In Part I, I set out a brief description of the OODA (Observe, Orient, Decide, Act) Loop and explained that it is a model to describe the continuous process we go through in making every decision. I also talked about how the OODA Loop can be compressed through use of specially designed training. Such training includes, as a prerequisite, a tolerance for chaos and the component parts of recognition, and pre decision. In this portion of the article, I’m going to describe how to incorporate the tool of visualization in your training and how it can assist with getting inside an attacker’s OODA Loop.
Napoleon Bonaparte said, “The battlefield is a scene of constant chaos. The winner will be the one who controls that chaos, both his own and the enemies.” A self-defense situation is a battle on a small scale. Mentally accepting that there will be chaos allows one to avoid being stuck in the Orient and Decide phases of the Loop. It allows for acknowledgement of the natural confusion and uncertainty of the situation while moving on to action. This is controlling chaos. Be the one who controls it. Let your attacker freeze while you move forward. As Sun Tzu said, “In the midst of chaos there is also opportunity.” If you can keep the chaos from causing you to get stuck in your own OODA Loop, you have a perfect opportunity to get inside your attacker’s loop. I know of no special training to develop a tolerance for chaos. It’s really of a matter of exposure and most importantly, mindset. If you’re a parent, you are probably well accustomed to chaos. (After all, kids = chaos.) The key is to accept the chaos and move on to action.
For years we’ve heard about sports figures, actors, public speakers, etc. using visualization as a tool to enhance their performance. But, there’s not much talk about exactly what it is, or how to do it. Essentially it is the use of mental imagery to enhance performance. It’s like a guided daydream on steroids and, most importantly, with a purpose. Psychologists tell us that the brain really can’t tell the difference between what we actually experience and what we imagine. Thus, visualization can be a substitute for experience and can be used as safe mental training and practice for what could be very dangerous activities.
“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training.” That’s a quote from the Greek philosopher and poet Arcdhilochus who lived in the 600’s BC. The same observation has been made in various cultures by strategic thinkers through the centuries. Making a related point, General George Patton said, “You fight like you train.” Both sentiments are still true. Today’s Marines like to say, “The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in battle.” Given that, in a critical situation, people fall to the level of their training, it makes sense to achieve the highest level of training possible. Of course, the highest possible level of training is different for different people. On one end of the scale are people such as those in the military for whom training is a major portion of their job. On the other end are people who feel they have no time, or money for training, and possibly no training partner. Such people may feel that the best they can do is occasionally shoot a few rounds practicing their marksmanship on a square range where they can only shoot one direction and within the bounds of sensible safety controls. A trip to a square range may be worthwhile (I do it often.), but it’s not complete and it’s not reflective of how you want to fight. It is just not realistic. The more realistic you make your training, the more effective it will be.
While there is nothing that can fully prepare someone for a deadly force situation, scenario practice is well recognized as the most realistic way to train for self-defense. It simulates reality without the blood and gore, the death, injuries and disabilities. It trains decision making in real time and in realistic situations, provides the benefit of practicing realistic responses and can provide stress inoculation. (I’m talking about using the acute stress that can be experienced during training as an immunization against the stress in an actual self defense experience. The chronic stress of normal everyday life is a very different thing.) Scenario practice has the additional benefit of offering an opportunity to repeatedly push the “redo button” until the desired level of skill is attained. On the downside, scenario training can require a lot of resources, be expensive, require extensive preplanning and require competent instructors, training partners, realistic locations, safety precautions and logistic support. That’s a tall order for most of us. Visualization can be used as an effective alternative to traditional scenario training. It can be done virtually anywhere, with little preparation and no training partners or logistic support. It can be one piece of your overall training program that is safe, effective, has low overhead and that makes a free contribution to your overall training.
