With this year’s opening of the world’s biggest annual athletic event comes a whole new discussion about security concerns.  These concerns always exist where there is a crowded venue with international attention.  In this particular case however the concerns are much more poignant given the location is South Africa which is known not only for its rugged beauty and wildlife, but also for its street crime and well organized ethnic violence.  Combined with the ever-present threat of terrorist action, this year’s World Cup has given many travelers a reason to examine their own personal security measures and emergency preparedness.

The most important advice that I can give anyone concerned about any security problem is to remember that security is not something that you buy; rather it is something that you live.  Or, as security expert Bruce Schneier puts it, “Security is a process, not a product.”

An approach to protection that I have found to be very effective and universally applicable is the protective model of Avoidance through Planning, Deterrence through Planning, Detection through Situational Awareness, Active Avoidance, Active Deterrence, Defense and Mitigation.  This process is the equivalent of what the military calls a “detect to engage sequence” for security.  In layman’s terms, it is an outline of an effective process to keep something safe.

The most important piece of any security, particularly when relating to protecting yourself and your family, is avoidance.  No matter how effective your kung-fu might be, I personally guarantee that it is much better for all concerned for you to never get attacked in the first place than it is to successfully fight off a criminal.  Avoiding attacks is usually as simple as paying attention to what is going on around you.  Learn to see and evaluate characteristics of people and situations so that you can make informed decisions and proactively keep yourself and your family away from danger.

The next phase of the protective model is deterrence.  It is unfortunate (but true) that some dangerous people actually go out and look for victims (you).  I call these people predators.  They make their living feeding off of others and therefore are always looking for their next target.  Because many of these people make their living this way, they are familiar with what to look for in a victim and therefore can sometimes be dissuaded from conducting an attack simply by displaying something different.  Predators look for the easy target.  They seek out the low hanging fruit of unaware, meek and timid people who show signs of possessing something worth taking.  If you show yourself to be aware of your environment and assertive in your demeanor, as well as avoid displaying items that would be extremely valuable for a criminal to take, then your chances of becoming a target go down significantly.

One of the products of the situational awareness necessary to deter the predators is the ability to detect them, particularly if you know what to look for.  In the event that avoidance and deterrence fail, early detection is one of the keys to survival because, as self-defense guru Jeff Cooper put it, “If you don’t know you’re in trouble, no amount of ability on your part will save you.”

In the event that avoiding and deterring a threat isn’t possible, even after seeing the threat coming and trying yet again to avoid and deter, then it is finally time to take action for self-defense.  This action can be as simple as putting a hand on your wallet to stop a pick pocket, or as drastic as fighting for your life in an armed confrontation.  Regardless, the key to success in any action is to actually take the action.  Too many people freeze in their moment of need, ultimately “choosing” to do nothing through a long and confused process of sputtering indecision.  I cannot stress it enough.  If you know that something is wrong; TAKE ACTION.  It may not prove to be the perfect action, but certainly any action is better than no action.  Do not hesitate out of denial while thinking “this can’t be happening to me.”  Instead, act, and act early.  The faster you make a decision and take action, the more likely that it will be successful.

Finally, in any security situation you should plan to fail.  I call this piece of the process mitigation and it is every bit as important as the others because, let’s face it, stuff happens.  If something can go wrong, don’t dwell on the possibility, but consider it and plan for it as a contingency.  If all else fails, then there is at least a pre-set series of measures in place to deal with the aftermath of everything from a lost passport to a kidnapping to a plane crash.  Nobody wants these things to happen, but sometimes they do; despite the best efforts to prevent them.  Plan ahead and set yourself and your family up for success in the unlikely event of the worst-case scenario.

For more information on how to plan to keep your family safe while traveling, contact the Sealed Mindset team: info@sealedmindset.com.

Watching the latest episode of the popular television show, Gray’s Anatomy, highlighted a very simple, basic fact: some people choose to become victims where they surrender and cower in the face of evil. If you don’t want to be a victim, then read on.

