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Ask yourself How can take the strength and fearlessness from psychopathy without any
hint of sadism
You want to be psychopathic when it comes to the dominance hierarchy You want to be
stonecold when people attack you To be assertive sometimes you need to throw excessive
empathy out of the window am advocating a type of ruthlessness that is not destructive
where you dont worry about what other people think of you and your heart bleeds for no one
You are not doing anything wrong though because outside of selfdefense you are too
confident and compassionate to feel the desire to hurt others in revenge
Lessons from Breaking My Nose
In Chapter recounted how my nose was broken at a McDonalds at age didnt tell the
whole embarrassing story walked up to the McDonalds restaurant with an exaggerated
posture was trying to be a little cooler than really was Another yearold in the parking
lot didnt like it He said several unkind things to me and asked him to leave me alone
He followed me inside and continued to menace me While was standing in line to order food
he made a final unprovoked disparaging comment didnt consider him a threat so reached
out and gently pulled the brim of his baseball cap down below his eyes expected that it would
take a couple of seconds for him to fix his hat Without even pushing the brim back up he
immediately tilted his head upward so that he could see me and threw a swift right cross to
my nose
There are four things we can learn from this First shouldnt have pushed his hat down
It was the wrong thing to do It leaped over the line from assertion to aggression When we
touch someone else without being welcomed to do so it is a violation of something sacred
We shouldnt ever touch people in anger unless it is in selfdefense
The second lesson found in this is that any fight can do a lot of damage The blow broke
my skull in multiple places Parts of the nasal bone maxilla and septum were fragmented
The surgeon said he had to pick out many bits of shattered bone from my face The emergency
room doctors told me the injury was consistent with being hit with a bat or a club But wasnt
PROGRAM PEACE Self Care Exercises to Reprogram Your Mind and Body
hit with a club remember distinctly being hit with a fist was only hit once by a yearold
boy that must have weighed less than pounds think this should be a lesson for all of us
Any act of physical violence can have severe costs and just one strike from anyone has the
potential to do grave damage We dont want our faces broken and we dont want to break
anyone elses face either Tell yourself that fighting is not worth the costs Prepare yourself to
skillfully and gracefully decline physical violence when it confronts you This will give you the
peace of mind to rise above it
Third if you are going to walk around with optimal posture you must be wellprepared to
deal with people trying to call your bluff was assaulted because had my chest puffed up
But have since proved to myself that it is all in the way you do it walk around expressionless
with my chest inflated and neck completely retracted all the time now But am not putting on
airs it is not a form of submissive threat and do it with no remorse but also with no
animosity No one seems to question it or get angry about it To be honest Im not sure that
could pull it off in a penitentiary But can pull it off safely in any neighborhood in the world
promise you that And promise that you can do it too The key is just to do it without an
ounce of anger in your heart
Number four As recounted in Chapter having my nose broken changed my facial posture
and increased the amount of repetitive strain in my facial muscles but it did something else
much more insidious It stopped me from breathing nasally A few months after the incident
started having difficulty breathing through my nose resigned to being an obligate mouth
breather Contrary to what assumed however my nasal passage hadnt been narrowed by the
damage Rather the disuse narrowed it
After the nose break it was packed with gauze for two weeks so learned not to breathe
nasally Because learned by habit to breathe through my mouth my diaphragm atrophied
and my tidal range shrunk Nasal breathing became difficultnot because my nasal passage
was any smaller but because my diaphragm had grown weak was no longer able to breathe
slowly smoothly and at long enough intervals to make nose breathing tenable
After the cascade of physical and social repercussions of being a mouth breather went
from being moderately popular in high school to very unpopular in college As recounted in
Chapter recently forced myself to start breathing through my nose again and it was
difficult at first Taping my mouth helped Now it is second nature and it helped me reclaim the
calmness and composure of my youth
Four interesting lessons from one traumatic incident Funnily enough it took me more than
years to learn them How many of our instances of trauma hold important lessons for us
Prepare Yourself to Avoid Physical Confrontation
In this book ask you to walk around like you are a superhero This can be dangerous as it can
arouse insecurity in others and could cause them to assault you You need a few good
conciliatory displays in your arsenal There are many things you can do at the last second to
forestall an attack Just knowing that you have these is empowering and will help you keep
unphased when provoked
Practicing a head nod greeting can prepare you to extract yourself from tense situations
The head nod consists of two movements a quick motion either up or down and then a slightly
slower motion resetting the head to its original setting Nodding up is more assertive and can
Chapter Rise Above Status Conflict
be perceived as a challenge if it is not accompanied by a smile or an eyebrow raise
Nodding down is more modest
Nodding down can be a helpful way to acknowledge someone and diffuse tension created
by eye contact between strangers The fact that you stayed composed while you acknowledged
the other person civilly with a nod before they acknowledged you shows that you do not feel
threatened and are not trying to threaten Practicing a several head nods in front of a mirror
will train you to nod reassuringly after a tense or unexpected encounter with a stranger
Conflict Activity Head Nod Greeting
Practice a friendly head nod It may help at first to do this in front of a mirror making eye
contact with yourself Start by nodding down quickly and then back up Practice both upward
and downward nods Repeat a few dozen times until you get the hang of it Nodding once is a
positive display that will usually invite the other person to nod back and relax
Use the mentalis muscle at the bottom of the chin to raise the chin toward the mouth
You might combine this with a risorious smile by drawing the corners of the lips outwards
without smiling up into the cheeks Then combine this with the nod Using the mentalis
muscles to raise the chin while flashing a risorious smile sends a stern but friendly signal that
diffuses suspicion
Prepare yourself with dispassionate lines that will alleviate anger These include
Excuse me friend Im not looking for any trouble or simply Hello may help you
Say something peaceful while breathing deeply This will advertise that you are neither afraid
nor angry If the person looks upset and confronts you physically you might want to diffuse
tension by calmly introducing yourself You could advance a single fist for them to bump their
fist against or advance an open hand to initiate a handshake
What is the best way to shake hands It is pretty easy Open the web between your thumb
and index finger wide and make an effort to stick it firmly into their web Keep your palm flat
rather than cupped so that you can increase the surface area of contact between your palms
Wrap your hand around theirs and squeeze firmly Dont allow anyone to twist your wrist
during the shake Shake athletically from the elbow and linger for a moment A firm handshake