I started to look for THAT! That piece fit my understanding of what I thought I needed – it made sense, and seemed to fit my needs. In doing Kata, which I love for the traditional aspects as well as the reasoning behind doing so, I was lost – the steps weren’t clear as to WHY they were performed. What was I doing making a series of moves, in a rough circle – who was the opponent, and HOW was he moving? I think if that had been explained UP FRONT, better, it would have made more sense, but that’s how I interpreted it. Motion without understanding, pointless to me at that point.

I checked out another school, and was determined NOT to start out from scratch again – I was determined NOT to be a cash cow for another school, simply so that they could make more money, and not really care about where I had been or gotten to. It seemed like I was just another income stream, with little to no interest in what I felt I needed even being considered. You were expected to follow THEIR program because that’s how THEY did it. Period. I call Bull Shido! McDojo reality, again.

I decided to try the DVD route – buy into some training materials that I found on the internet. I bought a ‘complete’ system that seemed to display MORE elements of what I thought fit my needs. Through that ‘set’, I found my Sensei, so it was worth the investment. Kapap is HIS art, and now my art of choice. Through Sensei Avi, and his circle of influence and friends, I have come to appreciate what MA can offer to a ‘student’ – positive growth, family values, compassion for other cultures – things I find lacking in what I know of some of the MA arena. Ego seems to rule the day, and with the rise of MMA, which I found brutal when I was first introduced to it, now has a different feeling. As does violence – I don’t view it the same, but I do view it as an opportunity. Kapap has introduced me to many new things, but mostly new ways to view my world, with an opportunity that many miss – to MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

Play Tactical Control – Ron Beer

“Sensei Why Do You Have Handcuffs on?”

It was my children’s class and I had both handcuffs on one wrist. As children arrived for their class over and over I heard “Sensei why do you have Hand cuffs on?”

But of course the children were curious. My old friend Kevin Smith had just left after telling me about his new job as Defensive Tactics Instructor for York Regional Police services. He was showing me a new handcuff technique when he got a call and had to leave. It was then he realized he didn’t have his keys for his handcuffs. So I had to teach my children’s classes with both cuffs on one wrist.

Kevin and I had practiced Jujitsu back in the 70s’s and had remained friends. He stopped by to tell me of his new job and asked me what I was up to. I explained that I had developed a Shoot Wrestling Program he responded “coppers could really use this”.

Kevin returned several hours later with his handcuff keys. Kevin then mentioned that he had a new partner he couldn’t choke out. I suggested that he and his partner stop by for a class sometime.

Kevin returned for a class with his partner Keith and a few Use of Force Instructors. It was during a daytime class over the summer holidays so I had children and teens on the mats. I could see the puzzled looks on the officers faces as they came in to work out.

The looks on their face quickly changed when I said let’s start with chokes. Kevin you start with one of the children over here and I’ll start with your partner Keith. Well, soon all the Use of Force Defensive Tactics Instructors were tapping like a bongo players on the mats.

Several days later Keith and Kevin invited me to critique the new York Region Use of Force Program. With my observations they changed their program and invited me to a National Use of Force Trainers Conference. After attending the Conference, I was asked to put a lesson plan together and Police Services from the Greater Toronto Area came together for my first class of the Tactical Control Systems I was about to create.

Little did I know that it would lead me on a path to instruct Customs Agents, Corrections Officers, Department of Fisheries, the Senate Police Force, and Police Services from Toronto to Vancouver. Being a civilian in a Law-Enforcement world I had a lot to learn. Disengage, create distance and go to a higher level of force was my first learning curve and perhaps I could share some of my ideas and dynamic simulations with you today.

Arm drag is a classic move in the Shoot Wrestling Canada Program. Testing the arm drag in combative games like Uproot the Tree and Sumo Wrestling are a great way to gain practical experience.

The arm drag allows you to get behind your opponent and for law-enforcement you are able to disengage, create distance and go to a higher level of force. Or in a civilian self defence setting escape and live to tell the story.

Wrestling Games to Challenge the Arm Drag (Also, this is a great cardiovascular work out)

Try each game in 3 minute rounds, the average work out is 3 rounds.

Up Root the Tree – A bear hug game where one person tries to get a bear hug and lift their partner off the ground. Note: Use the Arm Drag to get behind your partner and make the lift or disengage from the training circle.

