I used to be a security guard for the supermodel Miranda Kerr…

Well, not really. I wasn’t her personal guard or anything. I was just hired one time as part of her security detail at a David Jones signing.

For that job, I was tasked with following a guy who was known to be a bit of a stalker. He was harmless and I felt it was very unnecessary. He was just a fan that was a bit overbearing - but it was my assigned task so I did it, and to be honest, it was pretty fun.

I basically just followed him around town. I was not (and still am not) a professional at this sort of thing, but he never noticed me.

I think this more highlights how easy it is to follow someone without them noticing. Which means that anyone could follow you and unless you know the signs to look for, you’d never know until it was too late.

Since then, I've learnt a few things, and while evading someone isn't a daily occurrence in most people's life, when the time comes it helps to know what to do. So in this article we'll go over how to evade someone on foot.

It's much easier to lose track of someone in a crowded environment.

You might be fast and be able to run away from someone, but if you're in an open space with no one else around, he (or she) will still know where you are.

On the other hand, if you walk into a crowd, you don't even have to put much distance between you and your stalker and he/she may lose sight of you.

This is even more true when you combine this with the rest of the evasion tips in this article.

This one is good for cars but can also be adapted for when on foot.

By turning corners you'll be able to see whether someone is following you.

For example, if you turn three corners and the same car is still behind you, there's a good probability it’s following you.

If you're on foot, the principle is the same. If you go to a lot of different areas or stores and still encounter the same person, that person is most likely following you.

This is something to be aware of if you're being followed in the first place, not necessarily how to escape that person once they've started following you, but you can utilize it for that as well.

Combining being in a crowd and turning many corners makes it more difficult to be followed.

Make sure you don’t turn any corners into dead-ends or isolated places. Stay in the crowd.

Humans often recognise people based on their silhouette appearance and the clothes they are wearing. Even a small change can make a big difference.

For example, you can make yourself larger by stuffing extra items inside your shirt. Or easier still, take off or put on a layer, such as a hoodie. If you are wearing a cap, take it off, and if you aren’t wearing one, put one on. You get the idea.

This method is known as quick change, and you can see it in action in the Jason Bourne filmsl.

It is always important to keep aware of your surroundings. A person that looks aware is less likely to be a target. And if you do think someone is following you, use the above suggestions together to try to shake them.

And of course, tell an authority figure such as the police. Even a security guard can be enough to put your stalker off.

To learn more about escape and evasion, check out ‘Evading and Escaping Capture’. You can get it here: https://www.sfnonfictionbooks.com/evading-escaping-capture

Safe Training :)

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