To Be or Not to Be a Target of Crime

Unfortunately personal attacks are a very common crime in our society today. Whichever form it may be, a robbery or assault, it is one of the most insidious invasions of our personal safety. Why does an attacker pick one individual to become his victim and not another? What do they look for when they choose their victim? Attackers are very good at noticing the signs of a potential victim. It’s a good idea to know what these signs are so you can circumvent the likely hood of becoming the next potential victim of crime.

A predator is in all actuality a coward and is looking for a victim who appears weak, submissive and unaware. A target that won’t (or can’t) fight back and is easy to ambush. It’s important to know that your potential for becoming a victim is influenced by the unconscious signals you project to a predator. Body language and non-verbal cues are unconscious signals that make up 80-90% of our communication. Predators, whether deliberately or intuitively, form an opinion about you and how easy you will be to dominate and control from these signals.

Fortunately there are a number of methods that can be utilized to reduce your chances of becoming a victim of personal attack. If predators look for potential prey who appears to be powerless, vulnerable and naive, then you must project the reverse of that. One way is to carry yourself with confidence. Confidence is a non-victim quality. The more self-assured you appear to others, lessens your chances of being someone’s target. An attacker won’t choose a victim who appears to be difficult to overcome or will put up a fight. Any sign of strength or defiance, whether deliberate or implied, is often sufficient to cause a predator to look elsewhere for any easier target. One way to portray self-assurance is by walking briskly with a purpose, with your head held upright and looking alert.

Being strongly aware of your surroundings at all times is another way to lower the odds of becoming a victim. Being more aware allows you better opportunity of detecting a potential attacker and you also project an image of vigilance. Be conscious of who is around you and what activities or events are going on at all times. Make eye contact with everyone who is walking toward you. villains are looking for a target who isn’t paying attention and are unaware of what’s going on. So put away all of your “electronic gadgets!” Turn off your cell phone, iPod, PDA, laptop, etc. If you use devices like these in a public place, such as a parking garage, mall, or park, you run the risk of being distracted and could get caught off guard by an assailant before you realize what is happening.

In addition to portraying self-assurance and being acutely vigilant, you should make it a habit to protect yourself from harm by carrying a few standard self-defense products such as a personal alarm, pepper spray and/or stun gun. A personal alarm is the ideal self-protection device for drawing attention to yourself when needed. These small, inexpensive items are easily carried and emit a deafening and abhorrent noise. Pepper spray is a non-lethal defensive aerosol that is made from oleoresin capsicum (OC), a derivative of pepper. It irritates the eyes to cause tears, pain, and even temporary blindness. A stun gun is a defensive weapon designed to momentarily immobilize an attacker by delivering a non-lethal, high-voltage electric shock. But remember, these security devices will not keep you safe if you do not use them.

To find out more about self defense devices like personal alarms, pepper spray or stun guns visit www.a1selfdefenseproducts.com.

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