Incorporating visualization into your training program is not difficult. Set aside a few minutes a day (5 or 10 minutes is good to start). Find a place where you won’t be disturbed and can concentrate. Get comfortable. Relax your mind and body. Think of a realistic scenario. Visualize your response to that scenario, incorporating as much detail as possible. Include the use of all your senses and emotions. Involving your emotions offers an opportunity to build stress inoculation into your training. Make your visualization as realistic as possible. The more realistic it is to your brain and the more benefit you will receive. Make sure you end the scenario with top performance on your part. Then repeat and repeat.
By repeatedly running the same scenarios through your mind you address both the Orient and Decide portions of the OODA loop. You are training your mind to recognize a threat without having to spend time orienting to the stimulus. Additionally, you are training your mind to respond to a particular recognized threat with a predetermined response. This avoids having to spend time in the Decide portion of the OODA Loop and decreases the danger of a mental freeze. The scenario must be one which you could realistically face and your response should be picture perfect. But, your response must be realistically possible (no Superman jumping a building with a single bound) or your brain will reject it. Visualize yourself performing at an exceptionally high, but possible, level of performance. If, in life, you face a situation that is totally new, unlike any of previous experiences and something which you have never previously thought about, your brain will take longer to orient to the threat and longer to decide how to respond. (In such situations, it’s normal to freeze in the OODA Loop and have a “This can’t be happening” reaction.”). By visualizing a variety of realistic scenarios and single responses you are providing your brain the opportunity to gain considerable experience in making assessments and decisions in critical situations. As an experienced hand in critical decisions, your brain will be much better prepared to push through the OODA loop to action even when faced with novel situations.
Guidelines:
There are many ways to do visualization. This training is only limited by your imagination. But, it is not an idle daydream. Frankly, it’s work. Concentration is required. You must focus to bring out the details in order to get the training benefit for your brain. Visualization training is basically the same process regardless of whether the scenario does or does not involve weapons. Your goal is to visualize both the threat and your flawless response. In constructing your scenarios and responses, adopt the mindset of “when this happens,” rather than, “If this happens.” Don’t get hung up on having a variety of responses to a particular scenario. That will only slow your response, and put you in danger of freezing, in a real situation as your brain searches to make sense of the situation and to find the perfect solution. You are training to get inside your attacker’s OODA Loop, not to get stuck in the Orient or Decision phase of your own OODA Loop.
Five minutes a day is better than one 150 minute session per month. Ten minutes a day is even better, provided you can maintain concentration. Strive for frequent repetition of brief training sessions. Like learning any skill, consistent proper practice leads to improved results. Lengthy periods of visualization are not necessarily better. There is a point of diminishing returns where your concentration fades. It’s better to start with a brief period and build up as your ability to focus improves. Without mental concentration, you’re wasting your time.
What you see when you visualize is up to you. It can be through the perspective of your own eyes, from the perspective of the threat, as a witness, etc. Try different perspectives for the same scenario, just make sure that you are the star of the scenario in each perspective. The brain needs to experience the scenario as a firsthand event. Don’t be concerned if initially you don’t “see” anything in your mind. Hang in there, it will develop.
Before beginning your visualization training program, compile a few of the most likely scenarios that you may face. Then select a small number of those scenarios to use for training. It may help to briefly outline each scenario on a 3×5 card to begin to assist you in building a library and to help in making sure each scenario is practiced. Pick a variety of circumstances, both with and without weapons. I recommend that you take on at least one de-escalation scenario that successfully avoids violence. Also, include a scenario with more than one attacker. Some other scenarios to consider include an ambush, a home invasion, walking through a parking lot at night, someone assaulting your family, an obnoxious drunk getting in your face, someone trying to strike your head with a club. The possibilities are endless. What’s most likely in your life? Have a successful outcome to each scenario. Take the visualization all the way through to the aftermath of the situation. By that I mean, including such actions as calling 911, checking yourself and your family for injuries, taking appropriate action for the injuries and calling your attorney. I think people tend to neglect training for the after effects of having to defend themselves. There are huge pitfalls to avoid in the aftermath. As in other areas, you will fall to the level of your training. Train to avoid the hazards of the aftermath. Rory Miller’s book, “Facing Violence: Preparing for the Unexpected” can give you a leg up in this area.
