PeaceWalker Blog

  Remember Bruce Lee's famous movie  Enter the Dragon ?  If you are a martial arts enthusiast and you haven't watched it, you have to check it out!   Near the beginning of the movie he is traveling on a boat out to the infamous island where this secret tournament was held. On the way there one of the competitors was goading Bruce to fight him.  After much taunting, Bruce finally told him he'd fight him, but not there on the boat, over on the shore. Bruce suggested they he get on this small dingy so they could row to shore and conclude their duel.  So this guy got on the small dingy, however, Bruce didn't join him, rather, he pushes the boat off stranding the man on the small dingy tethered behind the main boat that they were on.  Bruce laughed as the man yelled at him.  I remember watching that when I was a kid.  What I didn't realize back then is that story comes from a much older source.  The "No Sword School" Born in 1490, Tsukah...

So, I go to the local academy the other day (like most days) and this is the billboard right outside by the parking lot... No kidding! Some may say that it's a good advertisement for a Self Defense Academy. However, I'm not an ambulance chaser, so there you go.  However, I would be interested in how many people make that connection. "Sir/ma'am, did you enter my establishment in direct response to the large sign informing you of the area's current murder rate?" Unlikely... Then, this morning I was checking my emails today and I came across this MLive article... https://www.mlive.com/public- interest/2022/10/homicides- are-down-but-michigan-has-a- new-most-violent-city-fbi- stats-reveal.html Although homicides are down overall in Michigan, they're up here in Grand Rapids. Now keep in mind, most of that is what I'd call, 'thug on thug' crimes often drug and gang related. It's still disconcerting though.  So, if you don't want to go to the ...

  I thought I'd share something interesting about how criminals, predator's, thugs and bullies profile their victims.  Remember I told you the other day, that I was listening to one of Jocko Willink's podcasts?  He was talking about this subject and refenced some research old and newer.  ~ The 1982 study  Attracting Assault: Victims' Nonverbal Cues  by Grayson / Stein ~Marked by Mayhem -  Psychology Today by Hustmyre & Dixit, 1/1/09 Well, I revisited that research and something interesting stuck out like a fart in study hall. Something we talk about all the time at the academy and when I teach seminars and workshops.  Organization. As in being in Kamae. What?! You know being wholistically organized. Here's what Grayson and Stein had to say (paraphrased): The prime difference between perceived victim and non-victim groups revolves around "wholeness" or consistency of movement. Non-victims have an organized quality about their movements. They fu...

  The Hungry Ass A hungry ass finds himself between two equally large and delicious-looking bales of hay. He looks from one to the other and back again, unsure which to choose. This goes on for a long while until, unable to make a decision, the poor old donkey dies of starvation. =D Moral of the story: Take action! Don’t linger too long on the precipice of a big (or small) decision when the outcomes are positive. Hell Yes or NO! =) Save yourself a headache, take that leap, commit, and enjoy whatever rewards that come your way, refusing to look back at what could have been. Speaking of taking action... If you want to learn the basics of how to protect yourself, check out my Free Six Day Defense Program.  Here's the link:  https://sixdaydefense.com/ Give me a shout if you have any questions! Keep going, ~Craig

  I was listening to one of Jocko's latest podcasts where he was talking about how predator's choose their targets. Not new revelations, but it was good.    He was talking about how through body language alone (NOT even facial expressions, just body mannerisms) how it almost instantly identifies them as targets.  He goes into detail of the studies done both a few years back namely an early study by Grayson and Stein (1981) called:  Attracting Assault - Victims' Non-Verbal Cues,  where these two sociologist's  interview inmates who had been convicted of sexual assault and documented how they identified individuals as vulnerable.  (Jocko goes into more current studies as well.)  There are a number of things that scream easy target to the people who are looking for a victim. Mainly the confidence in how you present yourself to the world. So, are you telling me that your mannerisms give you away? (Yep.) Your posture? (Yes.) How you walk? (Yes tha...

  I woke up this morning with a jolt, I immediately looked over to my clock on my bed stand and sure as sh*t, it was 8:02am... I overslept! First time in I don't know how long... Luckily, I didn't have anywhere to be except my workout. Thank god, no appointments or trainings scheduled! You wouldn't have known it when my eyes snapped open, it was like I was back in school, late for the bus or in my corporate days late for work!  Funny how old habits die hard! It took several minutes for me to lose that feeling of dread in my stomach... This is a good example of what I often talk about when teaching how to save your bacon when your hip deep in hot water and the odds are not in your favor! They Say Timing's Everything... They say that timing is everything.  The same holds true when it comes to protecting yourself.  Even the best technique deployed at the wrong time will be less effective, if not ineffective all together.  When it comes to real life, there are two b...

  There are so many overlooked aspects when it comes to really protecting yourself! Most people concentrate on the "fun stuff." You know the physical stuff, the stuff that goes BOOM, the strikes, chokes, rough and tumble things.  Not only do people tend to train the things they like (shooters like to shoot, martial artists like to do their flavor of martial arts). Most don't work too hard at even being well rounded when it comes to defensive tactics. For instance: Most altercations are avoidable and almost all have a verbal communication element to it, yet these things are rarely ever covered beyond a quick mention.   Not as many people look past their 'hobby' to things like: ~Verbal Communication Skills ~Leadership  ~Medical First Responder Training ~Legal aspects ~Insurance ~Mental Health and Emotional Aspects (before, during & after) ~Spiritual Aspects ~Mindset ~Awareness ~Avoidance ~Health and Diet ~Interpersonal Relation Skills  We tend to stick wi...