By Rachel Puryear

Any traveller, whether experienced or novice, keeps personal security in the back of their minds when taking a trip. We all want safe journeys.

On the one hand, fear of bad things happening to us shouldn’t stop us from exploring the world, or doing any other things we’re passionate about.

At the same time, anywhere in the world you go, there are some people willing to take advantage of others, and who don’t care about hurting them. And they may see a tourist as an easy and vulnerable target.

A little basic understanding of how to protect our personal safety and security can make our trips a lot more fun, and perhaps even protect us from harm.

In this post, however; I won’t be telling you what kinds of locks, weapons, and devices to buy – chances are, you know what you need to about that, and have basic common sense.

Instead, I’ll focus on something much more fundamental – something you don’t need to buy, that you already have, but might not yet realize just how powerful it is.

I’m talking about your own instincts, and intuition.

Couple hugging each other protectively.

Have you ever gotten a bad feeling about a place or situation, like you needed to get out of there quickly? Or gotten a vibe from a person like you need to be wary of them – or maybe even that they’re dangerous? Yet, you don’t know why your gut instinct told you that – after all, they might appear to be nice and harmless.

Chances are, you’ve either had such an experience in your lifetime, or at least know someone else who has. Maybe you learned later on why you suddenly heard alarm bells in your head, or maybe you didn’t – either way, though, there was a reason.

A wise detective once told me that out of all the hundreds of crime victims he had ever interviewed, all of them different people with unique lives; all of them said one thing in common – they knew something was wrong – a person seemed off, a place gave them an uneasy vibe, or a voice in their head told them to hurry and get out of a situation; but they ignored their intuition – a decision they would later regret.

You have, within your brain, a capability which is more powerful and more effective than any human-made security system. That’s true no matter who you are, how perceptive you believe you are.

Note: I not suggesting you should skip using locks or even having a security system, it just means that these are not a substitute for your own intuition. It’s usually best to make good use of both.

As you travel, most of the people you encounter will not be out to harm you. Many of them are even willing to help you, if you’re receptive to that, and sometimes you just need to ask. Accordingly, you don’t want to go around being paranoid about everyone else – that will make your travels much less enjoyable, anyway.

So, how can you best protect your own safety, while also having a great time? Here are a few basic tips for maximizing the benefit of your own intuition:

• Always be aware of your surroundings. That doesn’t mean you have to be in a constant state of hypervigilance – but be aware of who’s around you in public places. Especially where you’re in a place where someone could easily hide, but there aren’t many other people around.

• If a person seems nice, but you get an uneasy feeling about them, trust your instincts. Better safe than sorry. If you want to meet someone new – just like at home, meet for the first time in a public place, where you can freely leave if you’re uncomfortable.

• If you’re out somewhere and suddenly get the feeling like something is wrong, and you need to get out of there now, heed that warning. It’s there for a reason.

Want to know more about how intuition works, and more ways to keep yourself safe in a variety of life situations? Check out The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us From Violence, by Gavin de Becker. The author is an expert in predicting violence, as well as ways it can be prevented. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Be safe out there in your travels, listen to your instincts carefully, and have a great time.

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Thank you, dear readers, for reading, following, and sharing. Here’s to listening to your intuition and instincts to stay safe.

Check out my other blog, too – World Class Hugs, at https://worldclasshugs.com. It’s about celebrating the empathic, gifted, and giving people of the world; learning differences between toxic versus supportive friendships and relationships, spirituality based in curiosity and open-mindedness, and nature trips.

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