By Doc Rogers

Whether you’re guarding a top CEO or A-list Hollywood actor it’s the same story; clients, their chief of staff or their managers don’t like amateurs or problems.  They want to work with professionals.

They want you to show up on time, be dressed appropriately and act professionally. Not only treating the principal with respect, but also treating the rest of the staff well.

Prior to getting to this stage step back and take a good close look at yourself. How professional do you come across?  Before you go to the BG interview you need to know with certainly.

The BG industry is very unforgiving. Take the time to smooth out any rough edges you may have and enhance your resume. Make sure your resume and cover letter screams “I am much better trained than the other guys, experienced, more professional, more dependable”.

If your goal is to make it to the top of the BG industry, it has to begin by becoming highly professional at this moment. Before anybody interviews you or chooses to hire you for a BG assignment. You need to decide immediately that it’s something you want enough to be willing to make the effort to really be prepared when the time comes.

Once you get that call that asks if you’re able for a BG assignment, it’ll be too late to start getting ready. They say in the industry you haven’t really reached the point of being worthy of the title “professional” until you welcome constructive criticism.

And you aren’t really ready to grow and become successful if you have a chip on your shoulder. Now is the time to establish yourself as a professional.

To become more professional put your ego aside and get down to business.  Learn to take constructive criticism well; it aims to show you that the purpose of something is better served by an alternate approach or that the same goal could be better attained taking a different route.

Learn from this type of criticism. Polish your resume and cover letter and get additional BG training to fill in any skill gaps you may have. This way once that big moment comes along, you’ll be ready. Best of luck and God speed.

By Doc Rogers

If you’re eager to put in the work promoting, marketing and selling your BG services, then the freelance BG route may be the right way for you to go. But you have to be willing to do the work. BG skill is important, as well is ambition. But if skill and ambition were all it took, then every graduate BG coming out of the academy would be making a full-time living as a professional BG.

To turn the freelance BG route into a career requires work.  It’s called the BG industry for a reason, because before there can be any bodyguarding, there has to be a client. You have to be able to effectively retain clients to generate BG assignments and revenue. You have to wear two hats; one as a professional BG and the other as a businessman thinking about the business side of things.

If you work for a corporation as a BG employee this does not come into the picture. If you decide to go it alone as a freelance BG, you are the one who has to make sure that the bills get paid and you have money to put food on the table. The freelance BG route takes commitment and a whole lot of work. But it is incredibly satisfying. If this sounds interesting to you, then you should take control of your BG career and get busy as a freelancer.

Become the best freelance BG you can be and then continue to get better. Keep your freelance BG goals in sight and keep heading in that direction. Take a few minutes to write down your and start progressing towards your ultimate goal. Having professional goals will give you a direction to head for and a way to get back on course if you head towards a roadblock.

Like any business, it takes time to put together your BG services, develop your clientele and start making some money. If you’re willing to work hard, invest your profits back into your freelance BG business you’ll reach your goals much faster. Only you can decide if being a freelance BG is the right choice for you.  Best of luck and God speed.

The executive protection industry is a very competitive market. Having the training and experience are assets that would enable you to do your job right. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the nature of the beast is that you are faced with an enormous amount of competitors targeting a very select market. Allow me to give you an example that perhaps will help you see this point from a different perspective.

For the sake of the argument let’s say that you are in a room with two hundred other people the same gender as you and you are all dressed the same way; remember, your physical appearance doesn’t matter and you all possess the same or very similar qualifications, experience, and training.

From a distance, you all look the same; the question is how you will make the potential employer pick you over everybody else? Sure, you can be the court jester, start jumping around yelling “pick me, pick me.” Realistically that approach will not get you the job, so making a fool out of yourself is not recommended.

What you need is to understand that the niche of employers you are targeting is specialized and has very specific needs. It’s your job, and yours only to find work. If your idea of job hunting is that the employer will come and knock on your door while you are in your pajamas at home browsing the internet, tweeting how you spent your night, or playing Farmville games on Facebook, you are severely deceived.

