How Driving Can Improve Self-Defense
Improve your self-defense IQ using these ideas
When you drive, you are using the same situational awareness tools you need to navigate dangers in the street.
We calculate speed, distance, and timing and manipulate the vehicle with acceleration, braking, turning, and more.
We take in vital info and make efficient decisions about potential threats, escape routes, and Plan B’s.
We aren’t thinking “danger close” when we merge or observe, but we are still driving in the spirit of “self-defense.”
Our thought process is mostly governed by situational awareness and the decision to avoid a confrontation (accident/ticket, etc.).
[Good] drivers drive protectively, they drive with their "eyes wide open.”
It’s all pretty amazing what the brain can compute.
Now apply those same skills in daily life while you're on foot in a public location as most of it is the same formula with some additional pieces of info to fill in the blanks. (Make sure you fill in the blanks!)
Trust your gut
Diffuse your vision
Avoid shitty areas
Don't speed, don't move too slow
Get off your smartphone dummy
Choose safety
One of the areas most neglected in martial art and self-defense training is in fact, situational awareness (SA).
[Working 99% of the time within arm's length, striking, and countering cannot help you develop SA or de-escalation skills.]
So what's cool, if you drive, is that you now realize that you have decent SA skills and you can transfer them to the street. If you don't drive, you can still practice as a passenger and then integrate into your personal SA skills.
The goal for situational awareness as a driver or as a citizen walking the world is to avoid the accident!
But remember:
“Awareness" without skill still means you’ve got a problem.
You need to know what you're going to do with the pre-contact cue.
When you improve your perception speed, you improve your reaction time.
But what are you reacting with? You need a skill set.
I like to teach people simple and natural ways to protect themselves and how to use skills they're already adept at to enhance safety in other arenas. 👊
Here are three great options to learn more about my system for every budget:
Human Weapon System Course (self-directed learning with a ton of bonuses) Click Here
Be Your Own Bodyguard® (Live in-person training) Click Here
Self-Defense Weekend: The Annual SPEAR System® Training Camp. Oct 21-22 (Click Here)
Coach B
Are you a self-defense trainer, martial arts instructor, or defensive tactics specialist?
We pioneered research on scenario design and we have a program open to all that will teach you our system.
This is decades of research packed into a dynamic hands-on course that will take your scenario-training skillset to world-class levels.
This trainer course is open to all, you do not need to have attended a SPEAR course or even be affiliated with us. To learn more about this program and opportunity, click here.
This newsletter is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, and my team please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Thank you for reading our newsletter. This post is public - feel free to share it.