Hope For The Future - Thanks To One Student from Wisconsin

We received a letter a few days ago from a college student in Wisconsin regarding a non-profit project she created that provides victims of domestic violence the tools and instructions for documenting stalking and other threatening behaviors, along with items to assist with personal safety.

The next generation will eclipse the current one. There are so many bright stars of hope that foreshadow a more compassionate future represented in initiatives like the one this young gal organized from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her parents should be very proud of her.

Merry Christmas, kid. You are making the world a better place.

Protect Your Kids - A Child Abduction Warning from Minnesota

This is a real incident that happened this weekend (August 2013) at the Mall of America in Minnesota... but it could happen to anyone, any where at any time.  Life can change in an instant.

A friend of mine was at the Mall of America today with her 16 month old daughter.  A few steps from a busy store's exit, she paused and turned to the side to check out some merchandise, momentarily taking her hand off of the stroller she had been pushing.

That's it.  A split second.

When she turned back, a stranger had his hand on the handle of her stroller.  The entire incident, from beginning to end, happened in a flash.  A quick, innate reaction had the mom grab the handle of the stroller as the man, cognizant of being detected, slipped out the exit and away in the crowd.

And that's how it happens.  Darkness waiting for an opportunity.  Watching.  Planning.  Scouting, then stalking.  Striking.

Around 7% of child abductions happen in stores or malls.

Adam John Walsh (November 14, 1974 – July 27, 1981) was an American boy who was abducted from a Sears department store at the Hollywood Mall in Hollywood, Florida, on July 27, 1981, and later found murdered and decapitated. Walsh's death earned national publicity. His story was made into the 1983 television film Adam, seen by 38 million people in its original airing. Walsh's father, John Walsh, became an advocate for victims of violent crimes and the host of the television program America's Most Wanted.  (source:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Adam_Walsh)

Not much has changed since that fateful day when Adam Walsh was abducted from a Florida mall.  Things could have ended tragically today at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.  Life gives you no second chance.  Safeguard your kids, as predators are waiting for you to take your eyes off of them.  Life can be forever altered in a split second.  Be vigilant.

Thanks For The Positive Feedback on eBay (VigilantPPS)

We reached a milestone on eBay today with our 800th feedback.  We have a 99.6% lifetime positive feedback rating with all 5***** seller ratings.

We work hard to maintain that rating across all of the channels that we sell to, but appreciate every single order, and every single positive feedback comment that comes our way.

You can visit us on eBay here :  VigilantPPS on eBay

Occupational Safety and Health Administration on Personal Alarms

I had a very interesting conversation this afternoon with a director from OSHA from one of our largest States.  There's a growing awareness of the benefits of "arming" mental health staff with personal alarms.  As he and I talked about the strategy behind the use of carrying a personal alarm, I thought it might be valuable information to share with you and preserve here on the blog.

• Carrying this alarm should make you more vigilant.  Get in the habit of practicing increased situational awareness
• Pull the plastic tab and discard it.  Test the alarm for 1 second by pulling the pin and quickly replacing it so that you understand what it sounds like.

·      Carrying this Vigilant alarm has two intended benefits in the event of an emergency:

1. Obviously, it gets the attention of anyone in the immediate vicinity
2. More importantly, it disrupts the thought process of the potential assailant.  They don’t know what it is, and they don’t know how to stop it.  All they know is something unexpected just happened, introducing the element of surprise to your side and buying you a critical 10-15 seconds for you to act

Never feel apologetic if you are ever in a situation that causes you to pull the pin.  You may never know what the results might have been had you not taken action.  

Thanks To You - Vigilant PPS8G is #1 Best Seller on Amazon

Thank you all for helping to make the Vigilant PPS8G Alarm the #1 best selling product in the entire category of Security Sensors and Alarms at Amazon.com!

(Well, not all of you.  Just those of you who bought one!  :-) )

http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/electronics/14241131/ref=sr_bs_1

Introducing the Lorex brand to VigilantPPS

We are now an authorized retailer for Lorex branded security and surveillance systems. Here's a link to the first new product from VigilantPPS featuring Lorex :

http://www.vigilantpps.com/lorex-lnc116/

A Tough Calling - Being a Correctional Officer

Being a corrections officer would be a tough calling.