The reality is that it is up to you, and only you to make yourself available, find and utilize resources to get you where you are envisioning yourself to be. There is no genie that will jump out of the oil lamp and will inform you that you have three wishes available at your disposal. In other words, you need a plan.

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By Doc Rogers

Although we may be called bodyguards we utilize our mind more often on the job for client protection than actual physical action.  As professional executive protection specialist we need rational judgment and intelligent to be “a thinking man’s protection specialist.  Here are some recommendations to achieve this goal.

1.    Remain cool under pressure and always businesslike.

2.    Realize the value of your experience; be willing to give advice to the team. Be a ready point of contact.

3.    Assemble a team of well trained, organized, and equipped BGs for your mission.

4.    Employ BG tactics that suits your means and operational area. Become a master of the basic BG techniques and procedures.

5.    BG operations should be planned in detail and based upon careful reconnaissance and up-to-date intelligence.

6.    No route or venue is one hundred percent secure therefore; precautionary measures must always be taken in advance and security must be maintained at all times.

7.    The use of motorcade route maps showing the location of chokepoints in an area is a valuable aid in motorcade planning therefore; make a detailed motorcade route map study.

8.    Brief and rehearse all BGs on their individual responsibilities and duties at arrival and departure points as well as in the event of ambush.

9.    Keep cautious of people watching your BG team, attempting to predict the movements or activities of your client. Stay alert and vary BG formations.

10.    While on BG assignments keep vigilant and ready to react with your BG skills.

11.    You are responsible for your official BG and personal actions. Keep discreet; do not attract attention by rude or unusual behavior. Reflect upon yourself and the BG team with respect at all times.

Stay focused, positive and take action. Visualize goals daily and strive to become a top-notch BG and a capable operator.  Your success will ultimately depend on the effectiveness training, determination and the proper use of the mind. Keep safe and God speed.

By Doc Rogers

Now is certainly the time to reflect on what you’ve learned this past year, here’s some critical lessons I learned in 2011 and I hope there are some good take a ways from this article.

1.    Loyalty. There is no such thing as a loyal client. This may sound negative. But it’s vital to know. You may be focusing all your BG attention and efforts on one key client while neglecting others. Once that key client does not require your BG services any longer you’ll be left with a dramatic dry spell in work and in revenue.  Key Take Away: Focus equally on all your BG clients.

2.    Overload. Don’t try to do all the BG assignments yourself. You will spread yourself too thin and can only work so many assignments at one time. This reduces your income potential. Key Take Away: Shift your focus to managing BG assignment utilizing vetted and trained personnel under your command instead of trying to do all the BG assignments yourself.

3.    Expenses. Don’t neglect incidental expenses. To stay profitable in today’s expensive world BGs must charge clients for their incidental expenses.  Key Take Away:  Your BG contract should have a daily payment for lodging expenses, meals and related incidental expenses while on assignment. This way you revenue will not go down, your expenses will not go up and your profits will not suffer.

4.    Cancellations. Utilize a cancellation clause. In today’s undetermined business world many clients are forced to cancel BG services. Professional BGs should include a cancellation clause in their contract. Cancellations make profits suffer and you can actually lose money.  Key Take Away:   Suggested cancellation fees for BG services: 30 – 15 days prior to BG service: 5%, 14 – 7 days prior to BG service: 10%, 6 – 3 days prior to BG service: 25% and Less than 72 hours prior to BG service: 50% of the total price quoted for the BG assignment.

5.    Errors. Accept your past errors. As professionals BGs we cannot account for all the errors of the world. Cancelled flights, delays in visas, passport renewals, lost luggage,  etc.  Mistakes happen from time to time. We acknowledge this fact.  But we should not dwell upon them or let them affect our performance. Key Take Away: Champions learn from past errors and do their best to avoid repetition in the future.

6.    Risks. We should take more positive risks in our lives (never on the job where clients are concerned). This includes career advancement, obtaining BG contracts, meeting the right people and obtaining more education. Key Take Away: Historically those who achieved greatness in business and in their personal lives took all the positive risks possible. For once they crossed that risk; personal satisfaction, confidence, self-respect was gained and success became easier. Don’t be afraid to take changes.  Keep safe and God speed.