situational awareness

Two individuals appear engaged in a physical struggle near a white SUV while a federal officer approaches with a firearm drawn on a city street.

You Don’t Get to Fight Anymore: Lessons for Armed Citizens from the Alex Pretti Incident in Minnesota

By Mitch Goerdt / January 27, 2026

I wrote You Don’t Get to Fight Anymore last summer as a reminder to armed citizens that carrying a firearm changes the rules. Not legally. Morally. Practically. Permanently. Today, that…

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Mugshot of the suspect charged in a deadly road rage shooting in Horry County, South Carolina.

Lesson From a Road Rage Shooting: Pride Is Not a Self-Defense Strategy

By Mitch Goerdt / January 13, 2026

Yesterday morning, I woke up to my partner telling me she had just been sideswiped while driving the kids to school. No injuries. The car is damaged, but drivable. Everyone…

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Concealed carry students aiming pistols during firearms training class with the words 'Dangerous But Good' overlayed across the image.

Be “Dangerous But Good” Because The World Is Still a Good Place

By Mitch Goerdt / December 9, 2025

Every time I say the world is a good place filled with mostly good people, someone fires back with negativity. But this is exactly why a dangerous but good mindset…

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Prepared Isn’t Paranoid header image showing the #BoulderStrong memorial outside King Soopers in Boulder, Colorado, with a Road Closed sign, flowers, crosses, and a passerby.

Prepared Isn’t Paranoid. It’s Love With a Plan

By Mitch Goerdt / September 30, 2025

Aisle seven, ordinary Tuesday. Fluorescent hum overhead. The checkout dings. Laura Ashley’s list is dialed for what the kids will actually eat. I push the cart. Izzy rides the front…

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Illustration of a man contemplating carrying a firearm, surrounded by scenes of danger including a gas station robbery, a runner, a playground, and a store robbery—asking the question “Should I carry?”

Should I Carry? The Best Answer About 24/7 Firearm Carry

By Mitch Goerdt / June 18, 2025

That’s a comment I saw recently. It sounds reasonable on the surface. Rational. Measured. But it reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of violence and what it means to be prepared. The…

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Mastering Emotional Intelligence: The Key to Responsible Concealed Carry

Mastering Emotional Intelligence: The Key to Responsible Concealed Carry

By Mitch Goerdt / December 7, 2023

Imagine a seemingly ordinary day turned perilous: a casual disagreement at a traffic signal escalates into a heated confrontation. In such a volatile moment, the line between self-defense and unnecessary…

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S4E14: Too Much Situational Awareness??

By Riley Bowman / November 26, 2021

Riley Bowman and Jacob Paulsen discuss a recent article from Greg Ellifritz titled “Too Much Situational Awareness?” which is a great question that we should all ask ourselves: can we have too much situational awareness? How can we properly assess risk and apply ourselves appropriately to various situations we find ourselves in?

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Keen Situational Awareness, Recognizing You’re the Prey

By Matthew Maruster / August 19, 2021

Situational awareness or having an acute awareness of your surroundings is invaluable to our survival. However, being aware doesn’t eliminate all risks. Instead, it provides us an opportunity to recognize…

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Episode 370: Mindset Is Everything With Instructor Zero

By Jacob Paulsen / November 23, 2019

In this interview with Instructor Zero, Jacob and Matthew dive into a conversation about mindset and training oneself to avoid deadly situations. Instructor Zero discusses how to manage the difference between the training environment and the real-world environment and much much more!

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Why We Say “Head On A Swivel,” And When People Attack

By Joshua Gillem / September 17, 2019

Criminals suck, and you need to keep your head on a swivel to ensure you’re not about to turn into a victim. This statement, head on a swivel, is also…

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Episode 184: Analysis of the 2014 Las Vegas Walmart-Cici’s Pizza Shooting

By Riley Bowman / December 24, 2017

Today Jacob is back on the program with Riley. Today we take a few questions from listeners before we dive in on a detailed analysis of the June 2014 shooting that took place at a Las Vegas Cici’s Pizza and Walmart. Many lessons to be learned from this situation that cost 2 police officers their lives and the life of a good samaritan concealed carrier. Don’t miss this one!!!

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