We all have seen these one-man-army movies where a single man takes down a dozen men in one fatal swoop, and many times without even breaking a sweat. Deep down inside, there is a part of us that wishes that we could do that. That we, could be that one man army. Wouldnt that be grand?



Yet, in the real world, we know that it cannot always be that way. The truth is there are a lot of opinions and no one real solution when it comes to the issue of self defense, and for a concerned individual who may want to protect themselves, it can be very easy to be misdirected or led astray.

By having a better understanding about the realities of a violent situation, we may begin to put together a realistic and effective plan for self defense starting today. So here are a few steps you should take in order to develop an effective way to protect yourself starting today. I call these my 3 steps in common-sense self defense.

Prevention is my first step in common-sense in self defense. So, why is prevention important, and why is it a key step in common sense self defense? To answer this question, I want you to think back on a time where you may have gotten into a confrontation. Maybe the confrontation was a fight, or a robbery, or maybe it was worse. Now, think back to what happened before that confrontation. Was the something that could have been done to prevent the confrontation from happening?

If you are truly honest with yourself, and you think hard enough there is a good chance that you can at least come up with one thing you could have done differently that could have prevented the confrontation from occurring. It could be as simple as walking away from the fight, or taking a different path home, or hanging out with a better group of friends. By taking preventive measures, a person can reduce the chances of a violent situation form happening exponentially.

Unfortunately, we can not always prevent a violent situation from occurring. A man may get attacked by a stray dog who has gotten loose on its leash. A woman can be attacked on the way to her car from work. An abusive husband may discover his wife who has left him. A crazy ex-girlfriend may be waiting in the shadows after a bad breakup. While these things dont happen very often, they do happen. When and if this occurs, you need to be prepared. That is why preparedness is the second step in common-sense self defense.

So what should a person do to prepare themselves for a violent situation? Well, while martial arts classes and self defense courses are great ways to learn and practice self defense, there are more immediate ways a person can prepare for a violent situation. Self defense products such as stun guns, taser guns, and pepper spray have the ability to quickly neutralize an attacker and take only a few minutes to learn how to operate. Remember, the more prepared you are, the more likely you are to survive a violent situation.

The third step in common sense self defense is planning for escape. If you are ever attacked, the last thing that you want to do is stick around and give an attacker another shot at hurting you. Instead, you want to be able to escape to a safe place as soon as possible so that you can call the police. Learn to condition yourself to look for points of exit everywhere that you go.

These three steps can save your life. So remember, by using prevention, preparedness and planning for escape, you are sure to be far ahead of the game, and more likely to survive.