With more and more stories of violence happening every day, it is evident that an incident can happen anywhere and at any time. That being said, it is pertinent for individuals to take a proactive approach towards ensuring their own personal safety at home, work, or even in public. This begins with increasing your awareness of your surroundings at all times, otherwise known as “situational awareness.” This is especially important in the event of a dangerous situation or a potential threat as it could possibly mean the difference between life and death.
Situational awareness begins when individuals recognize that threats can exist. When someone ignores or denies that there is a potential for a threat to occur or are oblivious to their surroundings in public they are much less likely to identify or even avoid a potential risk. In addition, individuals should also understand that taking responsibility for their own security is an absolute necessity. There may be certain situations when the authorities will not be on-site to stop a dangerous situation, and you will have to react accordingly to protect yourself or others.
Trusting your intuition is a crucial aspect of situational awareness. Often times it is possible for one’s subconscious to notice subtle indications of danger that the conscious mind has not yet registered. If you experience feelings of danger before a threatening situation, do not ignore them. Just because a hostile individual did not make a threatening move, does not mean a threat did not exist or might potentially occur.
It’s important to remember that regardless of where you are or who you are with you should always be mindful of potentially hostile situations. The next time you are in a public space practice maintaining your situational awareness by:
• Having a rudimentary mental evacuation or safety plan in the event of an emergency situation
• Focusing your attention on your environment
• Looking out for odd or threatening behavior
• Knowing the location of security personnel
• Identifying nearest exits
• Locating stairwells
• Taking note of unattended packages
• Noting the locations of alarm pull stations