Use all your senses and emotions. Strive for realism to maximize the benefit that can be achieved. Feel your fear as the threat steps out of the shadows. What does he look like (You may want to use your personal boogeyman.)? What’s his height and weight? What’s he wearing? Hear the threat in his voice. Feel him grab your wrist. Smell his BO. Visualize him drawing his weapon. What weapon is he using? Is it in his right or left hand? Feel your impact as you strike him hard in the jaw. Feel the relief of successfully resolving the situation. Be creative. Your imagination is the only limitation.
Visualize very slowly at first. Slow is smooth. See yourself doing everything technically perfectly. This is where Perfect Practice comes in. Once you can visualize the details of your acts done in smooth perfection, you are ready to ever so gradually increase your speed. This is the transition of slow is smooth and smooth is fast. As you go faster take care not to lose the details or the technical perfection. I can’t emphasize enough the importance of visualizing slow, perfect motions at first. If you rush this portion there is a very real danger of developing “training scars” from doing things incorrectly. Training scars are bad habits that frequently endanger you. They are very difficult to overcome and require a huge investment in perfect practice to muscle past them. It’s far easier to avoid them than to cure them.
Remember, it’s your visualization, and you’re in charge. As you develop your visualization responses to your scenarios, it’s likely that you may realize that the response you initially selected would not be effective. Regroup. Come up with a solution that would be effective and then repeatedly visualize that resolution. If you find small elements of your response that could be done better, fix them and mentally practice the improved response. You are free to hit the “redo” button as many times as necessary.
Once you feel you have worked out all the bugs of one of your visualized responses to scenarios it’s time to go to the next level. Don’t discontinue the basic visualization training. It’s important to continue basic practice of all your skills. But, you can add an additional level of realism. In a visualization scenario that involved a response with a firearm, it is time to incorporate dry firing into your practice. It may also be time to add an additional level of chaos to your training. You want to insert some kind of a distraction that makes it harder to concentrate (maybe something that is really annoying). For some people, a TV or radio may do the trick. Use whatever distracts you. If you are going to dry fire, make sure to take all the normal dry firing safety precautions. Triple check to make sure your firearm and any magazines are empty. Remove all live ammunition from in the room in which you are practicing. This time as you visualize the threat and your response, simultaneously dry fire your response. (A laser training pistol such as a SIRT pistol is perfect for this kind of training.) Start off very slowly and very smoothly. Once your dry firing response is as smooth as glass, you are ready to gradually increase speed. Take care to avoid building in training scars. Practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect. If your visualization involved a less lethal response, it can be practiced in the same way as a response with a firearm. If you have a heavy bag, or other training aids, incorporate them. Go slowly at first. Be careful not to develop training scars.
When you are ready to include dry firing in your visualizations you are also ready to add additional scenarios to your basic visualization practice. As before, pick realistic scenarios which you may actually face. Take small bites. Don’t overload yourself. Over time, your library of threat recognitions and responses will grow considerably.
Visualization training is not a magic solution to any attack. As I said earlier, there’s nothing that can fully prepare someone for a deadly force attack. Visualization can be an effective piece of your overall training program. You will fight the way you train and at the level of your training.
When I was writing this article, my brother was rereading Rory Miller’s book, “Meditations on Violence,” and mentioned that Miller includes a lot of information in his book that would be very helpful in developing visualization responses to scenarios. I agree with my brother. Miller’s book is excellent. I recommend it. It’s been a while since I’ve reread it. So, I’m going to recycle it through my own reading list. I know I’ve plugged Miller twice in this article. I have no connection with him, business or personal. I’ve never met him. But, I really like his books. Of course, when someone holds opinions similar to your own, it’s natural to tend to think they are exceptionally bright. I’m pretty sure that he’s brilliant.
Stay safe. Train well.
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