In my younger days, I had no problem getting into someone's face as a young karateka. As I matured, I learned "distance and deescalation." Both are defensive actions, like building a new castle wall while talking peace with your neighbors. The world has changed so much; I carry a gun outside my house after forty years of karate. I open carry; it deescalates situations before they occur. A famous karate fighter had a drug addict break into his house. He told me he did not use karate; he scratched, bit, and tackled him through a door. Once outside, the addict ran.
In my younger years I was pretty intense into Chinese boxing. The first master I studied with was all about block-strike-strike techniques. There was no discussion of the mental aspects of the art, ever… even after years of training.
So I left him, and found a master who had a balanced approach. One of his techniques was “winning by losing”. Perhaps you have heard of that. You achieve your goal in a verbal confrontation without escalation to violence.
But if your opponent puts hands on you, then it’s different. Time for those block-strike-strike techniques and more.