Head on a swivel — that’s the point of this article. We’ve already covered different methods on how you could increase your level of awareness in this article here. You should definitely read it, and then continue with the tips offered up here.
Going forward in this increasingly crazy world, it’s going to be even more important that you remain aware of your surroundings at all times, whenever possible.
Why? Because people are nuts and times are only going to get harder. You’ll want to be able to effectively defend yourself if you ever need to. The best way to be able to do that is if you see the attack coming, or are never distracted long enough to open a window for an attack.
And, as we’ve already covered in the last awareness article, your cell phone is one of the biggest culprits for distraction.
Go on a small journey with me for a moment as we take a short stroll down memory lane, and end up where I’m at right now.
When I started to carry a smartphone, I stopped wearing a watch. I’d wager that most people stopped wearing watches for the same reason I did. There’s no point when you literally have a clock in your pocket.
Or, so I thought.
The issue that I’ve been noticing, is that when I need to know what time it is, I pull my phone out, see all of the notifications begging to be opened, scroll through them, potentially open up some social media app, and eventually get to the point where I put my phone back in my pocket.
I then realize that I still have no idea what time it is.
I probably looked at the time, but then saw all of the notifications calling out to me, and forgot it.
If I pull my phone back out of my pocket to recheck the time, I run the risk of distraction again.
The point? If I got so distracted by the notifications on my phone that I couldn’t retain what time it was, I definitely won’t be ready to issue a proper counterattack.
People are connected to their phones, and it is an extension of their bodies. It has our constant attention. I always know where mine is, and I seemingly long to reconnect with it.
Not good, for many reasons.
Now imagine being on a bus, subway, gas station, etc., and needing to see the time only to get distracted by social media notifications. An observant mugger may pick up on the fact that you’re looking at your phone and make an attempt at robbing you.
The solution? There are a few.
First up, you can stop carrying a smartphone. I’ve considered going back to a flip phone, and may still do this at some point. The issue I have here is that I prefer to text people and typing out a message on a flip phone may prove to keep me distracted for longer as I struggle to stop on the right letter.
Less dramatic is to delete your most distracting apps. This is a step that I’ve done, but still struggle with emails, and the lone social media app I still use, which is Twitter.
The least invasive, highest ROI available to me is to start wearing a watch again. Wearing a watch makes more sense because it allows me to leave the phone in my pocket simply because, if I need to know what time it is, I just look at my wrist.
If I forget what time it is two seconds later, flipping my wrist toward my face is a lot less time-consuming and distracting than pulling my phone out is.
What kind of watch do I recommend? Well, for me it has to be rugged. I beat the snot out of my watches and I always have. The pictured watch is the Smith and Bradley Springfield GMT.
I’ve only had it for a few days, but the company stands behind its product with an awesome warranty which is a great start. They also use high-quality components and Swiss movements.
Stay tuned because this tactical watch will be getting a review at some point in the very near future.
