Category: Uncategorized

Walking the Walk

There’s a news story going around about a celebrity being spotted in a CCW class. The person in question made no announcements and didn’t open the door by mentioning it publicly. They are not one of the many who advocate for gun control while having either their own guns or armed security details that carry them on their behalf. There’s no legitimate contribution to the conversation by outing relevant hypocrisy, because it’s not happening in this case. Someone just spotted them in a class, snapped some pics, and sent them to a gossip tabloid.

Here’s the thing. If you’re against the names of CCW holders and applicants being published without their permission, maybe we shouldn’t be publishing the names of CCW holders or applicants without their permission. Let’s show some respect, walk the walk, and not share the story.

Julie Loeffler: Stop Dressing to Impress

Julie Loeffler of Mid-Ohio IMB:

Have you ever wondered how we, as instructors, come across to other people who aren’t steeped in the business of personal defense? I mean really, have you scrolled through your newsfeed and looked at how people want to be identified? Take about five minutes of your time (realizing that you’ll never get it back!) and check out profile pictures of people in the biz. After you stop rolling your eyes at all of the clichés, ask yourself who you think their target market is.

And ponder this for a moment: If new and curious people are looking on social media to find a personal defense class (armed or unarmed), what type of impression are they getting from all of these ludicrous photos? I don’t care how awesome you think you are, or how loudly you’re shouting that you want to teach the new shooters, if your first impression via social media looks like someone who just stepped off the movie set of either Apocalypse Now or Full Metal Jacket then you will get nowhere with that crowd. You don’t look knowledgeable, you look unapproachable and unrelatable…

Continue reading at The Trigger Press

This. A thousand times this. Go read the whole thing, it’s worth it.

Seth Godin on Foundations and Modeling

Seth Godin:

Hint: if you tell people something is important but fail to give them the tools and the support and the training that they need to do that important thing, you’ve just told them that it’s not actually important…

Continue reading at Seth’s Blog

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PO1oUY6HS90

Related article: No More Lip Service (verified instructors only) on integrating the things we talk about as being important to personal protection but show through our actions that they aren’t.

h/t Greg Ellifritz of Active Response Training

Rory Miller: The Instructor With One Use of Force

Rory Miller of Chiron Training:

One of my threshold observations was that people who has prevailed in a single violent encounter were consistently the worst teachers. These were the ones that felt there was only one right answer, whether it was rage or fitness or speed or power or… the one thing that had worked was the only thing that could work. And, because all thinking humans know that’s not true, these instructors had a constant cognitive dissonance they needed to resolve…

Continue reading at the Chiron blog

Maija Soderholm on Language in Physical Instruction

Maija Soderholm, author of The Liar the Cheat and the Thief: Deception and the Art of Sword Play:

I admit it, I talk too much. The pictures and concepts I see in my head want a way out. They want describing, refining, sharing and altering, and words seem to be one of the most accessible ways to do this with others ….. But really, how useful are they when teaching a physical skill set?

Language can explain and inspire, yet it can also confuse and misdirect, it is a true double edged sword – our savior and our downfall

Precision can be hard to convey, especially when personal experience differs to the extent that words mean different things to the speaker and the listener …. and this is assuming that the speaker is explaining clearly, and that the listener is even listening!

Say the word ‘threat’ for instance, and some will not even have a concept of what that might be…

Continue reading at Sword and Circle

Rob Pincus & SDI Webinar: Developing a Firearms Training Business

Rob Pincus of the I.C.E. Training Company and the Personal Defense Network teams up with the Sonoran Desert Institute School of Firearms Technology on this webinar on developing a firearms training business:

The SDI YouTube channel has some other good-looking stuff, including How To Market Your Firearms Industry Business, Featuring Zeke Stout.

Kathy Jackson: What’s the Point of this Activity?

Kathy Jackson of Cornered Cat and the IDJ:

What if we never showed a child what their ability to walk could be used for? Never showed them how to run, or kick, or jump, or climb a tree? Would it help a child’s ultimate independence and ability to do those other things if instead of doing those things with them, we kept the kid in a perpetual state of improving their skill at walking? If we measured and categorized every step they took, telling them all the different ways they could improve their walking performance? “Kiddo, look, your step-to-step times can be improved if we just eliminate a little wasted motion right at the top of that left leg swing…” We might even put together little contests for them with their other friends, where we tightly scripted and carefully measured their walking skills, with stages that emphasized foot flexion, leg extension, stride length, being able to balance on one leg or the other, and so on…

Continue reading…