Mindfully Safe - an integrated, mindful approach to increased personal safety and situational wellness.

Simple practices of personal safety you’ll likely never need – especially when you practice them 

It surprises some that a couple teaching yoga, meditation, teamwork, and leadership also teaches self-defense. "Mindful," teased a friend? Yes, Mindfully Safe is about being just that. We believe the world is almost always a generous and forgiving place. However, there are moments and situations with actors where it is not. We won't live our lives in fear or paranoia, but we can and will reduce the risks of being a victim. 

Our training and experiences have proven more than once that being aware, prudent, and confident makes one unattractive to the rare but real dangers that can come with being away from home. After years of training young people, college students, and adults as karate instructors and in seminars, we now offer Mindfully Safe to adults and students.

Being in the Moment

It’s hard to be "in the moment" when you are thinking about getting to class, out shopping, or worrying about kids at home. It’s also hard not to be swept along by the excitement of a party or meeting a new person. It is even harder to be in the moment if an uncertain or fearful situation arises. Mindfully Safe is about preserving your physical safety and peace of mind while out and about, alone or with others. The threat of physical or sexual violence is rare but real and there are steps anyone can take to reduce the risk. Simply put - predators look for victims. Don't act like a victim.

“Simply put - predators look for victims. Don't act like a victim!”

Being Mindfully Safe - Aware, Avoid, Evade, Escape

Being Mindfully Safe involves first and always the skill set of Aware: the simple but easily-forgettable practice of seeing, hearing, and sensing what's around you. Unfamiliar surroundings or personal technology do get in the way of this, whether you are in a parking lot or an airport terminal. Being aware is to calmly scan your environment for both what's wonderful (it's there) and what's out-of-place (you'll know it if you see it). This applies to being with complete strangers and with new acquaintances. In the U.S., men are more likely victimized by a total stranger while women are more likely victimized by someone they have met. Fortunately, being Aware is all most will ever need.

Sometimes, however, awareness prompts the need for the second skill set - Avoid. Avoid is simply applying your awareness to keep distance from an uncertain or potentially threatening situation. Being aware is required, but trusting instincts is the key.  Mindfully Safe people are not paranoid or obsessed - but they are mindful enough to listen to the internal warning voice when it speaks. Mindfully Safe people know that the potential for danger has nothing to do with a person's clothes, color, or race but can be seen in their behavior - which is why we are constantly reminded, "If you see something, say something."  If you are Aware, you can Avoid. 

Fortunately, Awareness and Avoidance are pretty much all that most people will ever need. Still, in Mindfully Safe, we also introduce simple, effective techniques if Aware and Avoid aren't enough with the third skill set: Evade. Evade is maintaining enough calm to stay away from what has become a predator or a dangerous situation. If confronted by a person, we create space and buy time. It's like playing tag, but with higher stakes. If confronted with a dangerous situation in a public space, we make our way away from the situation or seek cover quickly but with intention.

“Evade is maintaining enough calm to stay away from what has become a predator.”

Finally, if a predator closes the distance, we introduce simple techniques designed to reopen the space in Escape. Escape involves a short list of appropriate techniques designed to cause an attacker to pause or retreat so you can create space and buy time. Mindfully Safe people are not trying to fight, "win," or otherwise attempt skills they do not already have. They are preserving their physical safety long enough to avoid injury or worse.

It’s Better To Have It and Not Need It, than…

In Mindfully Safe, school and college students, parents, and adults of all ages learn and practice basic skills of Aware, Avoid, Evade, and Escape. It's been our experience that awareness and confidence wards away most potential physical threats. Predators seek victims, and sufficiently trained people don't look like victims. The best way to ensure you will never need to apply Evade or Escape is regularly practice Aware and Avoid and to have worked with Evade and Escape. It’s better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it!