Code Word

Do you go out at all with your significant other or family members? Then you should have an innocuous code word. A lot of couples have these for parties so that one can let the other know when it's time to go without blurting out "honey, my feet are killing me, these people are bores, and my ass is eating my girdle."

Our recommendation is that you have one for emergency situations as well.

The purpose of the word is to alert them, discretely, that something is about to go down and they should leave you immediately and take any kids you have with them. They should go home, or head to the car, wait thirty minutes and then go and then sit tight till you call them.

You're the professional. It's far easier for you to sense when the proverbial brown stuff is about to hit the fan and blurting that out to them, in earshot of others, can cause panic amongst bystanders or alert the bad guys that you're on to them. By using the code phrase/word you impart the same knowledge without the heads up to people who don't need to know.

The best example I can give is not to use a predetermined phrase at all but rather a pre-determined word that you'd normally never use.

If you opt for an apparently innocent phrase like "honey, did you bring your cash?" for example you might actually want to know if your significant other did in fact bring their cash. While you're expecting a simple yes or no answer she/he is legging it out of the store with kids and parcels in tow.

Try this instead. If your normal term of endearment is "honey" for example use "babe" instead. That way "Babe, did you bring your cash?" isn't likely to be confusing or get mixed up with the legitimate enquiry.