Personal Safety Tips for the Modern Woman

How do you keep yourself safe when you’re out and about in this world and prevent yourself from becoming the next news story?

Imagine that you’re out at the local supermarket buying your weekly groceries. You get everything on your list, pay for it and exit the store. As you’re placing your purchases in your vehicle, someone comes up behind you, places a knife to your throat and tells you to get in. Do you comply? Do you fight? What do you do? Do you know?

In this day and age, you can’t watch five minutes of a news broadcast without hearing about someone being victimized. Some stories involve one perpetrator and one victim, whereas others focus on groups of suspects attacking a larger portion of society. So, how do you keep yourself safe?

Unfortunately, there is no universal answer to this question. Each situation is different and what may work in one scenario, may not work in another. However, there are a few things you can do to increase the odds that you won’t become a victim and, if you are attacked, that you’ll survive to see another day.

Be Alert

When most suspects look for their victims, they look for someone that is going to be “easy” to offend. It’s the person that is more engrossed in their cell phone, for instance, than paying attention to their surroundings.

A person like that is perfect for victimization for two reasons. First, you can catch them off guard which means that you have the upper hand. Second, they likely won’t fight back because they clearly aren’t safety minded.

Keep yourself off the bad-guys radar by always being aware of what is going on around you. Don’t be sidetracked by texts or emails when you should be paying attention to who and what is around you.

Don’t put yourself on auto pilot, even if you’re engaged in the same routine day in and day out. It’s hard to always stay alert, but if you do you’re more likely to keep yourself safe and secure.

Walk with Confidence

Businesswoman taking step to higher level on stairway

Just as a distracted person is a primary target, so too is the person who lacks confidence. It’s the woman that walks with her head down, looking at the ground, almost as if she’s afraid to look up and look around.

This type of person also likely won’t fight back, making her a great find for any suspect looking to take what isn’t theirs. Also, there is a high chance that she won’t be able to identify her attacker because she wasn’t looking anywhere but at her feet.

When you’re out in public, one of the best things you can do for your personal safety is to walk with confidence. Keep your head up, shoulders back and back straight to keep a posture of authority. Look around you so that you actually see the people and environment that are in your immediate vicinity.

Don’t be afraid to make eye contact when you pass someone on the street. Let them know that you see them.

Have a Plan

Most attacks happen very quickly. One minute you’re going about your business and the next you’re in the middle of a life and death situation. The more you plan for this type of scenario, the greater your chance of surviving it.

The best way to do this is to continuously ask yourself, “What if?” When you’re walking down the street, ask yourself what you would do right that moment if someone approached you and demanded money. What if there were two suspects instead of one? What if they were armed?

The point of this isn’t to make you paranoid; that wouldn’t do you any good. But, you need to be open to the possibilities that exist and be able to think quickly if confronted. And, if you’ve already thought about it and planned a response, then you’re more likely to be able to walk away from an attack should it occur.

Learn Some Form of Personal Defense

karate woman

There are many ways for you to protect yourself. Depending on your local laws and regulations, you might be able to carry a firearm or taser. At a minimum, you can learn some form of self-defense as a lot of martial arts places offer instructional classes.

The key is to pick a level of defense that you’re comfortable with. For example, you don’t want to carry a firearm if you’re not willing to take someone else’s life. And, if you start taking a self-defense class and it seems too complicated, maybe you need to find some other form that is more to your liking.

Personally, I prefer Krav Maga, a self-defense discipline originating in Israel. It is simple, quick and effective. I’ve seen girls as young as seven do it with ease and I’ve seen women with silver hair pick it up quickly and enjoy it too. As a certified teacher of this discipline, I can say that it has made me much more confident when I’m out and about – even more so than any of the training I learned in my law enforcement career.

Never Give Up

This is absolutely the most important thing to remember if you find yourself confronted by an attacker. Regardless of what they do, never, ever give up. Always keep a mindset that you’ll walk away from this situation with your life intact.

There have been individuals who were mortally wounded that survived simply because they didn’t allow themselves to die. On the contrary, there have been people that shouldn’t have died that did because they told themselves they would.

I read a story once about a guy who accidentally got locked in a freezer at his work. He yelled and screamed and tried to get out but couldn’t. He scratched a note to his family and told them that he was so cold and was sure he was going to die so he wanted them to know how much he loved them. Sure enough, he was found the next morning deceased in the freezer.

Here’s the kicker: The freezer wasn’t even on. The temperature inside was actually around 60 degrees. However, the autopsy revealed that he died of hypothermia. How? He believed it so much his body thought it to be true.

Don’t put yourself in the position where your body gives up when it shouldn’t have. Will you get injured in a struggle? Most likely. Will you die? More than likely not. And, you increase the odds that you’ll survive just by not allowing death to be an option.

Please be safe when you’re out and about in this world. Not only for yourself, but for your children. Practice these tips and protect yourself. You’re worth it.

About the author

Christina DeBusk

Changing careers mid-life from law enforcement to writing, Christina spends her days helping others enrich their businesses and personal lives one word at a time.

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  • You shouldn’t make eye contact with crazy people, like on Hollywood boulevard. Just keep walking!!