Are you getting restless with your mundane existence and bored with your present job? If so the first and most rigid rule to follow is training. You cannot expect to become a bodyguard unless you are skilled and trained. There is absolutely no chance to enter into this field being untrained and inexperienced; there are no exceptions.
However, BG training is one of the most pleasant memories you will ever have in the industry. While at the academy get good grades in all the courses as its an indication of your BG intelligence and shows your capacity for self-discipline. Don’t take it lightly.
After successfully graduating from the academy you may think you are on your way to exotic places to bodyguard famous people and make lots of money. Don’t get your hopes up to quickly. It will take a lot of work to achieve upward mobility in the business. This is the reality you have to live with.
Upon BG graduation the reality of the trade descends upon you; you need to get a job to feed yourself and pay the bills. Now is the time to take a good inventory of yourself and to formulate a good plan of attack.
Draw up a “Skill Sheet” and list every skill you have as it relates to the BG field. If you don’t have any additional skills now is the time to get specialized. Here are some examples:
• If you will be working by the ocean and may be guarding your clients at the beach – get certified as a lifeguard.
• If you plan to guard your clients while snow-skiing – take skiing lessons.
• If you know how to jet-ski – list this on your BG resume.
These are some example additional skills that will help “sell” your services within the BG market, as well as your credentials based on your training from the academy. The BG industry is a demanding business that requires a working knowledge of a wide range of skills from security driving, medical procedures to Martial Arts and shooting skills. Get as much education as possible; there is no room for the untrained or uneducated.
After obtaining the additional training based on where you will be working and your circumstances your resume should look extremely professional. Now you will have to find work where the jobs are; so you can start working your way up to the upper echelon of the industry over time.
Here is a list of Asian countries that have bodyguard opportunities:
1. Philippines: Lots of work; brutal competition, can make a decent living. Clients tend to go with seasoned veterans.
2. Hong Kong: Limited work here, work is often assigned to a small percentage of bodyguards, good place to gain international BG experience if you can find it.
3. Pakistan: Certain amount of work here; bodyguards need the right qualifications with reputable in-country connections, somewhat dangerous at times.
4. Malaysia: Fair amount of work; however only a small pool of regular clients requiring BG services.
5. Thailand: Slim pickings here; most BG do auxiliary work while waiting for the unpredictable assignment to come in.
The five listed countries are excellent places to get international experience and gain a professional reputation. They provide golden opportunities to gain exposure in the trade. A bodyguard who has a successful year or two in Asia and returns with good experience will certainly find work in the United States.
There is no easy road to follow; you need to be prepared and be patient for your opportunity. The suggestions and advice in this article can open doors in the bodyguard industry, It’s up to you to go for it. Good luck and god speed.
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http://www.amazon.com/Corporate-Executive-Protection-Inspiring-Bodyguards/dp/1425135927
http://international-corporate-executive-protection.com/order.asp
Competition is healthy. It is not a threat. The only person you’re competing against is yourself. How much you will exceed your last detail performance, improve your protective techniques, re-tweak the formation/positions and doing after action reports for both self and team improvement for the long-haul. We are in competition against the bad guys; criminal, terrorist and psychopathic threats against our clients. And it’s a game we must win at all costs. So, there’s lots of room for upcoming young lions and lioness in the BG industry. I look forward to meeting them and working alongside them as a team. Respectfully submitted.
Kory, I agree with you. The industry is very competitive, and unfortunately they are many scrupulous individuals out there that make false promises.
Kory, in regard to your comment about sharing information, that’s what this page and my website are all about. Providing accurate information for individuals in our industry is a positive thing.
I feel that accurate information being shared by industry professionals will only make our industry stronger. And as far as work goes, I know of many individuals that are actively picking up new contracts on a regular basis. If you want to be gainfully employed in this industry, there are many things considered:
• Experience and training
• Your network
• Your location
• Your marketing approach
It’s not my intention to go deep into marketing in this forum. Certainly there have been libraries full of books written on the subject. I just want to communicate the mindset necessary for success.
Everything is marketing and marketing is everything. These are just a few random and spurious thoughts for your consideration. I’m not the guru of EP but I’ve kept myself gainfully and for the most part passionately employed since ’83.
I’ve made more mistakes than most but each one has taught me valuable lessons and helped put me where I am today. Don’t be afraid to make a few mistakes yourself. Failures are just rungs on the ladder to success.
Hucky
I have to respond to Kory (that I’m pretty sure I know – and respect, by the way)…
I’m one of those not afraid of competition and I always say that if there’s a better person out there to protect my clients… I’ll concede and let them take my job. That’s what anyone really concerned with safety would do, I think.
The advice given here and on other sites (I did share some myself) is merely a way to help raise the level of the guys already working and guide the outsiders. My main worry these days is the amount of untrained, unvetted guys with the wrong attitude actually getting jobs (some don’t even have proper licensing!). THEY, not information and transparence, are the threat to our industry by lowering standards, rates, and image. And THEY are the reason why I sometimes post online, like Hucky and his bloggers, in the spirit of “let’s not see that ever again”.
Also, hammering into prospective agents that it will be hard work and that they should seek (expensive) training is probably a deterrent, not an encouragement, to that unprofessional element I see everywhere (check out celebuguards and entry level companies)!
But in the end, I’ll be honest: I really don’t think that most people vying for jobs are interested with advice and training. I waste my time enough with rookies to know that. The majority are just looking for easy hook-ups and they won’t find them here (nor from me). So I doubt that a few online tips will magically create hordes of unemployed bodyguards banging on our clients’ doors. Should we also ask schools to stop advertising, by the same token?
Now the RARE serious people who have a genuine interest in learning the trade SHOULD absolutely find a source of intel. Otherwise the industry will collapse upon itself, like inbred and stale, only manned by a few retired cops and good ol’ boys hanging on to their piece of the mysterious pie.
I know I always welcome new talent because GOOD people are never too many. This is for the same reason that I believe in Darwinism and the free market (lol).
Again, it’s the (alas, so many) uneducated, uninformed, untrained, who have presented a threat to my livelihood, safety, and sanity so far.
If Bodyguard Careers claimed that bodyguarding was easy and that everybody and their brother could/should do it, I’d take issue, but it’s far from the case. I believe that what they promote is the betterment of our industry.
Bodyguard Careers should stop recruiting. there are to many of us and not enough clients, stop showing to many people the way.
Doc, you mentioned some great points. Here’s something else that will add value to your resume. And that’s speaking a foreign language. This can be extremely useful and only adds to your value as a potential employee. FYI: Spanish is one of the top five most spoken languages worldwide, and is one of six official working languages within the United Nations. It is one of the most used global languages (along with English, French and Portugese).