Is it possible to learn how to swim by watching a video?  Maybe, but I think we’d all feel a lot better if you actually got in the pool…

Life-or-death self-defense is admittedly unpleasant business.  It’s all the stuff you’d really rather not think about, and so most of us don’t, hoping instead that it simply never becomes an issue for us.

Statistics favor this approach much in the same way that the vast majority of people will never need to swim to keep from drowning…

…Until they get dumped in the water.

That single freak occurrence could end their life.

If they haven’t prepared for that moment there’s not much they can do for themselves — they’re going to have to rely on the expertise of those around them to save their life.  And if they’re caught out alone…

Like swimming to not drown, life-or-death self-defense is something that yields to preparation.

Having a plan, and then going through the motions of that plan not only grant you peace of mind, but also greatly improve your chances for survival.

The Plan

When faced with a life-or-death self-defense situation, most people draw a blank on what to do next.

Which means they’re going to be stuck with whatever raw instinct tells them to do.

But chances are good that the other guy does have a plan, and has walked through it, at least mentally, before initiating his attack.

Instinct vs. plan is not the way you want to go.  My bet is on the plan being executed — and that he’s already considered people’s instinctual behavior and is even counting on it for his plan to work.

A shooter wants people to clump up and try to get away, giving him a target-rich environment and room to work, for example.

Which is why if you’re going to have any chance, you need a plan yourself — a list of things to do once your realize it’s on. Something other than react like an animal and hope for the best.

The Action

Once you have that plan, you want to walk through it until it’s second nature, easy, and you have the confidence to execute it.

For people who know how to swim, swimming is a fun leisure activity — we forget that people drown every day and this form of recreational play or exercise is really an essential lifeskill.

It is possible to get to the same place with hand-to-hand self-defense skills, where hurting someone who wants to kill you is as obvious and straightforward as the doggie paddle. All it takes is going through the motions.

This is why our self-defense seminars are so focused on physical application — the less we talk and the more you do the better prepared you are.

Like a fire drill or getting in the pool, going through the motions means you’re ready for the real thing.

And that can be the difference between life and death.

Chris Ranck-Buhr
TFT Master Instructor

PS. Unfortunately limited opportunities remain in 2010 for you to join a TFT live training class where you can “go through the motions” that give you the ‘life-skill’ of self defense against an unexpected attack. And that’s why now is your best time to register for one of the available spots.

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