• Correctional Officers (CO’s) have the second highest mortality rate of any occupation.
• 33.5% of all assaults in prisons and jails are committed by inmates against staff.
• A CO’s 58th birthday, on average, is their last.
• A CO will be seriously assaulted at least twice in a 20 year career.
• On average a CO will live only 18 months after retirement.
• CO’s have a 39% higher suicide rate than any other occupation,
• And have a higher divorce and substance abuse rates then the general population.

Sources: “Stress Management for the Professional Correctional Officer”, Donald Steele, Ph.D., Steele Publishing 2001 “Corrections Yearbook 2000, 2002”, Criminal Justice Institute, Middletown, CT “Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics 2003”, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 31st edition, NCJ 208756 “Suicide Risk Among Correctional Officers”, Archives of Suicide Research, Stack, S.J., & Tsoudis, O. 1997 Metropolitan Life Actuarial Statistics, 1998 Society of Actuaries, 1994 

We at VigilantPPS.com are thankful for our second order of alarm products from the State of Colorado Department of Corrections.  Our thoughts travel with each alarm to your corrections officers.  We are honored that our alarms will be part of your comprehensive plan of safeguarding the people who safeguard us.  Thank you Colorado Department of Corrections!  

It Failed Our Test, So We Won't Sell It

One of the promises that our company founders make and keep is that they will never sell you a product they wouldn't recommend to a friend or relative.  One of the best parts about being a small company is that we get to make decisions for the right reasons.

We recently received a shipment of pepper spray from a new supplier that we intended to market for "back to school."  Rachel (our VP of operations) put it to the test.  As pepper spray can be used as a weapon against the carrier, we are particular about how the product should perform.  This shipment failed our expectations.  

As a side note for you, if you ever do consider buying pepper spray, make sure you get one that shoots out in a stream (so you can direct it) vs. a mist/cloud.  Rachel is not a huge fan of pepper spray anyway, but we believe that some of the best in class products from manufacturers like Mace is what you should consider if you do decide to carry a weapon like pepper spray.  If we ever come across a product that meets or exceeds our expectations, we will make it available. 

So... back to the drawing board on the product we imported.  We likely will donate it or destroy it, but if we won't recommend it to our friends or relatives, we're not going to sell it to you.  Promise kept.  

Disturbing Story of American Child Kidnapped and Sold Into Sex Slavery

THE REALITY OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN THE AMERICAS: DISTURBING STORY OF A 9-YEAR-OLD ABDUCTED AND APPARENTLY SOLD INTO SEX SLAVERY

Sigh.

We will continue to fight until we breathe our last breath.  Hold your kids a bit closer tonight - Dave

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/05/09/the-reality-of-human-trafficking-in-the-americas-disturbing-story-of-a-9-year-old-abducted-and-apparently-sold-into-sex-slavery/

Act (The Last Phase of the OODA Loop)

On November 13th, 2012 and November 19, 2012, I blogged about the first step in the OODA loop, which is to observe.  On March 9, 2013 the blog covered the second step of the loop, which is to orient.  On April 8 2013 we covered the third phase of the process, which is to decide.  And now, we finish the loop by taking action.  

We're talking about an action strategy developed by USAF Colonel John Boyd.
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act

We're going to rapidly jump in on our decision with swift action.  No hesitation.  Nothing but 100% committed deliberate execution of the decision to act.  Simultaneously, we jump back to observing what circumstances are changing.  Measuring reaction.  Back to the beginning of the loop.  

Action needs to be a reflex.  The thinking is done and the action comes swiftly.  Decisively.  We act more quickly than our opponent can react.  Our action should be completed while they are still jarred back to their own observation step.  Our action is unexpected.  We have just broken their OODA loop, forcing them back on to our plan.

Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act

Safety doesn't happen by accident.  This is a life skill that you can practice, tune, and call on reflexively when needed.


Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act

Take outcomes into your hands.  Don't be a victim.  Teach yourself survival skills.  Practice the OODA loop.

Please email to dave (at) vigilantpps.com if you have any questions, suggestions, or observations about the OODA Loop.  

Customer Video Review of Vigilant PPS22BL Alarm

A customer made a good and unsolicited video review of our PPS22BL. It was interesting to see his two outdoor tests... and the PPS22BL held up well at long distances! Check out his review here :

A Corrections Officers Prayer

This was borrowed from the Department of Oregon AFSCME web site, but we repost it here in honor of the men and women from a state whose Department of Corrections just placed an order with us for Vigilant PPS8G alarms for the protection of their correctional officers.

A Corrections Officers Prayer

Lord, I ask for courage
Courage to face
And conquer my own fears.
Courage to take me
Where others will not go.

I ask for strength
Strength of body
To protect others...
Strength of spirit
To lead others.

I ask for dedication
Dedication to my job.
To do it well.
Dedication to my community...
To keep it safe.

Give me Lord, concern
For all those who trust me...
And compassion for those
Who need me.

And please, Lord
Throughout it all.
Be at my side.

Supporting Non-Profit Health Care Facilities - Ohio This Time!

I had the opportunity today to personally pack and ship a large order of Vigilant PPS-8G alarms to a large not-for-profit health care provider in Ohio today.  Multiple hospitals are serviced within their system, and we are thankful for the opportunity to help equip their team with devices that will better ensure their staff and their client's protection and summon attention in an emergency situation.  It is amazing to think about the wide reach of Vigilant alarms both domestically and internationally,  and the people we will never meet that will be serviced by our products.  Our thoughts and prayers go with every alarm that we ship.  

Applying the OODA Loop - Learning From the Survivors of the Aurora, CO Massacre

On Friday, July 20, 2012, a mass shooting occurred inside of a Century movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, during a midnight screening of the film The Dark Knight Rises. A gunman, dressed in tactical clothing, set off tear gas grenades and shot into the audience with multiple firearms, killing 12 people and injuring 58 others.

Initially, few in the audience considered the masked figure a threat. He appeared to be wearing a costume, like other audience members who had dressed up for the screening. Some believed that the gunman was playing a prank, while others thought that he was part of a special effects installation set up for the film's premiere as a publicity stunt by the studio or theater management.  It was also said that the gunman threw two canisters emitting a gas or smoke, partially obscuring the audience members' vision, making their throats and skin itch, and causing eye irritation.  He then fired a 12-gauge Remington 870 Express Tactical shotgun, first at the ceiling and then at the audience.

What can we learn from the survivors of the Aurora, Colorado massacre?

 

Decide (The third phase of the OODA Loop).

On November 13th, 2012 and November 19, 2012, I blogged about the first step in the OODA loop, which is to observe.  On March 9, 2013 the blog covered the second step of the loop, which is to orient.  At some point, I will reorganize the links so this information is all together.

We're talking about an action strategy developed by USAF Colonel John Boyd.
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act

So by now, you have made an observation, and oriented your mind to circumstances that were different than what was expected.  The third step of the OODA Loop is to decide.  You are going to consider action (or inaction) options, and select a course of action.  Human reaction time is defined as the time elapsing between the onset of a stimulus and the onset of a response to that stimulus.  You have to make a decision.  If you go through the OODA Loop (Observe, Orient, Decide and Act) faster than your opponent, you have the strategic advantage and are positioned to win any given incursion. 

It's worth noting that your decision doesn't have to be perfect.  It simply has to be more swift and decisive than the opponent.  You can respond to changing situations as you go.  By nature of the discussion, the process is a LOOP.  You have the ability to correct action on the second pass through the LOOP.  Once you have acted you are committed to the action until you observe a new threat or situation.  Your action could be successful, or afterwards it might require more action at which time you must reenter the loop at the beginning.   What's critical is that you select a path and move rapidly to the action phase.

