Unfortunately, you’re being told all the wrong things.
 
When you turn on the news, you’re told that another un-preventable attack caused
horrific casualties. You’re told that a “crazy person” “just snapped” …and the message
behind the madness is fear and a lack of power to change the outcome.
When you research the topic of “Active Shooters”, you hear from the FBI that you’re
more likely to be struck by lightning than be injured or killed in an “Active Shooter”
attack. So why worry? The message is denial and a false sense of complacency.
 
Both of these claims, and more importantly the underlying message behind them, is
false. Did you know the FBI has a legal definition of what they can classify as an “Active Shooter” situation? Here it is, summarized: Three or more people shot in a single event, resulting from a random act of violence, excluding all acts of domestic violence, gang activity, terrorism or other forms of targeted criminal homicide. This definition doesn’t take into consideration any form of attack that utilizes knives, bombs, other commonly accessed weapons, all the attacks that are prevented, or any attack that results in less than three injuries.
No wonder I have a better chance of being struck by lightning. But I wonder… when we boil the problem of “active shooter’s” down to the real issue… which is violence between persons… what are the chances you’ll encounter it?
You know the answer.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
       
     Here is the truth: Not only is aggressive and violent behavior one of the most likely traumatic emergency events we will encounter throughout our lives, it is one of the most avoidable if we approach the problem correctly. The issue at hand, the problem that needs addressing, is that of violence. How can a human justify aggression toward others, and then escalate through that aggression until their only perceived option is using violence as a means to solve their problems?
       Sometimes it’s personal. A few years ago, a manager we worked with had been shot three times after a hostile employee came back into work for revenge (of course, that event didn’t meet the strict definition of an active shooter situation, even though a firearm was involved). Other times, the violence is farther removed.
       Just last year, we helped consult an HR department that had some serious concerns. An employee at a remote facility was talking about shooting others. He said he carried guns in his car, which was confirmed by another employee. On top of it all, he didn’t get that promotional opportunity he thought he deserved. And now he was making veiled threats to take things into his own hands. They called the police, and Law Enforcement said,                                                                                                            “Sorry, nothing illegal is happening that we can prove so there isn’t anything we can do.”
                                                                                                    What do you do with this person? Fire him? Ask yourself, will that really make it less likely                                                                                                          for him to carry out his threat? It’s a tricky situation, and there absolutely is a right - and a                                                                                                           wrong - answer.

                                                                                                  Do you want to change your workplace, your community, and your culture? The right way to                                                                                                  do it is here. Engage your team with correct information about how violence escalates and how                                                                                               it can be adequately addressed early, both through de-escalation and a corporate safety strategy.                                                                                      Empower your team with tools they can use during each stage of aggressive behavior: Anxiety, Testing, and Attack. Teach your team to identify targeted and reactive styles of aggression and which tools to utilize in each scenario.
     This shouldn’t be a scary conversation. It should be empowering. It should be fact-based. It should be effective. It is applicable in any industry, any facility, and any community.  
 
        The Instructors at the TTA are tired of seeing and hearing about ineffective training methods. We’re aware of other training organizations that bring in simunition firearms, shooting people at random during a 2-hour training with the intent of teaching “stress inoculation”. Others offer you an online training course that can be completed in just a few minutes.
 
Both are ineffective extremes. Both do more harm than good and make our job harder.
       
        It seems like most “trainers” and “consulting agencies” for violence don’t understand the psychology of violence at all. Regardless, most do a very poor job of teaching everyday people in a way that works… and doesn’t scare the hell out of them.
As a leader in your community, you are the driving force behind an empowering attitude to prevent and act correctly during violent events. Effective Safety Strategies to address the problem of violence are within reach, easy to implement, and necessary for the safety and well-being of your team. Don’t wait for a close call to spur you into action. Take action now.
 
 
About the Author: Greg is a Washington State-based emergency manager, best-selling author, and founder of the Tactical Training Academy, an emergency preparedness organization. His goal is to empower you …and, thereby your family, schools, businesses, and community… to take a stand against violence.  Greg can be reached for questions or comments at Greg@Training-Academy.org.