Last week Ray White members across the North Island were the first to attend a series of self-defence workshops run across the country. – The courses, being run by Phil Thompson, Director and Co-Founder of Protect Self Defence, realistically addresses the physical as well as the often-neglected psychological, behavioural and emotional components of confrontations. Designed for people of every age, shape, size, and ability there is no special physical training required for his courses – just the desire to learn how to protect yourself, your family and loved ones. Our members found the concepts taught were easy to learn, with a simple and relevant approach to theory, and with simple exercises that were quickly mastered and readily retained. Ray White New Zealand‘s Property Management Business Performance Manager, Zac Snelling, worked closely with Phil Thompson to develop these tailored Personal Safety Awareness Workshops for our members – from salespeople, property managers, and administrative staff through to their friends and family members. The overall objective of the workshop (which is also running later this week in Christchurch) is to empower our members with the realistic skills and confidence to stay safe during all aspects of their job as well as in their private life – addressing a serious subject in an enjoyable, informative and interesting way. The response from our members who have attended has been extremely positive: “It was an awesome workshop really enjoyed it. It has opened my eyes to being aware of ourselves when we are out there in the community and how we deal with people, and their situations. Lots to take on board.” – April Hetaraka from Ray White Kaitaia.
By addressing self protection holistically the seminar gives participants complete value that can be applied immediately. Phil who is highly regarded as one of New Zealand’s leading experts on the topic of self-defence and self protection believes that “beyond the physical, effective self-protection involves a variety of behavioural, emotional, psychological, ethical and legal aspects. To understand them all is to truly feel safe.” His unique perspective on self defence, developed in part by his own life experiences dealing with real violence and conflict, has pioneered a new standard in the industry. “To us, self defence is about getting you home safely to your family. It’s not all about technical application, because in reality the technical stuff – fancy moves, in other words – usually fails. Our focus is on staying safe from violence either by avoiding it, diffusing it, or if necessary physically defending against it as efficiently and effectively as possible. All of our training is designed to help people live more empowered, confident lives free from un-warranted fear and worry” he says.
Chantall Turner from Ray White Glenfield told us that she “got a lot out of the day” and felt the realistic presentation of potentially challenging behaviours were spot on… “As a society you can become complacent with thinking you are safe in ‘your ivory tower’ and it pays to know the world can potentially become a completely different place in an instant. – Having personally seen the emotional and physical after effects of an opportunist attack on a family member I know it’s a situation I wouldn’t wish on anyone. – I felt empowered by the course and am seriously considering the benefit of this training for my three teenage children.”
Debbie Ravji from Ray White Glen Eden also commented that she “found the course educational and most helpful for everyday use. I now know some of the signs of what to look for and I will no longer take my everyday surroundings for granted.”
Phil Thompson is a highly regarded self-protection expert and has written two influential books on self defence. With over 20 years experience in his field he has helped empower thousands of people with the skills and confidence to protect themselves and their loved ones, and this year also presented at Ray White New Zealand’s Annual Conference. “As well as being entertaining and great at holding attention, Phil is an effective trainer, very good at getting his points across” says Cindy Tizard of Ray White Whangaparaoa. “I was most interested in his teachings of body language for someone whose intent is to harm, and what to watch out for and his reminder not to ignore your intuitions. Also learning the size of a potential attacker need not matter was important to me – and our own belief that we could escape a much larger opponent was vital. I feel very lucky to have been shown the skills which could potentially save myself, and my family, if ever faced with a dangerous situation. I have no doubt that he is the best at what he trains and I will always hold great respect for Phil.”
Ray White is running the workshop with Phil in Christchurch this week. (Ray White New Zealand members can call Ray White Corporate on 09 377 5069, or email, to register.)