Welcome to a mid-week Bonus SurviveInPlace™ lesson!

How To Increase Your Awareness By Becoming The Hunter!

I believe it’s important to develop your armed and unarmed skills, but when it comes to violence, luck can play a significant role. As a former no-holds-barred fighter (before MMA was regulated,) I saw and experienced how quickly a fighter with superior skills could be defeated by a newbie who got lucky.

If they’d fight 100 times, the superior fighter would probably win 90 times or more, but the newbie still has a chance.

With violent encounters, there is no referee or rules and a lucky cut, stab, or shot can kill you, even if you eventually stop the threat.

Although it sounds overly simplistic, one of the best ways to survive a violent encounter is to avoid violent encounters all-together.

One of the best ways to avoid violent encounters is to train your mind to recognize criminals, and the quickest way to do this is to start thinking like one.

For the next several days pretend that you are a mugger. As you go about your daily business, picture how you would bushwhack someone in the various places in which you find yourself.

If you live in an apartment, where in the building or parking facilities would you hide if you were going to attack someone? With a little practice, you’ll be amazed at how many spots in which you might be able to hide.

Start at home and then move your at­tention to your place of employment. Pay attention to those areas where you would normally be by yourself. The parking lot. Even the restroom. Pay attention to which stalls are the most vulnerable.

Start watching how you open doors. In particular, note where you’re looking, which arm you use, and how that helps/hinders your ability to react to someone on the other side.

Most crimes occur outside of your dwell­ing or place of business. Elevators, garages, building entrances and exits offer criminals opportunities to take you by surprise.

After you’ve learned to spot the ideal physical settings for a crime, you need to spot potential criminals.

You need to pay attention to the physical mannerism of potential bad guys.

When you see a person approaching you, ask yourself “is he dressed ap­propriately for the circumstances?” Is he wearing baggy clothing to hide a weapon? Do his shoes match his cloth­ing? If he’s wearing running shoes with nice slacks and shirt, be careful. Is he wearing a hat and sunglasses that go out of their way to hide his face?

Don’t be afraid to look people straight in the eye. You want to know if they’re checking you out as a possible victim. Does the potential bad guy have his hands in his pockets, perhaps holding a weapon? Does he appear nervous, sweating or breathing heavily?

Most attacks come from behind, so learn to expand your field of vision.

Most of us tend to stare when we look at something. Here’s a simple exercise you can use to break this habit and expand your field a vision.

Look at an object in the room you’re in. Now, without moving your eyes or head, what do you see out of the sides of your eyes? How about top and bottom?

It’s amazing how much more you see when you pay attention to your periph­eral vision. Imagine a hose nozzle that can be adjusted back and forth from a wide spray to a concentrated stream. When you need to focus on something, tighten the nozzle and then quickly ad­just your vision back to a wide spray.

As you develop your vision, with a little twist of your head you will be able to scan almost 360 degrees around you.

No one will ever be able to sneak up on you again. Try it and see for yourself.

Most people have never seen a real criminal in person. So as part of your training you’ve got to get out and see the bad guys, learn how they think and act.

When Rick Jones joined the L.A. County Sheriffs Department he was being groomed for undercover work with L.A.’s most notorious gangs. To prepare him for that assignment, he was assigned to work in one of California’s toughest prisons. Why?

Because you get to see the worst that society has to offer in terms of vicious criminals — and they’re all in one place.

Dep. Jones was able to observe and study the behavior of killers, rapists, muggers, robbers, and a special group of violence prone people referred to as EDP’s (emotionally disturbed people).

In time Jones became an expert in spotting criminals and categorizing them according to their specialty and propensity for violence.

Today, whether Rick Jones walks into a restaurant, bar or other place of busi­ness or simply walks down the street, he quickly sizes up people he meets. If he senses trouble he knows what to expect and he’s ready for it.

Here’s the next best thing you can do to learn the same kind of lessons Rick Jones did.

Call your local police office (or a friend who’s in law enforcement) and ask if you can do a “ride-along” with them. Try to find someone who is a “beat cop” and who regularly runs into bad situations. It won’t do much good to ride with a detective or an officer doing traffic stops.

You can also spend some time in the local criminal court. Spending a few hours a day, or night, over several days will give you a great education when it comes to knowing who the bad guys are and understanding their behavior.

By watching these people you get a feel for what they’re like, the way they move, act and THE WAY THEY WATCH OTHER PEOPLE.

Most criminals are petty thieves and not very dangerous. What you’re looking for is a way of spotting those who are mean, sadistic or emotionally disturbed. They are the violent offenders who will rob you first and then shoot you just for the fun of it. They are the ones you want to spot early on. You want plenty of time to either avoid, evade or otherwise deal with these people.

God Bless,

David Morris

P.S. Please comment on this and the course in general…ANYTHING to let me know that you’re alive and that I should keep sending you Urban Survival Information. Love it? Hate it? Let me know!

Download article as PDF

63 Responses to “Survive In Place Bonus Lesson”