Awareness

[rogue]

Many of us try to train in as realistic manner as possible in regards to fighting skills, but when it comes to awareness most don't train it or test it.
So, what specific techiques do you guys use to be aware of your surroundings?

What gets through to awareness is what messages have pertinence to whatever mental activity is current. If you are looking for restaurants, you will notice signs for them and not for gas stations; if you are skimming through the newspaper, you will notice those items you care about. What gets through enters awareness, and only what is useful occupies that mental space.

Dr. Daniel Goleman

[Black Jack]

I don't believe there are specific byrote techniques for awareness as such. More like principles that you actively apply to your everyday life. Though I guess one might consider "passive scanning" a technique but I would not.

One of the methods I use and find very helpfull is the color code system which was invented by the pistol shooting legend Col. Jeff Cooper.

The color codes represent levels and these levels represent how aware you are of threats around you and your resulting ability to deal with those threats.

Here are the colors and what condition they represent:

Condition White- You are unaware of what's going on around you. Perhaps your tired or stressed out about work. Maybe your senses are impaired by alcohol or drugs. This is the victims condition. Because of your inattentiveness you are an easy target and not ready for anything.

Predators look for people in this state.

Condition Yellow- You are alert but calm and relaxed, passively scanning your surrondings for threats. You know who is in front of you, to your sides, and behind you. You don't think anyone will attack but you are mentally alert in case something ever happens.

This is where you should try to always be. You know when you see a person in this color condition because their alertness is evident. Why bother robbing a guy who has his act together. Its much easier to go for those in the color code white.

Condition Orange- You sense that something is not right and that you might be attacked. Perhaps there's a number of suspicious men standing around your car on the way out of work, or two guys seem to be "trailing" you from different sides of the street, or a guy in a raincoat comes into your store on a hot summer day.

In this condition you are aware of all potentially hostile people around you, your enviroment in a tactical sense, such as any weapons they may have hidden in their hands, stashed on them, or within reach. You start developing a gameplan to for dealing with the potential attackers. You look for multiple escape routes, weapons you can use depending on your chosen action, who to hit first and how, do you wait for the assualt or go pre-emptive, no matter what your route you get mentally and physically ready.

Condition Red- It is on. You are fighting period. Someone is assualting you and you are defending yourself. You take immediate action to drop your attacker, escape or get help.

Hope this helps answer your question. Its a pretty easy system to use. Since many people go through the stages automatically its the goal of being in yellow that can make the difference.

[shaolin kungfu]

So, what specific techiques do you guys use to be aware of your surroundings?

Have someone hit you in the back of the head.

[Fred Sanford]

to make a long story shory short I pretty much agree with what black jack posted. I never catagorized it like that but it seems good.

I've lived in some big cities and being aware of your surroundings becomes second nature after a while. No special techniques involvled. I will say that walking down the street at 2 PM is diffirent than walking down the street at 2 AM.

[SaMantis]

I'm in the city a couple nights a week, so in addition to the "stay aware" bit I also try to have at least 2 alternate routes figured out when walking between work/class/subway. If I see potential trouble ahead I can divert and stay away from it. Also note any open stores/restaurants/police call boxes.

It's not 100% foolproof as it applies mainly to a regular route, not an unfamiliar area.

[Suntzu]

in my 'running the streets' phase… I was a people watcher… I watched how they talked to each other… payed attention to body language… facial expressions… tone of voice… I didn't hang out with the most wholesome crowd… altho I didn't involve myself in their activities... i knew how they acted... the places they would hang out when 'bad things' would be done... dont hang out with your back to the street... count your money before u get out the car and when u get back in... general code of the streets stuff... some learnt by trial and error... others past down... and anything other than that is just wrong/right place at the wrong/right time...

[Cody]

I try to follow the advice of my first teacher. to stay relaxed and alert. That is readiness.

other techniques.
1. I like to know where I am. Where I am likely to land if I take a wrong turn. If the neighborhood is questionable, and I have advanced notice of being there for the first time, I might contact police to see if my chosen route is best, especially if this is an after dark excursion.

