New Year’s Resolution For The Concealed Carrier: Part I

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS FOR THE CONCEALED CARRIER: PART I

At least one way to describe a New Year’s Resolution is that it is a self-promise that one makes in order to change an attitude or behavior in some way that will result in self-improvement, whether physical, mental, emotional, or relational. A positive attitudinal change can often have the same effect on behavior, and a positive behavioral change can do the same for attitude.  For instance, if I decide that 2019 is the year that I join a gym because I view myself as being in poor physical shape, I am likely to eat better, reduce stress, slow down the effects of aging, and sleep better at night.  There is only one problem; most New Year’s Resolutions don’t make it through March.  Change is hard. Unfortunately, life can suddenly become much harder if we are suddenly confronted with violence and ill-prepared to deal with it. I write quite often about the importance of avoiding conflict if possible, but I now want to discuss the importance of being prepared to respond effectively if threatened with serious injury or death.  

Most of us will procrastinate given half a chance. People work hard, life is often challenging, the cost of living must be taken into consideration, and it is easy to plop down into a recliner after work and watch Netflix, ESPN, or the Hallmark channel. Some of us still have children living with us, and good parenting takes up a lot of time. This value in the New Year’s Resolution for the concealed carrier is that we are consciously committing ourselves to doing something we deem positive and setting a firm commencement date.  Anyone who is reading this article made it through years of school, semester after semester after semester. We all know that we can start something on a certain date, stay with it, and finish it. We also know the positive benefit of education, even though some of us may not have always appreciated it at the time.  The same is true for the concealed carrier. I think each of us should sit down before the end of each year and establish one or more resolutions that are beneficial, relevant, and doable.  

Over the years, my resolutions have become so internalized that anything that interferes with my performing them now causes me mild distress.  I work out at a gym, I study Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, I dry-fire practice for five minutes at least four times a week, and I shoot at least twice a month (outside of classes we teach). I set Friday night aside for date night with my wife.  I resolve to attend the annual Tactical Conference and make every block of instruction that I can that addresses some area in which my knowledge and skills would benefit.  I set out my list of classes to take in the following year and then follow through to the best of my ability. Everything that I listed above started out as a single resolution, and over the years I simply added one more to the list. 

For the reader that is into hard-core exercise, martial arts, or who is a shooting enthusiast, my program looks easy. That’s the idea. It is not that difficult, it does not take that much time and it doesn’t cost that much, but it still yields visible benefits. In the next two articles, I will discuss setting goals that are both reasonable and achievable, and the importance of developing and maintaining self-discipline.