Executive ProtectionI’ve been active in the Executive Protection Industry since 1984. I’m not a huge fan of celebrities and as a Nashville area resident, my friends can tell you I’m not real good at recognizing musicians, NASCAR drivers and other celebrities from stage and screen.
What I’m good at is Threat Analysis. I’m fast and I’m usually correct at making sense of someone’s intentions. If you want to check out a great book on gut feeling, read Dr. Malcolm Gladwell’s book titled Blink .
Some of my principals include President Clinton in Warsaw Poland, Madame Secretary Albright in Jerusalem and Arafat’s HQ in Ramallah Palestine, Admirals, Generals and the Under Secretary of State in Sicily, Italy. Here in the US, I’ve worked with Alan Jackson in Nashville, Don Shula and Bob Griese at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, Ozzy, Gene Simmons, a stud show horse named Ebony’s Pride and many others in Nashville. Executive Protection Law Suits Skyrocket! These are all great but they’re rare. The meat and potatoes of the industry are High-Risk Terminations where a potentially violent employee is going to be fired. Yes, you will be there when they’re fired and you will stay with the executive for about 4-7 days.
Let’s distinguish between body guard and executive protection. What do you think when you hear “body guard”? Cheesy movies, rent-a-cops, an ill-fitting sport coat with a sewn on badge and $10 an hour! Executive Protection goes way beyond trading punches or taking a bullet for someone. The term “Executive” should be taken literally. How many 6 and 7 figure income earners hang out with $10 an hour guys? None! It doesn’t happen!
If you are going to provide Executive Protection, you had better speak the language of executives. This isn’t limited to what you say or how you say it. It’s more how you listen and how you make the executive look good and present no possibilities of embarrassing the principal. Your job is to keep a watchful eye and a way to escape while systematically conducting threat analysis on everyone that is in the office, hotel, traffic, restaurant, bar and home. Fight or Flight? A natural question that has plagued man since the beginning of time. It’s easy in the Executive Protection arena. It’s Flight! Here’s why: You’re at dinner with an executive, politely keeping your mouth shut, you’re dressed in an appropriate suit, long sleeve blue or white shirt, jewel colored tie and shined shoes. You notice a guy at the bar that has is drinking a bit too much for the environment and even notice a shot of tequila. The guy comes over and starts harassing your principal verbally! What do you do? We can “what if” scenarios to death but this what you have to be thinking. If you try to take care of the situation yourself, you’ve now exposed the principal to a third party that may have hired the guy to come over and start trouble or simply identify you for the next time. As the principals’ “Personal Assistant” you should know the Maître D and have him be aware that you are concerned about making sure any unwanted guests are quickly and quietly ushered away. If it reaches an unacceptable threshold, leave the premises. My recommendations to enter the EP community are to be very fit. It’s not that you’re going to be fighting or running long distance. It’s that you’re in business and you need to sell yourself. Highly compensated executives don’t waste time and thus make time to be fit. You may be tasked to be a tennis, golf or racquetball partner.
While I was protecting the Under Secretary of State in 1994, I had to go for a run with him and his 3 (jerks) US Secret Service body guards. I was carrying a 1911 with two magazines and a Motorola radio. Thankfully, I was very fit as I was training for Navy EOD. I’m 6’5” and was going around 245. He was 6’ and about 155 pounds. He was a runner. I ran because I had to. About 3 miles into the run, he asked if I wanted to pick up the pace a bit! After about 5 minutes we’re going down the center road at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily and passing my Chief who’s standing outside our office. Big cheesy grin and a wave! About 2 minutes later here come the 3 Secret Service guys! My point is that you have to be able to communicate and relate to your principal and once in a while, at their request, you need to bring you’re “A” game. When the 3 jerks showed up at the gym a bit later than me and the Under Secretary, they complimented me and bought me a bottle of water. Sucked to be them on the flight out. If I wasn’t prepared, it would have been me on the receiving end of a not-so-pleasant conversation. The Executive Protection field is in dire need of articulate, fast-thinking, business-minded people. Ladies too! Recommendations: Find a book on Business Etiquette Men’s Wearhouse is my favorite place for a suit. They’re in most major cities, will press your suits for free, lifetime alterations for free and they keep your suits and sizes in a database in case you forgot something while traveling. Fit the suit for a concealed weapon. Take lessons from a professional shooter and practice shooting in your suits. Any town has a gun shop and shooting range whether indoors or out.
