For years, the advice has always been that if faced with an armed attacker, you should cooperate as much as possible. The thinking was that if you gave them what they wanted, they wouldn’t shoot you. Of course, a lot of people who tried to do just that still ended up getting shot and killed.

However, one thing I’ve seen a lot over the years is people who did the exact opposite. They cooperated until there was a chance to fight. Then, when they got an opportunity, they responded and came out on top.

People like this hotel clerk in Kentucky.

There’s something to be said about not panicking under extreme pressure — it could save your life.

That’s the possible scenario for one brave, fast-thinking Kentucky hotel clerk when she outsmarted a thief and grabbed his gun in the midst of a robbery.

Video surveillance clearly shows a masked man with a handgun holding up the hotel clerk. After she refuses to “let” him behind the counter, she can be seen tossing cash and a bag at him as he struggled to grab it. The sloppy robber then set his gun on top of the counter as he reached down to pick up money that fell to the floor.

That’s when the lady can be seen jutting ever so slightly forward, seemingly preparing to make a move while his head was down. Finally, she sees the right moment and grabs the gun taking the would-be robber by surprise and sending him fleeing — temporarily.

In another boneheaded move, the masked man returned, apparently to retrieve the gun. He can be seen having a verbal exchange with the clerk as he draws closer and closer to her, seemingly not believing she had the will to pull the trigger.

Spoiler: She didn’t shoot the guy.

However, he also didn’t shoot her or get any of the money he came in there looking for. In fact, the police caught him and he was arrested for first-degree robbery as well as a charge for receiving stolen property.

Whoops.

It’s important to note that while the clerk came out on top, it’s also vital that one keeps a cool head and look for an opening before putting up the fight in a situation like this. In some cases, such as an attempted rape, you fight from the start, but a robbery is very different. You have to keep your head and find the right moment. If it doesn’t present itself, so be it.

The exception is when it’s clear that you either fight or get shot. This is just my opinion here, but if you know you’re about to get shot anyway, you put up a fight. It’s better to die fighting than begging. Besides, you may just come out on top like this clerk did and then no one is dying.

The key is to keep a very cool head, and that’s easier said than done for some folks. Best to start working on it now, don’t you think?