What Would You Do If...? A Tactical Readiness Test

How ready are you to respond when violence comes calling? Remember tacticality, legality, and morality. We all have blind spots that are difficult to shake. And even if you train hard, stay tactically minded, and emphasize preparedness in your life, violence can remain an abstraction. We live in one of the most secure countries in the history of the world (though that's changing every day), so for many of us violence is something that happens somewhere else to someone else.

Every combat veteran, law enforcement officer, security professional, or first responder knows this. They've all had that waking up moment when the crack of rifle reports begins to register as enemy fire (instead of, say, the sound of kids setting off fireworks in the neighborhood or something like that).

Once it happens to you, the way you view the world is never the same again. This is why you won't see a lot of those folks with their backs to the door at the local restaurant. It's why they might seem more naturally vigilant when compared with the awareness exhibited by most people. 

It's why they might pack a few items that others won't when going on vacation. It's not just the training they received in controlled environments. It's the training they received as their nervous system was working to keep them alive in real-world violent situations.

The "What Would You Do If?" Tactical Test

Unfortunately, the same is true of victims of violent crime. Once it happens to you, or to someone you love, you're never the same. But you don't have to be a victim or a vet to wake up a little more. Visualization is a powerful weapon against complacency.

And this is how preparedness begins–by arming your imagination with scenarios. It's also the key to good training. Imagining what could happen in a given situation and creating contingencies to respond decisively to those threats.

PRO TIP: A False Sense of Security is a Liability. Don't fall prey to the false sense of security that might come from your jijitsu training or gun range drills or your home security system. You've got to train your OODA loop, with a well-crafted and flexible response protocol. Otherwise you'll be shooting and wrestling everything when you should be creating distance, calling LEO, etc.

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So, here's a little test for you. As you think through and answer these questions, it's important to frame your thinking through a grid of moral, legal, and tactical considerations. 

What should you do tactically? What moral considerations should dictate that tactical decision? What legally defensible action is required to defend your loved ones, yourself, and the innocent people involved?

Whatever you've trained yourself to do is what you will likely do when the fear response starts cascading through your system. That's why visualization and pre-planning are so important to your training.

These scenarios are in no particular order of importance.

Home Invasion

Your wife and/or kids are home during the middle of the day and you're gone. Someone kicks open your front door and now they're wide open to attack. What plan do they have in place? A lot of us have our guns and do our training, but what does your family do when you're not around? 

A. Improve home defenses. 

B. Educate my spouse. 

C. Get an attack dog. 

D. Hire private security.

Alleyway Crazy

It's nighttime, you're walking down an alleyway or down a street and you see some disheveled person making their way towards you. They're muttering under their breath, they're cursing, and their general appearance and body language bespeak some type of mental illness. 

What do you do? 

A. Hold your ground, ready for anything. 

B. Skirt around them, avoiding confrontation. 

C. Retreat the way you came, avoiding the situation altogether. 

D. Walk confidently through, prepared to react if needed.

Car Break-in

It's date night and you and your old lady had a fantastic time, had a couple drinks, the music was good. You're walking back to your vehicle flirting and about 20 feet from your vehicle you spot someone breaking into your new Rover. 

What do you do? 

A. Close distance and defend your luxury automobile or move to adjust your angle and reactionary gap. 

B. Put your wife at a safe distance and then yell at the guy. 

C. Immediately break contact and call 911. 

D. Take off your shoe and start beating the perp on the head.

Little Miss Lone Trail Jogger

This one really irritates me, and I see it all the time. My wife and kids and I really like to go down nature trails and hiking and stuff. And we oftentimes see lone joggers, a lot of times female, and they'll have ears on listening to music and just out in the middle of nowhere and sometimes skimpily dressed, too. 

Very little situational awareness. The protector in me thinks, "This could end real bad." If someone came and attacked that person in certain places, there might not be anyone around to be able to help. 

What should Little Miss Lone Jogger do differently? 

A. Carry pepper spray. 

B. Never run alone in the woods. 

C. Get swole and learn jiujitsu. 

D. Avoid exercising completely.

Concert Crisis

You’re at a concert or music festival and suddenly you feel something sharp in your back. A voice breathes in your ear, "Don’t move. Do what I say or I'm gonna kill you." They start leading you away from the crowd. 

What do you do? 

A. Shout out for help. 

B. Flee the ambush. 

C. Attempt to disarm them. 

D. Up the ante and try attacking the attacker.

Gun Wielding Guy on City Sidewalk

A man with a gun runs past you in a downtown area. He's not a uniformed police officer and he seems to have a target that he's after. He's probably going to kill someone soon. 

What's your obligation here? What's your course of action? Your answer could depend on whether you're alone or with the wife and kids. 

A. Chase him down and stop him. 

B. Stay where you are and call 911. 

C. Follow at a distance and investigate the situation. 

D. Act like you saw nothing and go get a cheeseburger.

Emergency with Young Kids at Home

Guys with young kids, this ones for you. Your spouse collapses at home. Or there's a home invasion. Your kids are old enough to realize something bad is happening but not old enough to take action or call 911. 

Do your young children know how to escape or get help? What course of action have you trained these little ones to follow? What's the protocol? Have you included your kids in emergency planning? 

A. Hit the panic button on the security system. 

B. Run to a trusted neighbor's house for help. 

C. Hide until their parents are able to respond. 

D. Scream for help.

Trouble at the Local Diner

Some guys walk in. They're aggressive. One of them has a long gun pointed at the hostess. 

What do you do? 

A. Draw your weapon and engage. 

B. Look for a side exit. 

C. Find concealment. 

D. Finish your bacon burger.

Parking Lot Carjacking. How Will Your Wife Respond?

She's just come out of the grocery store. She decides to do the wrong thing–sit in her car with doors unlocked and text someone. She's staring at her device when a guy opens the passenger side and slides in with his gun drawn. Maybe the kids are with her. Maybe not. He tells her to drive. 

What will she do? 

A. Draw and shoot. 

B. Bail out of the car. 

C. Comply and then crash the car into a light pole like they do in the movies. 

D. Slap the assailant uncontrollably.

Theme Park Abduction. How Will Your Wife Respond?

Your wife has taken the kids to a fun day at Six Flags. They've got their snowcones and such, enjoying the day, when a big ole fella comes through,grabs one, and runs. 

What should she do in this nightmare scenario? 

A. Chase them down and leave the others (Pro Tip: Don't play favorites). 

B. Draw her gun from a concealed position. 

C. Cry out for help. 

D. Kids should be on leashes.

Protests Turn to Riots and You've Turned Down the Wrong Street

You turn down a street blocked by angry protesters. They surround your vehicle. 

What do you do? 

A. Drive through the crowd. 

B. Abandon your vehicle. 

C. Draw your gun. 

D. Yell "Kamala for President" and join the protest.

Public Restroom Attacker. What Would Your Wife Do?

She's walked into a public restroom. A guy walks in behind her and locks the door. He begins to assault her. What should she do? 

A. Draw her weapon, mace, etc. 

B. Call out. 

C. Improvise a weapon. 

D. Try to call 911.

These are real scenarios of violence that have happened to real people. It’s not about paranoia; it’s about preparation. I'm not trying to be an alarmist. I don't want people living in fear. Running through these scenarios helps build a mental playbook for when things go sideways.

RELATED LINKS | Situational Awareness 101 • Mastering the OODA Loop • Security Tips for Women • Personal Security Test • Ambushed in a Parking Lot

Beyond the visualization training, you and your loved ones need to train physically. The nervous system needs to be prepared to do what your brain is telling it to.

Train Hard. Train Smart. Live Free. Fear Not.