The Rule of non-Attendance

By Joel Persinger

One of the first rules of self-defense is not to get into trouble in the first place. This requires being aware of your surroundings and practicing the rule of non-attendance.

The rule of non-attendance is basically this… if there is trouble in a place, don’t be there. It’s not rocket science and yet few really consider it. Here are some examples of non-attendance that can save your life: If you know you might find trouble at a bar or nightclub, don’t go. If you know you can be attacked at a walk-up ATM at 2:00 in the morning, don’t go. If five women have been raped while walking in the park, don’t walk in the park. If you know you have a greater chance of being attacked if you park your car in the dark corner of the mall parking lot, then don’t do it. Park under a light or have someone walk you to your car. If you know trouble is somewhere, don’t go find it. These are simple applications of thought and choices that reduce your risk of attack significantly.

This also applies when trouble shows up where you are. I am always amazed by people who see police cars with lights flashing and rush to see what’s going on. If the officer is working a suspect and the situation goes bad (bullets flying all about), I prefer not to attend, don’t you? As a consequence, when I see flashing police lights I go the other way. This is the concept of leaving at the first sign of trouble.

A real world example of this principle happened about a week ago when I went to meet a long time friend for lunch. We’ve been having lunch in the same place for quite some time and almost always sit in the same booth. Even martial artists are creatures of habit. I arrived early and sat down in the customary booth. While I was waiting for my friend, I could not help noticing the four plastered individuals at a table near by. They were obviously drunk beyond measure. They were loud, obnoxious and looking for trouble. I sat there for a few minutes before I realized that staying there is exactly what I teach my students not to do. So, like a good little self-defense instructor I followed my own advice and moved to another section of the restaurant. My friend arrived, found me at the new table and we had a nice lunch as usual. There was trouble brewing and I chose not to attend.

There’s nothing flashy about these self-defense techniques and they will never land you a gig in a Jackie Chan flick. But practicing non-attendance requires a lot less work and will keep you out of trouble more often than not.