If you watch the news regularly, you may have the impression that we live in a very dangerous world. While news exposure can make us overestimate danger, it does not follow that we should completely ignore the existence of dangers, both in the physical and the virtual environments. With this consideration in mind, here are a few tips for how to enhance personal safety in your everyday life.
Be Aware of Your Environment
While nobody is preaching paranoia, remaining relatively alert of your surroundings is among the best methods for ensuring safety. This is especially essential in public places or unfamiliar environments. Being mindful entails searching for any potential threats around (e.g., when crossing the street), identifying exit points (when relevant), and watching how others behave. It is not easy to detect possible risks early enough when you are distracted; for example, using a mobile phone while walking significantly reduces your chances of doing so.
Situational awareness is not only about recognizing immediate physical dangers; rather, it encompasses awareness of personal behavior in relation to others’ perceptions of that behavior. For instance, if you are in an area known to suffer from significant crime, showing off expensive gadgets like laptops or smartphones may attract unwanted attention. Therefore concealing such items discreetly should reduce the chances of becoming the victim of a crime.
Use Your Intuition
The ability to trust one’s gut feeling can be a very useful safety measure. If something does not seem right about a situation and you suspect there may be danger lurking, then get out of it as quickly as possible.
That being said, do not mistake this advice for encouragement to be overly suspicious or be in constant fear but rather a suggestion to find a balance between using your intuition and judging a situation based on objective information. As long as you do not have a strong reason to believe you are in danger, do not overly rely on your intuition and try to see a situation from multiple perspectives.
Be Protective of Your Personal Data
Keeping private matters private is a significant strategy for keeping yourself as safe as possible. When people disclose too much information about themselves either offline or online, they can expose themselves and even their families to significant danger. For example, it is a bad idea to give your address to complete strangers over the Internet or otherwise to share data that can lead to credit card fraud or identity theft.
Trusting strangers over the Internet can be particularly difficult, as you are often unable to determine whether someone is who they claim to be. One way to find out information about an unknown individual or company is to use specialized people search engines. On Nuwber, for example, you can enter a person’s name, phone, address, or email and get in exchange information that includes addresses, police records, and social profiles, among others. That being said, it is important to keep in mind that just because a stranger appears “clean” at first sight, it does not mean you should overtrust them.
Use Technology Wisely
While some people exploit technologies to do harm, technology can also protect you from it. For instance, it is a good idea to always have a charged phone nearby so you can call for help quickly or contact emergency services if necessary, especially when you are traveling. There are several personal safety apps available, and some let you share your real-time location with family or friends.
These apps also come with risks, such as being tracked or becoming the victim of data breaches. As such, choose carefully which app(s) to trust with your personal details and ensure secure channels when passing sensitive information across. Consider using encryption tools for messages and phone calls, as these tools add an extra layer of security.
Practice Home Safety
While we typically feel safer at home, it does not mean we are completely protected from bad intentions. For example, all houses should have strong locks and may benefit from deadbolts for added security.
To better protect yourself against burglars, consider investing in a robust alarm system and perhaps in video doorbells coupled with motion-sensor lights. It is worth keeping in mind that well-lit homes are typically less attractive targets for those looking to break into a house.
Learn Self-Defense
Learning self-defense is not only about acquiring the skills to physically protect oneself from an attacker but also about building confidence and awareness in potentially dangerous situations. Self-defense training teaches practical techniques that can be key in emergency situations, enabling you to escape or incapacitate an assailant. Moreover, self-defense classes often include training in situational awareness and the legal aspects of self-defense, which can further enhance your safety.
Beyond the physical tactics, self-defense classes can also contribute to mental preparedness and help you remain calm and focused when confronted with a threat. This mental resilience can be as important as physical strength in dangerous situations. Regular practice of these skills can keep them sharp and improve your reflexes, making you more likely to react effectively under stress.
Bottom Line: Be Precautious But Do Not Overdo It
Regardless of where you live, it is never a good idea to assume you are completely safe. On the other hand, becoming overly concerned with safety can lead to irrational fears that can limit your ability to experience many activities or environments. The key is to get as close as possible to having a good understanding of potential risks to which you are exposed and ignore highly unlikely scenarios.
For example, it is probably far more dangerous to cross the street while looking at your phone than to fly across the Atlantic. Understanding how different situations compare in terms of risks can make a big difference. Once you have identified significant risks, the next step is to learn strategies that should protect you against those risks. The steps outlined above should be a good start.
Source: Explore