The speed at which you get through the loop can give you a tactical edge.  The objective is to get through the loop faster than your adversary.  In an ideal situation you can deal with a threat before your opponent has even realized he is in a confrontational situation and entered his own OODA loop.  If not, and the enemy has time to react, then you have to “get inside” his loop.  This means that you need to be performing the loop faster than he can.

 So... we decide.  We intentionally pick a course of action based on the observation and orientation.  We take a split second inventory of our preparedness, the tools or options available to us, and we decide.  We force ourselves to move quickly to the final step of the loop --- action.

 



   

Living out our mission statement.

Over the past week, our Vice President of Operations was working on our company mission statement.  What she has thus far is something along the lines of:

"We believe that everyone has the right to be safe, no matter what the circumstances are. We produce products to assist people to be secure in their ability to protect themselves. Safety doesn’t happen by accident."

So, when the opportunity presents itself to come alongside a non-profit organization in California whose emphasis is providing mental health services to low income children and their families, we get to live out our mission statement in practice rather than in theory. 

In addition to the alarms that will be used by staff (and maybe volunteers?), we will be sending some additional products along for the kids our new client interfaces with.  We are thankful for this chance to make a difference!

Vigilant alarms were one of the "Top Sellers" on Amazon.com in 2012!

We received an award from Amazon today for being a top selling brand in 2012 with an A+ rating for customer satisfaction.

Orient (The second phase of the OODA Loop).

On November 13th, 2012 and November 19, 2012, I blogged about the first step in the OODA loop, which is to observe.  Sorry for the gap inbetween steps, but life happens.  At some point, I will reorganize the links so this information is all together.

We're talking about an action strategy developed by USAF Colonel John Boyd.  
Observe ---->  Orient ---->  Decide ----> Act

After you have made an observation of your surroundings, you want to quickly orient.  Boyd spoke of the orient step as being the most crucial, as this is shapes how we observe, how we decide, and how we act.  In orientation, we use the information we observed to form a mental image of the circumstances --- we synthesize the data into information. As more information is received, you "deconstruct" old images and then "create" new images.  

You may have walked into a convenience store 100 times before, but this time you observe differences.  A panicked look on the face of the retail clerk.  A man with a hood in the back corner of the store.  A second man fixated on the clerk.  Your orientation is indicating to you that there is a break in the pattern you were expecting.  You are decoding this data intake, and turning it into information.  This is no longer an ordinary visit to the convenience store.  Orientating to the new circumstances, you are constructing a new picture of the scene you are encountering.    

Note that different people require different levels of details to perceive an event. Often, we imply that the reason people cannot make good decisions, is that people are bad decisions makers — sort of like saying that the reason some people cannot drive is that they are bad drivers. However, the real reason most people make bad decisions is that they often fail to place the information that we do have into its proper context. This is where "Orientation" comes in. Orientation emphasizes the context in which events occur, so that we may facilitate our decisions and actions. Orientation helps to turn information into knowledge. And knowledge, not information, is the real predictor of making good decisions.
      

Vigilant Alarms --- Now Helping "Secure" Correctional Facilities

We are thankful to have been selected by a large correctional institution (location withheld) to be able to equip their staff, volunteers and visitors with personal alarms. 

It seems that each new day we have an opportunity to impact lives. One of the best parts of this company is knowing that our products help people increase vigilance, boost confidence, and avert emergencies.

Thanks to our new "customer" for this chance to come along side you and make a difference.

"Through A Rapist's Eyes"

We just posted an interesting article on our web site called "Through a Rapist's Eyes."  The writing style isn't the greatest, but the content is interesting and worth forwarding on.  Check it out.

Fort Bragg

I am happy to be shipping a small order of personal protection alarms to the men and women of Fort Bragg as a rush order prior to your deployment to Afghanistan. Packing each alarm personally as I consider who the recipients might be. I am thankful for your service, and the chance to play such a small role in your important jobs as you go overseas to protect our freedoms, and that of our allies. Thank you for your service. As I pack these alarms, they go with my hope and prayer that you return home safely when your mission is done. 

                                                              - Dave with Vigilant Personal Protection Systems