This is a guest post by Scott Sylvester
We set standards so we have a benchmark of what we would like to achieve in life. Whether you are aware of it or not, you are constantly evaluating things in your life based upon standards you set and measure yourself against to determine success. You set a standard of living that you are comfortable with and when you work hard for your bi-weekly paycheck, you are satisfied with meeting your life standard. When you are working, your boss has a set of standards and expectations you must meet if you want to stay employed. As a good employee, you are constantly trying to exceed those standard so you can each your objective of being the boss someday.
When it comes to our personal protection we also have goals, and depending on the standards you set for yourself will depend on how you come out of the encounter. Simply hoping to survive the encounter is the minimum and lowest standard and if merely surviving is good enough for you… then you need to re analyze your priorities!
Survival means barely making it through a hardship and coming out alive after an intense struggle. Survival could mean you suffered severe injury, lost someone you loved or worse…but you are still alive. Survival in a personal protection scenario is the last option.The standard you set for yourself when preparing for and fighting through an encounter is unequivocal victory for you and the absolute safety of your loved ones. When it comes to being attacked, especially when death or great bodily injury are imminent, you have to win. Before you can be the victor, you have to set standards in your training regimen that will prepare you for encountering violence and doing violence to another.
Talking about violence is uncomfortable for most people, but it is an everyday reality and as I write this article we just saw a depraved, misogynistic young man in Santa Barbara unleash violence on the public. While I refuse to type his name and glorify his pathetic acts, he prepared, planned and executed his plan to lash out and hurt as many people as possible. It is a shame he didn’t run into me during that rampage, because I have a plan and have trained to deal with a low life like this. I don’t relish the thought of hurting someone and I certainly hope to die peacefully without ever having to drop the hammer… but I have prepared mentally that circumstances may someday dictate the employment of the lethal tools I carry.
I might have to go to the darkest corner of my mind and use violence to make sure I go home, and my family is safe! Do you have a plan? Have you trained for this type of encounter? Have you decided what is worth killing for?
If you haven’t thought about it, start now. If you haven’t trained for it… find a training course near you and go get the training you need to exceed standards when your life is on the line.
When you do have time to go to the range and train, make it count. Hanging a target at 10 meters and congratulating yourself for hitting inside the center ring when you are not under any type of stress is not going to serve you when a psycho is accelerating towards you in his car after stabbing three people. Find a friend with some property or a range area where you can hang several targets, run and get your heart rate up, and shoot from different positions. Wear the clothes you normally wear every day and actually practice with the holster and equipment you carry. Instead of dots, and colored silhouette targets, get some that have pictures of people on them and condition yourself to shoot at another human.When you think you are getting good, find a force on force course that uses Airsoft or Simunitions and watch your skills deteriorate under simulated stress. I’ve said it a hundred times and will do so a few thousand more, you have to seek training, practice what you learn and raise the standards you set for yourself until victory is the only acceptable outcome!
Until next time, stay safe, train hard and play hard! Godspeed.
Scott S
One Weapon, Any Tool
www.oneweaponanytool.com
Also on Facebook and Twitter: @1weaponanytool
For my followers on Home Defense Gun: Mention that you read this article and get $25 off one of our training courses!
Speak Your Mind