had a knife pulled on me last night. thoughts, takeaways, and advice appreciated

A little background: I am a 20-year-old living in west Philly. Currently, one of the dicier neighborhoods in the city, so armed robberies, shootings, and general fuckery is common here. Being that I am not 21, I am unable to CC in Philadelphia as of now (I will be getting my CCW in my home state in the next two months, and then hopefully, heading to one of the more tolerant CCW counties in PA to get my LTCF (PA's CCW license). This is important to note because I was unarmed for the conflict that took place last night.I was walking back from a friends place alone. That is my first fuck-up. I ALWAYS make sure that I am walking back through the sketchier areas of my neighborhood with a friend. However, last night I broke protocol. In the off situation that I am walking alone, I ALWAYS make sure that I am vigilant, aware of my surroundings, and scanning possible 'hot spots' where people may be hiding. As I was rounding the block, I notice there was a car that had it's engine running but lights off. This was my indicator that something was up. I continued walking, and as I was about to cross to the other side of the street a young man (who was crouching/concealed) hopped out between two cars and put a knife against my stomach.At this moment fight or flight kicked in, and without thinking I clocked him in the jaw. The man dropped to the ground and I took off. I cut through someone's back yard and ran to the nearest street where there would be bystanders. I didn't see anyone, so I kept running until I was back to my apartment and safe. I was afraid of being followed, but in hindsight realized that probably wasn't going to happen.This morning (situation occurred around 2:30-3:00am last night) I went to the police station nearest to my apartment and alerted them as to what happened. They more or less brushed me off and stated that what I had done wasn't entirely the smartest approach and that I should have called them immediately after. I will personally acknowledge fuck ups #2 and #3 for that.I'm still pretty shaken up from the event. On one hand, I'm glad that I was quick and decisive in my actions. On the other hand, I realized my multiple fuck-ups could've had the potential to exacerbate the entire situation. I recognize that. Beyond making sure I am not walking alone, I contact police immediately preceding any altercation, and I do not try to engage a potential armed attacker whilst unarmed, what should I do differently?Basically, I want to hear your thoughts on how to handle a similar situation in the future, how it should be handled if carrying, defensive strategies, and any other overall advice related to self-defense.TL;DR Got attacked, reacted instantly, made dumb mistakes, and luckily turned out okay. Currently looking advice as to be better prepared for future altercations.edit 1: grammar/words via /r/CCW http://ift.tt/2l1ggn8