For anyone who identified with the actions of the characters in that show, or said, “Well, he has a gun, there’s not much you can do!” just stop reading now.  You are a victim in the making.  Someday, your number will be called and you will be helpless and completely at the mercy and whim of a sociopath.  Good luck.  Nobody can help you because you refuse to help yourself.

For those who watched and wondered, “Why doesn’t he/she DO something?”

Read on. You can learn to help yourself and refuse to ever lie down or surrender in the face of evil and become a victim.

To avoid any confusion, let us be clear: this is a blog written about actions taken in a make-believe scenario, scripted dramatic effect and portrayed by actors.  With that as a qualifier however, there are some instructive points and lessons to be learned from this show, which was sadly all too close to the headlines.

The first point is that the shooter was quite simply a predator. Regardless of his motivation, past life or mental status at the time of the attack, he was nothing more than a sociopathic predator who could only be stopped through one method: physical force.  Historically, this has been true for most real-world active shooters as well.  They can’t be reasoned with, bargained with or talked down. In every active shooter scenario, there has never been a two-way conversation with the shooter: the active shooter comes in and  shoots as many people as he or she can until the shooter is shot, stopped physically, runs of ammunition, or until the shooter shoots himself. There is NEVER a conversation. The only way to stop them is to neutralize them through physical confrontation.

From historical situations, the majority of active shooters crumble under the first physical confrontation because they enter the situation planning to die.

The second point is that the mental attitude and prior preparation for such an incident of each individual in the show played an enormous role in their reactions. Of all of the people who were shot throughout the course of the show, only one continued to function.  That was the shooter himself.  Why (television scripting aside)?

The answer is simple, because he prepared himself for the fight.  He knew that he was going to a fight.  He expected that he would be shot, and he was prepared to fight through it and complete his mission.

The others?  They were not prepared for a fight. Normal people can prepare for this scenario without being a warrior and without self-defense knowledge!

For all of the blood and guts that the medical personnel saw on a daily basis, nothing prepared them mentally to deal with violence on a first person basis; to stand and fight, knowing that they might get hurt, even killed, but fighting anyway and refusing to sit and idly become a timid, passive victim to a mentally deranged, physically limited sociopath.

There is a strong kernel of truth to be harvested from this show: the fact of the matter is that mental attitude and preparation plays a huge role in how people perform in the worst situations.

Statistically, 80% of people in the United States who are shot with handguns LIVE. Any one, or group of the victims in that show, just like in real life, could have made the choice to do something other than cower, beg and plead with a deranged killer who clearly was of an altered mental status…they could have chosen instead to attack; to refuse to lie down and become a victim and to end the situation once and for all by neutralizing the killer.

People can do amazing things when they have the mental discipline to do so.  They can fight through pain, shock, gunshot wounds, knife wounds, emotional trauma and just about anything else life can throw at them.

Any one of those victims had the capacity to stop the killer, IF they had cultivated the proper mental attitude by learning what they did not know and what they should do in that type of situation.

Any one of those victims had the capacity to stop the killer, if they had decided ahead of time that they would NOT become a victim.

Any one of those victims had the capacity to stop the killer, if they had made the decision to TAKE ACTION.

The world can be an ugly place sometimes.  When the ugliness rears its head, you have two choices. You can get down on your knees, cower and plead and hope for the best, or you can take charge of your own destiny, refuse to be a victim and refuse to give in and surrender to evil.

Alternatively, you can choose right now to NEVER become a victim.  You can choose to gain the knowledge, mindset and skills that will allow you to DO SOMETHING when that moment comes.  Here at Sealed Mindset, we can teach you the knowledge and the skills.

The choice however, is up to you.

In light of the Chelsea King and Amber Dubois tragedies, Sealed Mindset reached out into the community to form important relationships with two training companies who strive to bring the best knowledge to young men and women in San Diego.

Poway Samurai Martial Arts, owned by Tony Whetstine (“The Bushido Guy”), is one of the only self-defense studios we have worked with that provides realistic personal safety tools to empower a woman’s confidence in the field of self-defense.

