December 23, 2010 by Ralph Charlton
We’ve just released the 2011 live training schedule.
Since my email on this is fairly long, we’ve gone ahead
and loaded it to it’s own webpage on this site.
Please use the link below to go there now
and read through the entire email as it
contains time-sensitive information.
http://targetfocustraining.com/emails/2011-schedule
November 15, 2010 by Tim Larkin
The other day I posted this video on my Facebook page and got some interesting responses to it. First off, watch the video for yourself:
I posted this video because it showed excellent examples of strikes that cause injury… as well as punches and kicks that are ineffective. That alone was all I wanted people to comment on and learn from this video.
Most, however, focused on the fact the video showed security guards using excessive force against drunken thugs.
I got loads of private messages as well as comments to this effect. In fact, others reposted the video on their FB pages, decrying the fact this was outrageous behavior on the part of security and explaining how it would never fly in their country.
The general point they drove home was this type of response would land security personnel in their country in jail for excessive force. There were calls for better training for supermarket security personnel (really?).
I found this outcry humorous due to the fact that this was CCTV footage from Siberia… yes, Siberia. That part of the world has quite a “different” view on “excessive force”. As one of my Russian friends noted, he thought the security personnel were rather “restrained” in their response. Gee, maybe the world isn’t so black-and-white when it comes to violence like so many well meaning North American’s wish it were.
read this entry »
September 28, 2009 by Tim Larkin
A fabulous 2 days of classes here in the UK!
There’ll be many reports from those covering the training but Forbes Magazine has theirs out first.
Here’s the Forbes’ online version.
Look for the full version to be published in their newsstand magazine as well.
The final US 2-day class for 2009
Since we’ve already had questions about the next US class, I know at least some missed the note in the PS of my last email.
The next full, 2-day live training in the US this year is also the LAST for the year in the states. It’s in Dallas, October 17-18, so just around the corner.
Registrations have increased dramatically with everything happening over here (and wait until coverage hits from The Sunday Times and its worldwide circulation).
So if you’re looking to get into a session in the states, Dallas is your last chance.
Looking forward to seeing you there personally,
Tim
(wrapping things here in London before heading home).
September 24, 2009 by Tim Larkin
Just off a live interview on the Jeremy Vines show over here in the UK, and thought you might like to hear it.
There’s about a minute of show introductions, then a solid 7 minutes of discussion… with a Rabbi, no less!
Adding to the list of those seeking to cover this event are the Financial Times, Independant Sunday, Forbes, and BBC Radio 5.
What about you? We’ve added more training space but it’s nearly gone.
(And I’m assuming the Rabbi now joins the mayor of Slough and the chief of police in not attending.)
-Tim (checking in from London)
September 5, 2009 by Tim Larkin
Well the debate in the UK about whether or not citizens of Great Britain should be able to protect themselves with effective self defense training rages on.
Here’s the latest installment.
It’s an interview I did with BBC One about my upcoming seminar in Slough.
The Slough councilman in the piece does his best to label me as an extreme response to what he considers acceptable self defense training (read: ineffective, feel good techniques).
He also makes my point for me that traditional martial arts and self defence training take far too long to become even marginally effective in a kill-or-be-killed criminal assault.
I am never surprised when well meaning people miss the boat when it comes to dealing with asocial predators but this councilman even caused me to pause with his position.
After you watch this please share your thoughts.
And remember: as you go through a live training experience with me I assure you there is nothing gratuitous or extreme about TFT when you consider the threat you are preparing for via the training.
Bye for now,
Tim Larkin
Founder
Target Focus Training
August 18, 2009 by Tim Larkin
“The Pen Is Mightier Than the Sword”The above quote is often used by men of ideas and throughout history many ideas drafted by the pen have, eventually, triumphed. But many of the original drafters of those ideas paid for their writings with their lives. That is a fact often left out by many who use the above quote.
In the past 20 or so years that I’ve been training men and women of ideas I see it as my job to remind them that we, in fact, live in a physical world. Many of my clients are extremely successful industry leaders whose sharp minds have helped them to achieve great things in their lives.
The human mind is capable of bringing out the best in society but it is equally capable of destroying lives using the crude fact that we live in a physical world. Military and Law Enforcement operators that I train are well versed in this very real fact and need little reminding of its existence.
But my civilian clients often need to be shocked into this reality. I usually do this via a short multimedia presentation that shows video of random acts of violence. Quickly it sinks in that violence cuts across all socioeconomic lines and should you find yourself faced with such a threat it requires a response that is in the realm of our physical world.
As I write this newsletter I know that should someone crash through the door and attack I will not rely on all of the ideas about self defense that I’ve learned and written about over the years. No, rather it will be the thousands of hours of physical training I’ve put in that I’ll draw from to take the other guy out.
