TACTICAL SELF-DEFENSE Less Can Be More! Part 2 By Tom Patire In all fairness when fear factors and adrenaline kick in it changes the rationale of a clear decision process. That is where scenario-based training comes in within your academy. Creating certain hostile atmospheres and aggressive situations help the brain to see, understand and decide. When I teach my seminars, I like to always stress the aspect that you must be the calm as well as the storm and know when to apply each. Each defense situation dictates a different response and most of the time, I say most, that response has a decision process. That process allows for choice and that choice is all up to you. With martial arts, self-defense and personal protection academies starting to reopen all over and the country being in turbulent and unpredictable waters, we as instructors need to become the beacon of awareness for our trainees. Documented attacks show that the majority of attacks are low level, what I trademarked as a ‘Bad Guest®’ not a Bad Guy! This is someone that gets aggressive, verbally demeaning, a bit handsy, grabbing, poking, pushing, etc. This is where we as instructors must realize what our main responsibility to our students is. And that is to teach the entire spectrum of defense – proactive and reactive! This gives our students options while protecting our liability as business owners. Law Enforcement has a use of force continuum, we as martial artist instructors should include in our curriculum ‘Personal Defense Initiatives’. Training that encompasses everything from confrontational avoidance, situational awareness, verbal de-escalation, self-escape, control tactics, personal protection, and third-party defense. Life is and has always been about choices. Choices come from options and options are what we as true experts in total defense give to our students. After that it is on them on how and what they choose to do in that type of situation. I say this to all my brothers and sisters in the arts: ‘Less Can Be More!’ If you can avoid, then do not confront! If you can escape, then do not engage! If you must defend, then understand your capabilities and engage them accordingly! I have seen too many ‘good’ people including some of my friends get arrested and /or sued for taking their defense to unnecessary levels. Remember what you do today will affect you as well as your loved ones tomorrow. Be Safe Always! GRANDMASTER TOM PATIRE, is known as “America’s Leading Personal Safety Expert” and has appeared on Good Morning America, The CBS Morning Show, The Colbert Report, Montel, plus in mainstream publications such as Family Circle, Redbook, Fortune <strong>Magazine</strong>, and The Wall Street Journal. He has written several books and has personal safety programs that can be incorporated into your martial arts school, available at TomPatire.com. 76 MARTIAL ARTS WORLD NEWS VOLUME <strong>22</strong> | SPECIAL EDITION Photograph by g-stockstudio (top right)
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