When Tony Whetstine and his family met our team, it seemed a natural fit because we both spoke the same language: we both believe that there is a distinct difference between the self defense skill of learning a martial art and practicing it regularly and the integration of awareness tools into your life. The women’s self defense course that PSMA and Sealed Mindset championed focused on personal safety tools so that each woman could leave with a better understanding of the personal safety options that are available.

While some martial artists are quick to show you a trick to fight back, Tony’s background as a US Marine Corps veteran of the Persian Gulf War allows him to see martial arts in a more complete perspective and thus offer a more complete solution. It is this complete perspective that Sealed Mindset values because it allows him to make a true difference in the lives of young men and women every day in his Dojo.

Velocity Sports Performance, located in San Diego, is the ultimate training facility that offers each athlete a chance to be instructed by world-class performance coaches. While these coaches are elite and professional athletes, they are also caring parents, and as parents, they heard the call to provide personal safety training to the families who attend their classes.

Just like every parent, you want the best for your child and your family. Sealed Mindset’s team has formed these winning relationships with Velocity and Poway Samurai to give your family access to the best insurance available in the athletic, martial arts, and personal safety realms. Take advantage of all that these trusted programs offer by signing up for a free trial at Velocity, or by visiting Tony’s Dojo!

We are very proud to be working with both of you!

For more information on Velocity Sports:  http://www.velocitysp.com/free_trial or sandiego@velocitysp.com

For more information on Poway Samurai Martial Arts:

http://www.powaymartialartsschool.com

This blog is in response to the discussion that was started on Sign On San Diego after an article was published about the increase in numbers at self-defense classes in March 2010.

Due to statements of worry from women around the San Diego area who voiced to us that self-defense was not a complete solution for them due to their hectic lifestyles or their physical size, we wanted to reach out to address this concern.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/10/self-defense-class-enrollment-surges/

Many people believe that personal safety and defense information is available anywhere and that they can easily integrate it into their lives. These people are correct – you can go and purchase books on personal safety and defense and you can read those books.

The strength of the Sealed Mindset program is that we have done all of that work for you as well as integrate the knowledge together into a systematic approach to personal safety and awareness.

For example, take Gavin de Becker’s book, “The Gift of Fear.” He explains instinct and how to listen to your instinct better than anyone. Jeff Cooper, in his book, “The Principles of Personal Defense,” describes personal awareness levels through his color coded system better than anyone else. Col. Dave Grossman, in his books “On Killing” and “On Combat” explains the physiological effects of high stress situations better than anyone else. Within the book, “Secrets of Surveillance,” you are presented with a very thorough accounting of how to identify and assess a threat to your safety. Within the book, “Training at the Speed of Life,” you learn the psychological aspects of lethal force encounters. If you purchased all of these books, it would cost you more than the price of our program.

The biggest problem with purchasing and reading books is that you cannot learn how to integrate what you read about instinct with how you change your personal condition level, or how your ability to assess or interact with threats effects you physiologically or psychologically.

The other problem is that these books are typically written for professionals in language that is inaccessible to many normal individuals.

The strength of what we offer comes with the integration of all of this information into a system that was specifically designed with adult and youth education specialists to be accessible and easily retained.

What we’ve discussed is just a small portion of only the books that are necessary in someone’s search for personal safety and defense information. We have not even approached the lessons learned through 14 years of Special Operations training that civilians do not have access to.

If you still think that $249 is too much to pay for the knowledge represented by over 30 years of combined experience within antiterrorism, counterintelligence, and special operations fields, as well as the information contained in all the books below – all of which we present in an entertaining and easily accessible format online, then what we offer is not for you and that is okay.

Go to our site, check out our completely free five minute lesson and if the information you find in that lesson is something that you already know, then I believe you are well on your way to being safe.

Here are some books with prices and page numbers, all of which you would have to read to gain similar information to what you find in our course. The total number of pages you would have to read would be 3,002 pages. The total cost of just these few books is: $201.96
The cost of our course for 1 person? $97.00 for 10 hours of learning.

