subject: What To Do To Avoid Being A Victim Of Crime [print this page] Unfortunately personal attacks are a very ordinary anti-social behavior in our culture nowadays. Whichever form it may be, a robbery or assault, it is one of the most insidious invasions of our individual safety. Why does an antagonist pick one person to become his easy mark and not another? What do they look for when they choose their victim? Villains are very good at noticing the signs of a likely victim. It's a good idea to know what these signs are so you can circumvent the likelihood of becoming the next possible victim of crime.
What Does Your Body Language Say About You?
Deviants look for easy marks. Someone who appears to be defenseless, passive and oblivious to the activities going on around. They want a target who is not capable or is too passive to fight back. This type of person is easy catch off guard. You should know that your likelihood of becoming a victim is susceptible to the signals you are unknowingly projecting to an aggressor. Our intercommunication to others is made up of 80-90% body language and non-verbal cues. Either knowingly or unknowingly, crooks will make an assessment about you from these signals to determine how easy you will be to overpower and master.
Fortuitously there are a number of methods that can be utilized to reduce your odds of becoming an attacker's next victim. If the bad guys look for possible 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 attribute. The more self-assured you appear to others, lessens your chances of being someone's target. An assailant 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 deviant to look elsewhere for any easier target. A way to project self-confidence is by walking briskly with determination, with your head held upright and looking alert.
Are You Aware Of Your Surroundings?
Being strongly aware of your surroundings at all times is another way to lower the odds of becoming a mark. Being more aware allows you better opportunity of detecting a potential harasser and you also project an image of vigilance. Be cognizant of who is around you and what occurrences 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 around them. So put away all of your "electronic gadgets!" Turn off your cell phone, iPod, PDA, laptop, etc. They can be just the distraction a mugger is waiting for to make his move. 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 a rapist before you realize what is happening.
Add Some Self Protection Tools To Your Arsenal
As well as portraying self-assurance and being acutely vigilant, you should make it a habit to defend yourself from harm by taking along a few standard self-defense products such as a personal security alarm, oc pepper spray and a stun gun.
A personal safety alarm is just the right tool for getting yourself noticed when you really need it. These small, bargain-priced devices are very easy to take with you wherever you go. When activated, they will emit an earsplitting and insufferable noise.
Pepper spray is a non-lethal defensive aerosol that is made from oleoresin capsicum (OC), a chemical compound of pepper plants. It irritates the eyes to cause tears, pain, and even temporary blindness.
A stun gun is a defense weapon designed to temporarily halt a perpetrator by delivering a non-lethal, high-voltage electric shock. Keep in mind, that these self protection tools will not keep you safe if you do not use them.
