Tip: W.I.N. will help you win

How do you win a fight? By remembering the acronym W.I.N. – “What’s important NOW,” said Brian Willis, a retired trainer with Calgary, Canada PD who instructed at the recent IALEFI Conference.

This means you should apply a sliding scale of priorities depending on the dynamics of the fight and initiate a triage approach to your actions.

What is your top goal at this very moment in time? Is it to debilitate the right arm he’s pummeling you with? Is it to protect yourself from a weapon he’s just revealed? Is it to get him cuffed now that you have him under control…or is it to get away from the offender so you can regroup?

Winning a fight can be a moment-by-moment endeavor and skipping ahead or falling behind can be a mistake. Prioritize your immediate goals — offense? arrest? defense? get help? — and think W.I.N.!

For more on Brian Willis’ winning mind-set training, visit www.winningmindtraining.com.

About the author

Gary T. Klugiewicz is retired from the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Department where he served three tours of duty "inside the walls" as a Correctional Officer, Deputy, Sergeant, and Captain. Gary has served as a Shift Supervisor, A CERT Team Commander, and a Special Management Team Security Supervisor for mentally ill inmates. Gary has developed defensive tactics training programs for Police, Corrections, Mental Health, and Tactical Teams. He is an instructor trainer for the State of Wisconsin’s correctional Principles of Subject Control (POSC®) Program, the ACMi® Correctional Emergency Response Team (CERT®) Program, and the Active Countermeasures (Dynamic Entry Training) Program for SWAT Personnel. Gary may be reached by email at: GTKlugiewicz@cs.com