Gavin de Becker’s “The Gift of Fear” $11.95 (372 pages)

Jeff Cooper’s “The Principles of Personal Defense” $19.44 (250 pages)

Col. Dave Grossman’s “On Combat” $16.47 (391 pages)

Col. Dave Grossman’s “On Killing” $10.17 (366 pages)

Dick Couch’s “Down Range” $10.17 (242 pages)

“Psychology & Adult Learning” $44.80 (160 pages)

“Secrets of Surveillance” $14.85 (224 pages)

“Sharpening the Warriors Edge” $13.57 (141 pages)

“Protecting the Gift: Keeping Children & Teenagers Safe” $14.37 (325 pages)

Kenneth R. Murray’s “Training at the Speed of Life” $32.95 (337 pages)

“Beauty Bites Beast: Awakening the Warrior Within Women & Girls” $13.22 (194 pages)

The Sealed Mindset educational information covers the 99% scenario and is an integral part of any self-defense program. Combining this foundational knowledge with self-defense provides a complete solution for any individual who is willing to take a reasonable amount of time to learn.

Let’s all come together as a community to address the 99% scenarios so that a systematic approach to awareness and self-defense training can now be a complete solution for everyone.

If you are interested in learning more to keep yourself or your family safer each day, please look into “15 Seconds to Safety” for your friends and family. For more information: info@sealedmindset.com.

When I heard the news today about Chelsea King, my heart broke. I was in the middle of speaking to my mother about the fact that I had reached out to the King family on Facebook after being asked to do so by a classmate of Chelsea’s at Poway. This classmate was also a student of our Sealed Mindset “15 Seconds to Safety” awareness program, and she believed that our knowledge could make a difference to families and volunteers who were looking for Chelsea.

I reached out to Chelsea’s family to offer the only true value I have, which is the safety and awareness expertise compiled and developed by my husband and our team.  As I told my mother how much it meant to me that there were people in the world who recognized the value of the information to help keep our children safer, she mentioned that the police believed they had found Chelsea.

At many times in my life, and in all our lives, each one of us could have been Chelsea. I played an instrument, I jogged alone, and I excelled in school. I could have been Chelsea. For any student who did well in school and played an instrument or a sport, you could have been Chelsea. For any woman who goes jogging, you could have been Chelsea. All of us can identify with some aspect of her life because we have all been 17 with the world at our fingertips.

I am not preying on fears with this blog post. Nor am I writing these words to scare anyone. I am writing these words for two reasons: (1) to inspire action, (2) to tell you that there is a solution to our shared nagging safety fears that we haven’t been able to address yet. My husband and I have created an educational solution that is based on awareness, and we know this solution can make American families safer.

Awareness is the most important aspect of self-defense. It is the most talked about, but the least taught. We are working every day to change this: we are partnering with self-defense programs to make certain each woman who takes a self-defense workshop can receive a more complete safety solution. We are working with corporations who have proactively decided they want to offer the education to their employees. We are doing everything we can, but we need your help to spread the word and to let people know there is a knowledge-based solution out there, accessible to any family.

As Chelsea’s classmate at Poway states, “In light of what has recently happened to Chelsea, the efficacy and importance of my Sealed Mindset training has become especially obvious to me. Volunteering with the Chelsea King search efforts has reminded me of all the ways in which Sealed Mindset has changed my life and, more importantly, my behavior. Small habits, like checking around cars before I approach parking lots, have become routine. Furthermore, Sealed Mindset helped me to develop a sense of self-value: I am important. I deserve to protect myself. The wealth of practical knowledge that Sealed Mindset has provided me is invaluable, and something every parent and child should be made well aware of.”

Please reach out to us as we are here to help any community. For more information, please email anne@sealedmindset.com. To see how we teach, please take our free lesson: http://www.sealedmindset.com/

For the price of a pair of shoes, you can learn the knowledge you need to keep yourself safe. Fear is based on a lack of knowledge, and we are here to provide knowledge that your mind and heart know you seek. Please take advantage of our experiences and lessons from some of the world’s most difficult locations to bring this knowledge to your family.