2. I make use of shadows and reflections in objects around me.

Even so, things can happen. I'll never forget when I was walking to train from a class in Manhattan. Streets busy enough. No problem. I turn a corner and immediately get blasted by some teens with one of those immense water guns. It soaked my shirt. It could have been a gun. I walked into it and there was no way I could have known, unless I had picked up a cue (what cue?) or had a feeling and held back.

Cody

[Shaolin-Do]

lol
Sorry there boys and girls, awareness is something people tend to naturally have, kinda like common sense. You can work on your awareness, but that involves putting yourself in situations like blackjack described above. Awareness is something that is subconscious, until you are... err... I guess you could say "code orange", then you consciously become aware of your surroundings. there are excersizes for peripheral vision, but while that helps awareness, its definately not the same thing (as awareness.)
Kinda like how some people can be amazingly book smart, but completely lack common sense, others can pull apart an engine on a whim but cant pass a standardized test.
(used engine analogy because the majority of people who do not do well on standardized tests tend to be able to understand mechanical situations extremely well)

[MasterKiller]

Um...I don't think so.

You can consciously make an effort to be more aware of your surroundings. Basically, you have pull your head out of your ass and pay attention to what's going on.

[Shaolin-Do]

thats why I said until you are in "condition orange"

When you are not threatened, you are not going to consciously be thinking about who is going to attack, when where and how.
You are thinking about what you are interested in, your focus on whatever the current task or action at hand is. There is no way to work on being aware. You can be aware or you cant, you are either going to subconsciously be aware, or constantly be aware consciously thinking about who has this where how and when, making you look like some kind of wacky ass paranoid wierdo. When you are relaxed you are not going to consciously be examining your surroundings for potential dangers and problems. Your subconcious will be doing that. There is no way to work on your subconscious actions... short of hypotherapy which is a crock of sh!t as far as Im concerned anyways.

[MasterKiller]

I disagree.

You can train yourself to be aware. We teach women's awareness seminars in which we instruct women on how to be more aware of themselves and their environment.

Making a conscious effort to not look lost when you are, to keep your head and and eyes up instead of cowering and looking down, to look people in the eye when they pass you, to watch for warning signs of trouble. These are things you can consciously train yourself to do.

If you look like prey, chances are, you will be.

No one is saying you have to act like a schizo, but if you want to avoid danger, you better be able to concentrate on your environment.

[Shaolin-Do]

hmmm..... good point.
Guess youd have to say there are different types of awareness.
As for looking at passing people in the eye, if you do that for more than 4-5 seconds down here, your going to end up in a fight. and I dont even live in the ghetto...
lofl... last night at a party some dumb ass rich kid (reagan district, for those out of town, its the pinnacle of rich-white suburbia) actually pistol whipped... the house. ? wtf? I got out of my car to see a 17 year old kid in abercrombie (signature reagan wear) actually hit the house with the butt of his gun, then start yelling about how someone will get pistol whipped. Im just curious, but does the butt of a gun hit harder than a stick? Then this cheeky little f*ck picks up a bottle and looks at my car like hes fixin to throw. "I say no, no, no, woah there turbo. Thats my car, you dont want to do that." So he looks across the street and throws it at another car, at which point in time another carful of rich kids with guns pulls up. I get the chick I was with and leave, didnt feel like getting shot by some dumb ass rich kid.
I Just dont understand... guns are more prominent now where all these rich parents are moving to "keep their kids safe"
I know this is off topic... just thought it was interesting and had to rant.

[shaolin kungfu]

Guns have always been prominent in texas.

[Shaolin-Do]

lol
Not round here they havent... Fighting is nothing new, but I could certainly do without the guns. I f*ckin hate guns man.... But thats a whole nother rant.

[Jabb]

Zazen meditation is good awareness practise, it really keeps your focus up. It also developes your brains, attitude and personality.