Find ways to diffuse a confrontation if at all possible, Pennell writes. Getting hurt sucks. Causing harm to other people, even bad guys, sucks, too. No matter how great it feels at the moment, it doesn't feel good a week later, at four in the morning when you can't sleep. A black belt doesn't make you bullet-proof.
Nobody is bullet-proof.
Anybody can get mugged. If you get home safely, you did your job. The techniques Pennell teaches in her course are brutal enough that she won't accept anyone younger than 15, but, she says, it's best to be prepared. She insists a self-defense course isn't useful if it lasts only half an hour or one afternoon. Contrary to popular belief, Pennell notes, martial arts are as much about control as about fighting.