By Michael D.
Former Clandestine Officer, CIA, DIA, NSA
I was training a professional on anticipatory (or predictive) self-defense, because he was changing employers and wanted to update his skills.
He was a POST (Peace Officer Standards and Training) grad with several years of job experience.
Anticipatory self-defense is discerning threats in advance and prepositioning (including body stance, weapons, escape route identification, predetermined immediate tactics, and overall fight and flight strategy).
It sounds fancy, but it is (or should be) instinctual.
Men constantly assess and prepare to compete with every other man (and sometimes women) they encounter.
We may appear polite and friendly, but in the deepest parts of our medulla oblongata, we are preparing for mortal combat should that be necessary.
Our instincts help us detect and process threats, and our social engineering helps keep us from prematurely striking or overreacting – usually.
But that does not mean we are not on the cusp of puffing up our chests and tackling perceived threats.
That is why, while I was training this man, I was surprised that he had not been trained on some fundamental pre-engagement threat assessment skills, such as:
The Interview Stance: which is done by turning your body so that your strong side/primary weapon side is farthest from the threat.
You also keep your hands at waist level, and your feet shoulder’s width apart with your non-dominate foot closest to the danger.
Assessing what you see… Knowing what to look for… and having a plan for initial contact and self-defense maneuvers, should they become necessary.
My eyes first go to their hands, then their pockets, waistbands, and ankles.
I barely listen to them because I focus on what’s important to me, what I need to know – not what’s important to them or what they want me to hear.
I am taking control of the encounter before distance closes.
Those initial threat assessment areas are the critical threat zones; the places that can produce immediate threats to me.
As I do that, I notice their posture, fitness, height, and weight.
That provides me a composite assessment of my odds of prevailing should this go hand-to-hand.
Next, I start at the bottom and look at their shoes. I do this even if I am talking with them.
If I do not know them, I am assessing their level of threat to me and my wife or companions.
And I am on guard and prepared until I have dismissed them as a viable threat.
Shoes will tell you a lot.
There are three kinds of footwear in my mind: Laced, slip-ons, and boots.
If they are laced, I want to know if they are athletic shoes or dress leather shoes.
Next, I want to see if the laces are in the middle of both shoes or if either or both shoes have the laces slanted to one side (usually to the inside) or the other.
People with injuries or weaknesses in their hip, knee, or ankle (and sometimes back issues) will usually lace their shoes to the inside.
This is so they don’t have to bend straight over and tie their shoelaces squarely in the middle of the shoe’s tongue.
If you see that one or both shoes have laces tied towards the inside, that can indicate a weakness or injury and a potential target for a leg strike if you have to go physical.
Knowing if they are wearing athletic shoes, dress shoes, sandals, or boots will help you assess the risks you face in a fight and your potential to outrun them if you need to.
It will also let you know what type of terrain would challenge their footwear the most, giving you another advantage to escape if necessary.
Once you understand this concept, you can develop it to its full extent as you consider their clothing, body piercings, belt, watch, haircut, or even vehicle.
Information gathering about your potential enemy needs to start right away and continue through the interaction until he/she/they are gone.
If you begin to develop these observational and analysis skills, you will be prepared to use them if you’re ever toe-to-toe with some shoe-wearing threat.
Knowing this will help you think through the shoes you wear every day, and what they may be telling a keen observer about you.
But it’s not just clothing, shoes, and body posture you should learn to discern.
You’ll also want to know if the person you’re talking to or observing is being truthful, or deceitful.