Sumo Wrestling – One person tries to push the other out of the circle.

Note: Use the Arm Drag to get behind your partner either leave the circle or push your partner out of the circle.

For more info on Tactical Control Systems

Contact Ron Beer at:

www.shootwrestlingcanada.com or ronbeer@ronbeer.com

Arm Drag

The light wrestler knocks the dark wrestlers wrist in a circular motion, then reaches above the elbow on the inside of the dark wrestlers arm. The light wrestler then ‘Pulls’ creating the Drag, enabling him to get behind the dark wrestler.

Teaching Self-Esteem Through Self-Defense – Bikrant Bikram Chand

Overview of Violence against Women in nepal

Like in many other developing countries, in Nepal violence against women is one of the key factors responsible for the poor health of women, livelihood insecurity, and inadequate social mobilization. The extent of gender-based violence in Nepal is extremely high.

Women and girls in Nepal are exposed to a many of forms of violence. Experimental studies in Nepal have documented the prevalence of sexual violence suffered by 12% to 50% of women (Deuba et al 2005, Puri et al, 2012). Violence against girls and adolescents is quite predominant in Nepal. A recent study, Sexual Violence Assessment in Seven Districts of Nepal, found almost one in ten girls (9.8%) reported experiencing sexual violence. Thus, gender-based violence is a serious issue that requires serious attention and a comprehensive solution.

PHYSICAL VIOLENCE

Physical violence is also predominant. About 22%, one in a five women ages between 15-49 years are found experiencing physical assault in Nepal (source: Nepal Demographic and Health Survey, 2011).

One of the study revealed that almost half of women (48%) had experienced violence at some time in their lives, and 28% had experienced violence in the past 12 months; where emotional violence (40.4%) was most commonly reported type of violence followed by physical violence (26.8%), sexual violence (15.3%) and economic abuse/violence (8%) (OPMCM, 2012).

IS THE PHYSICAL VIOLENCE PREVENTABLE?

The answer is Yes. It can be, if the potential threat is identifiable. If one is trained to identify potential threat or to recognize the threat, it’s possible to prevent from being attacked. But if one is equipped with certain techniques of self defense than chances are extremely favorable that one can defend attack and easily escape with no harm or damage been made.

In any country, the self-defense is permitted by law. Self-defense is defined as the right to prevent suffering force or violence through the use of a sufficient level of counteracting force or violence.

real self defense “academia of fight management”

Real Self Defense (RSD) Nepal is an organization dedicated to promote the art of self defense system with its motto of “Teaching Self Esteem Through Self Defense”. The Syllabus of Real Self Defense constitutes of techniques from wide range of modern combat arts. The threat management and fight management are embedded in the self defense & personal protection training organized at Real Self Defense training centers.

Apart from training to civilians, elite groups, professional securities and martial art students, training to Female groups on personal protection and self defense at RSD is highly regarded.

At RSD we design the trainings which constitutes simple, doable, effective techniques which are practiced in an environment which imitates the real scenarios of physical assaults and domestic violence.

personal protection and self defense training To Female ?

When you look like a victim, you tend to become one! In contrary when you walk with confidence and show no fear in your face, the assailant tends to think many folds before he/she attempts for ill intention.

It has become inevitable in today’s world to learn the art of self defense – both the threat and fight management skills. The cruel reality that someone with no known reason attacks, assaults, stabs, attempts to murder has no defined norms, guidelines, standards or laws that allows us to prepare for those circumstances. There remains no other way to protect oneself, protect one’s family, property and friends, than getting prepared to fight back with the given situation, which is unforeseen.

On the occasion of World Women Day, March 8, 2015, RSD Nepal organized a self defense training for 120 females. Training was participated by school & college girls, working women and housewives. The training was organized with the aim to disseminate knowledge on both the threat management and fight management. The real scenarios were discussed, visualized and rehearsed during the training.

The only way out to manage with the unpredicted situation in the street, homes, public places, dark areas, might be is to get through the training course on Personal Protection and Self Defense. And there is no other substitute for it, only Training might help prevent damage, and might even save the only life we have!

About the Author: Bikrant Bikram Chand, Founder and Chief Instructor of Real Self Defense.

Email: bikrant.chand@gmail.com Mobile: 00 977 9802027555