“Truth is not what you want it to be; it is what it is. And you must bend to its power or live a lie.” - Miyamoto Musashi

As I write this, I have been watching for days as gun control advocates desperately try to spin a media narrative to justify their talking points following the stopping of an active shooter by a young man legally carrying a concealed pistol at an Indiana mall. Flawed and manipulated statistics and misrepresentations of local laws are being seized upon in a desperate attempt to shore up a point of view based on emotion rather than empirical evidence.

Our point of view matters. It the lens through which we view reality. And the inability to change our perspective as new data becomes available to us is dangerous. Holding on to a point of view that doesn’t align with reality makes us more vulnerable, and basing our perspectives solely on emotion rather than data makes us easily manipulated by those who do not have our best interests at heart. We need the ability to shape our own perspective by thinking critically about the information we are given, especially when it’s an appeal to our emotions.

This applies to training, to technique and tactics, no less than it applies to politics and morality. There are well known trainers who I respect greatly for their life experience who are “frozen” at the level of development tactics and techniques were at when they retired, and others who never questioned what they were taught on any level. This leads to a rigid and dogmatic attitude that can stifle development of true skill.

Nurture the ability to maintain an objective perspective grounded in reality. Constantly challenge your own views through research and experimentation. Strive to think critically rather than dogmatically. Master your emotions rather than allowing them to control you. Never be afraid to change your point of view in order to align it with the way things actually are. Do this and your training will be better, your tactics and techniques will be sounder, and it will be harder to manipulate you.