Basic Training
This three-day course (ideally -- but a two day and one day version are available) teaches the principles of Tactical Communications with the goal of turning attendees into Verbal Judo Operatives.
The course has four parts.
Part 1: Professionalism
In this section we teach officers to have an elite vision of what it is they do -- to see themselves as “Peace Warriors,” who model peace by their mode of speaking and every action.
Officers learn:
- Traits of a professional
- Goals of professional intervention -- 3 Cs
- Force options -- S.A.F.E.R. concept
- Peace phrases
- How to keep professionally detached
- The three kinds of people
- How to handle verbal abuse
- How to control your weaknesses
- The Art of Representation
- How to intervene when other staff are acting unethically
Part 2: Tactical Theory
In this section we teach officers to understand communication from the receiver’s point of view so they can better control an encounter to reach peaceful resolutions.
Officers learn:
- The L.E.A.P.S. concept - active listening
- Paraphrasing
- The Three Street Truths
- People never say what they mean
- Two people equals six people
- 93% of your effectiveness is your presentation style
- Content, voice and the other non-verbals
- Proxemics defined and utilized
Part 3: Tactics
Once officers have an elite vision of who and what they do and the right tactical theory, this third section focuses on having officers become Verbal Judo Operatives.
Officers learn:
- Difference between verbal judo and verbal karate
- How to apply the L.E.A.P.S concept - active listening
- How to apply the S.A.F.E.R. concept - when words alone fail
- How to apply the tactical 8-Step concept - making initial contacts
- How to apply the tactical 5-Step concept - managing verbal resistance
- The Art of Translation and Mediation
- The four ways to appeal to someone in order to generate voluntary compliance
Part 4: Other Related Material
In this section we teach officers how to perform the Verbal Judo tactics in simulation drills and decision-making scenarios.
In addition, officers learn:
- How to debrief an incident in order to improve future performance
- How to apply Verbal Judo tactics to defend their actions to their supervisors and in criminal and civil litigation.
- How to write reports to properly "articulate" why the response was appropriate
- How to testify in court as to the reasonableness of their actions
- How to apply the P.A.V.P.O. and P.A.C.E. concepts
Ideally this course is done in three days, two for the basic class and one for intense scenario practice. It's more normally done in two days (because of budget and manpower concerns) with the last two hours devoted to scenario training. A one-day class is also offered when time is of the essence.
