3 Perspectives on Self-Defense Training:

Why Are You Training and What Do You Need?

By Jeffrey Miller | Original Publish Date: December 02, 2009 (Updated June 24th, 2024)

Highlights Within This Article:

• Understanding the scope of Self-Defense from different needs
• 3 Different perspectives on Self-Defense, based on position and/or preferred outcomes - Which do YOU need?
• Each perspective/approach requires different skill and technique sets

Are you interested in learning effective self defense? Well, you're certainly not alone.

But, let me ask you a question: "What will these skills be used for?"

Do you understand what I mean?

One would think the answer would be pretty obvious, right?  But...

What I'm asking you is this: "Why do you need your self defense skills?

You see, one of the problems, like many things in life, is that we can think too vaguely about something and end up not knowing that what we were doing until it was too late.  But self-defense isn't like a car or a piece of furniture you realize is flawed after you try to use it, where you can just take it back and get a new one.

If your training or the way you were taught to use it doesn't match the situations you actually need it for, you could find yourself in a moment where you are in no better position than the person who has no training whatsoever.  And, that would not only be a major problem, but also a major waste of the time, effort, and money spent getting to this place.

Here's what I'm asking with the questions I posed earlier:

As I teach it, self defense can be seen from generally three different aspects or perspectives. Each of these requires not only a different perspective, or way of viewing self-defense, itself; but also a different way and reason for applying your skills and techniques on someone in a dangerous situation.

Self-Defense Action from 3 Different Viewpoints

The 3 aspects or situation types within the general scope of self defense, and the primary concern within each one, are:

In this realm, options which might be available and preferred by the everyday citizen - options like running, hiding, etc. as we normally think of them, aren't really options.  It's not that these protectors won't seek cover against gunfire, or use a riot shield or body armor as a means of temporary protection against the incoming fire or other aggression, but they HAVE to stay in the "fight" until the conflict is resolved one way or the other.

2) Passive security (body guard). From this perspective, the individual has a primary concern for staying with the "principle," or person to be protected. Even if they must take action, doing so leaves the principle unprotected.  Even if they're a part of a team, engaging with an assailant for too long, and literally "seconds" are too long, leaves a gap in the security 'envelope' around the person who writes their paycheck.

From this perspective, the bodyguard is rarely the target, so techniques must be quick and do the minimum necessary to dissuade, disengage, or deter a would-be attacker, or pass the aggressive individual off to secondary (often uniformed) security so as to minimize the time away from the person being protected.  It must also contain elements from #1 above, for those times when they and other security personnel ARE targeted by hostiles.

What This All Means for Your Self-Defense Training

What this means is that each of these aspects, or realms, requires more than just a different way to apply the skills being learned - it involves a different mindset, perspective, and attitude with regards to self protection, and WHY defensive action is being applied.  In addition to different tactics and desired outcomes, their may also be:

• different liability concerns
• different external "rules" (departmental polies, "Rules of Engagement," etc.)
• different preferred end results, like:
  • the soldier, while bound by the "rules of engagement," once things start  is most likely to be in a "kill-or-be-killed" situation
  • the police officer is bound by the "use-of-force" doctrine and may need the aggressor restrained for cuffing
  • the bodyguard needs to disengage quickly to get back to covering their charge, and...
  • the private citizen just needs to "get the Hell out of there," by whatever means necessary - before, during, or after things start - while legally staying within the laws governing self-defense where he or she lives.

But, in any case... the ultimate goal of all of these defenders, is to go home, safely... and with the least amount of wear-and-tear on themselves as possible in the process.