Bristol School of Self Defence - Top Ten Self Protection Tips

Do’s and Don’ts

1) Don’t get too drunk

Alcohol in moderation is fine. If you drink too much, however, you are an easy target for attackers. Alcohol temporarily erodes perceptiveness, balance, distancing, sight, sound – in fact nearly every sense is impaired. You also fail to see danger when drunk and cannot, even if very proficient, expect realistically to see a situation arise or defend yourself whilst under the influence.

2) Don’t underestimate or trust an adversary

Confidence is a great attribute, over-confidence is a very weak link. Never allow yourself to underestimate anyone: it is a sure sign, on your part, of over-confidence, and over-confidence begets defeat. If you start feeling too confident about a situation, remind yourself of the possible dangers you are facing. Better to be a little under-confident than over-confident. If faced by a potential attacker, never trust him. The false promise is one of the most common techniques used by the attacker.

3) Be basic

If it comes to a physical response, never employ a technique for the sake of dramatic effect. Looking good counts for nothing; many people have lost trying to do so. Use the quickest, most basic and economical technique available to you.

4) Don’t delay

Don’t hang around. If you can escape do so at the earliest opportunity. The longer you leave it the harder it will become. If you’re going to attack a potential attacker, also do so as soon as possible. Any time delay in pre-emptive attack will lessen your chances of success.

5) Be hard

Do not allow sentiment to enter into your mind when dealing with a potential attacker, as he will manipulate and engineer any chink in your mental armour until it is a cavernous opening that he can walk right through. When dealing with bad people you have to be as bad as them if you want to survive, at least for the duration of the attack. Most victims do not even try to defend themselves, believing that any fight-back on their part will only antagonise and thus add to the ferociousness of the attack. Surveys show that a victim who fights back with vigour usually forces the attacker to abort.

6) Don’t be suckered

Deception is the predator’s greatest ally. Understand the attack rituals and look out for deception. The modern attacker is unlikely to look menacing; rather he may be polite until the moment of his attack.

7) Kill your pride

Pride has no place in good self-protection. If you can run away from a situation or talk your way out of a fight, do it. Survival is all that matters.

8) Don’t be squeamish

If sticking your fingers in an adversary’s eyes is what you have to do to survive an attack, do it, don’t be squeamish or you’ll lose.

9) Kill fair play

When an attack on your person is in progress or imminent, there is no such thing as fair play. Do anything and use anything to defend yourself. There is only one rule: there are none.

10) Never do more than is necessary

In defending yourself, it is imperative that you hit and run. Don’t hang around trying to finish the job. As soon as you can, run. It is not unheard of for a stunned adversary, even a felled one, to recover and still beat the victim who is close enough to grab.

Taken from the book ‘Dead or Alive’ by Geoff Thompson.

Geoff is a leading expert on the subject of self protection, as well as being
an accomplished writer, film maker, and one of the UK’s most respected
martial artists.

‘Dead or Alive’ is without doubt one of the most thorough guides to self
protection that you can buy. As the back of the book describes: “This is
not simply a step-by-step guide to winning fights. It is also an in-depth
study of the criminal mind at work. Interviews with murderers, rapists and
muggers reveal why they target certain people for attack, which crimes are
opportunist and which are premeditated. Geoff Thompson uses these
interviews and his own unparalleled knowledge of violent encounters to teach
simple precautionary measures and to explain what to do when confronted
by an attacker.”

To purchase a copy of the book, please visit:

www.geoffthompson.com