It is my actual time of physically being out on the mat (or other training environments) working against other human bodies that allows me to respond with principles and methods that will best serve me in such an instance.
I’ve found that many of my clients enjoy reading about the self defense principles and methods I write about but are slow to actually get out on the mat and do it. The excuses I hear are numerous and clever but ultimately it will be a miserable failure for them if they haven’t got out on the mat and moved their bodies against another human.
Intellectually learning how to swim via books and videos without you actually jumping in the water and physically learning how to swim is a dangerous gamble against drowning. Even more true when it comes to self defense training; you need to actually get out there and do it.
Fortunately for my clients I’ve gone out of my way to make it easy to get moving. Whether you attend a live training or opt for home study I’ve got you covered so you see step by step how to get out with another human and physically learn this vitally important information.
Because the sad fact is that living a great life and pursuing your dreams can be suddenly interrupted by a random act of violence. If you merely stay a man or woman of ideas and demand the world should be a certain way then you are a perfect target for the physical thugs of this world.
Whereas if you stolidly ground yourself in the physical realities of asocial criminal violence and put the time in to physically train your body to deal with it you then can pursue your goals in your world of ideas. If violence should enter your life you are not shocked by it and in fact have planned and trained for just such an event.
All the best,
Tim Larkin
Founder, Master Instructor
Target Focus Training
July 9, 2009 by Tim Larkin
Here is surveillance camera video of a fatal stabbing at a UK university from the recent past.
There is no audio with this video. I’ll reserve my comments on this clip until you’ve had a chance to post yours. (Hint: Be careful from which perspective you make your comments on this act of violence. I’ve covered my thoughts on how to view these items in my book and other past posts.)
Also, if you see what appear to be 2 videos below, just click and watch the first one. The second is just a picture and is occasionally popping up in some browsers.
July 7, 2009 by Tim Larkin
The UK is dealing with the grim fact that no matter how strict you make your laws concerning guns, knives, and bats there’s one self defense weapon that can never be outlawed… and it has proven throughout history to be the most dangerous weapon any human canpossess.
Take a moment now to read this article published in London’s Daily Mail:
Britain Tops List As Most Violent Country
I’ve been training self defense seminars in the UK for the last 10 years and before that I trained UK/NATO Military Units and Special Law Enforcement Teams. I’ve had access to UK data on violent crimes that isn’t general knowledge.
It’s interesting that the pot has boiled over to the point where this is now a topic openly discussed in the media. Of course you can skew data and I’m sure there are political and media oxes to gore in these reports. But the fact remains the UK is a very different place than when I attended University as an exchange student there in the ’80s.
Same is true in Australia.
Last time I was in Sydney there was a law enforcement report circulating that combined the criminal violence statistics of the 5 most populated cities in Australia. Those populations combined added up to a major US city population (New York, LA, etc…) and it was shown that if those Australian cities created one US city, it would, by far, be the most violent city in the US.
Now I bring this to everyone’s attention NOT to point fingers at the UK and Australia but to show that this is the case in two 1st-world countries that have some of the most restrictive weapons laws in the world. But…
“Laws can’t protect you from the most dangerous weapon… the human mind.”
Using the law as your self defense option is a risky proposition.
This media attention should make my upcoming seminars in the UK and Australia very interesting!
As always, let me know your comments and thoughts on this post.
Regards,
Tim Larkin
March 29, 2008 by Tim Larkin
3 new Target Focus Training live classes are confirmed!
San Diego, April 26: A short-notice 1-day session at our headquarters training site. People are always amazed at the skill level they walk away with after only a single day. Read about it here.
New Jersey, June 20-22, full 3-day training: First New York area training outside Manhattan. At a hot new facility.
After this class you’ll have more useable knowledge that can save you life in a violent street encounter than someone who’s spent 20 years in the martial arts. And your training will leave you more competent than 99.5% of law enforcement or military personnel.
Remember, we were teaching these courses at US Naval Warfare Command back in the late ’80′s before anyone else even knew what ‘reality’ fighting was about. And it’s not about learning a few simple moves that look cool and MAY work “sometimes.” It’s about quickly learning a complete system… in just hours… one that guarantees your subconscious can call up instantly, without conscious thought, to destroy an attacker REGARDLESS of the situation, whether he’s got a weapon, or he’s bigger and badder than you.
You learn how to not just claw someone’s eyes… but easily blind them if that’s your only available alternative. You learn to not just kick him in the shins… but rather to effortlessly break his knee joint if it’s your only means of escape. And you learn to take his life with your bare hands… if it means saving your own.
There’s nothing else that remotely compares… anywhere.
Dallas, July 18-20, another full 3-day training: Possibly the last 3-day session in the US for 2008. Don’t miss it if you’re looking to get these skills live this year.
Other classes:
If you missed the Google video that demonstrates what a real self defense class looks like, check it out here.
-Tim Larkin