Find an Executive Protection course close to where you live. After you’ve taken a local course, then start looking around the country for other courses. BEWARE of ass-clowns selling you on a DVD course or promises of working overseas. You'll lose your money! Take an MMA or Krav Maga course for a couple of months. Remember your job is not to fight but to be aware.Start watching people in bars or other high-stress environments and begin predicting their actions. Drive your car intentionally. Always be in the present. What if you’re sitting at a red light and … you get my point. I make $400 a day minimum plus Per Diem, rental car if I’m traveling and am staying in the hotel the principal does. The deal is done when I get my flight confirmation. If you make the decision to enter the Executive Protection Profession, we look forward to hearing from you and possibly working with you in the future. If you have any questions, please feel free to use the "Contact Me" form on this site. Be Globally Employable!
New! CommentsHave your say about what you just read! Leave me a comment in the box below. |
Arafat's HQ in Ramallah, Palestine
On July 4, 2012
One Person
Will Win
UXO Training for Free!
Go to UXO School for Free? That's Right! UXO School for FREE! (You're getting paid to blow stuff up after you graduate.)
The UXO industry has been great for me and many of my friends. You can read about them under the Success Stories section. Where else can you go to school for 4 weeks and have the ability to make in excess of $100,000 in addition to having a change of scenery and work with explosives!
I'm still working out the final details but here's what I have now: There is absolutely no requirement to purchase anything from me in order to win. To get your name in the drawing, I must have some kind of communication with you whether it's through the Contact Me page or your submit a question to our FAQ or actually take a course through us.
1. Sign up for the Globally Employable newsletter and get 10 entries. I put all the good stuff out there first. Here's the form:
2. Like us on Facebook and receive 100 entries!
3. Fill out the TEEX Information Request form on the UXO page and receive 10 entries. You'll receive an email with links to all of the best information about TEEX and UXO.
4. Use the Contact Me page and get your name in once...and only once. Don't have the time to jam up my Blackberry with unnecessary emails. Contact Me gets 1. If you ask a question on the Contact Me and I publish the question, you get 10 entries.
5. Submit a question to the FAQ and it gets published, you get 10 entries. You get one and only one for submitting a question and doesn't get published. Again, don't jam up the Blackberry.
6. Take a course with us or purchase a product and you'll receive 1 entry for every dollar spent including any of the SGC Group HAZWOPER training or all purchases through the SGC Group EOD Gear Catalog.
7. Purchase my book How to Profit from Disaster, you'll receive 100 entries and my new book Globally Employable for FREE! Send me a copy of your confirmation email as I use the email addresses for your 100 entries and your copy of Globally Employable.
The drawing for UXO School will be in July 4, 2012!
Can't wait that long to win something? I can't wait to give something away between now and then!
Here's some other things will be giving away:
AK 47 Shoot with me and my team from SGC Group.
Some of my favorite books that made a significant impact on my life such as Think & Grow Rich, Greatest Salesman in the World, Atlas Shrugged, 4 Hour Work Week, etc.
2 room nights at a Hilton property of your choice- Brian D. of VA has won 2 free nights at the Holiday Inn Property of his choice.
Weekly phone consultation with me for a month to help assist you accomplish your income & career goals.
I'm working out the details for more training that will given away.
Now's your chance to get UXO school for Free! Take advantage of all of the "No Purchase Necessary" ways to win.
As a favor, please pay this forward to those that would be truly interested in taking a look at this.
Steve Cassidy