The Simple Tactic That Can Transform Your Business
Some of the simplest concepts in life often hold the most power. This is absolutely true when it comes to intelligence training. People often ask me, “What’s the most valuable piece of information you learned in your training?” It’s true that I’m well versed in self-defense moves, and I’m confident I could defend myself against most people (although my training has also taught me to always do everything I can to avoid a physical confrontation). I also admit I do have some James Bond–worthy skills: I could follow just about anyone and they’d have no idea I was doing it.
But the most valuable lessons I’ve learned aren’t sexy—they’re not even the least bit exciting, and you’ll never see them in a James Bond or Jason Bourne movie. But a failure to follow these tactics is what gets people killed in an emergency and causes businesses to fail. Early on in our training as intelligence officers we learn about two key concepts, and both of them have changed my life.
SITUATIONAL AWARENESS:
The Number-One Thing That Can Keep You Safe
If there’s one thing I could teach absolutely everyone to practice, it would be situational awareness. People who receive my survival newsletter have heard me speak of this before.
Situational awareness is the way in which we maneuver through the world in an alert and engaged manner. Sounds easy, right? Not necessarily if you have a habit of always looking at your phone, texting while you’re walking, making calls while driving, playing video games on public transportation, and generally walking through the streets of your city or hometown with blinders on. One of the greatest differences between an intelligence officer and your average civilian is that the average person is trying to drown out his immediate surroundings. An intelligence officer is not going to put on headphones and listen to his favorite playlist so he can eliminate all the noise from the street. The sounds and signals that are reverberating through society act as signals to an intelligence officer that all is well . . . or not. Have you ever been watching the news when a witness is talking about an accident and says, “The car came out of nowhere!” Truth is, though, that everything comes from somewhere. Intelligence officers are taught to be constantly assessing an environment so that we’re alert and ready when something does happen.
GET OFF THE X:
What to Do Immediately When Something Happens
The other concept that’s drilled into us early on in our training is to “get off the X.” The X is the hot zone, it’s the place where something dangerous and potentially lethal is going down. The only way to save yourself in such a situation—be it a shooting or a natural disaster—is to move. And move immediately. If you’re thinking, Well of course, that’s exactly what I’d do in an emergency, please know that you have your own human nature battling against you, and it’s battling hard. It’s incredibly common for people to freeze when faced with a life-threatening situation. In my first book, Spy Secrets That Can Save Your Life, I talked about how the biggest danger from a plane disaster is from fire, not from a crash. I recounted the tragic story of a woman and her husband who survived a terrible fire on a plane because they were able to force themselves to get up and move. They could not rouse their good friend to move, and she unfortunately perished. Our instinct to freeze when faced with danger is strong, and it can be harder to reverse this than you think.
THE PRACTICE OF ACTIVE AWARENESS:
The Greatest Gift My Intelligence Training Has Given Me
Like many of you who started businesses, I was immediately faced with what felt like hundreds of choices to make. There were decisions about branding, computer equipment, software, supplies, shipping services, whether or not to hire staff, whom to hire . . . the list went on and on. It’s a lot of work, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and bogged down by all the details. While I was chipping away at what felt like the longest to-do list in history, the rest of the world kept moving forward as usual. Other companies were being launched, survival and security conferences were taking place, and people were facing new cyber security threats and scams daily.
From day one in the CIA, I had been taught about situational awareness. I knew that this concept was more likely to save my life than any of my firearms or self-defense skills. Now that I was responsible for my own income, I’d need to be aware of what was going on in the area of survival and self-defense. This sounds self-evident, but every businessperson knows that you have to keep a pulse on the competition. Situational awareness isn’t about being hyperaware, though; it’s about mastering a particular kind of awareness. In the intelligence world, this is called code yellow. Code yellow means you’re aware of what’s going on but not overanalyzing everything to the point that you can’t function. (Code orange is the level of hyperawareness, and it has its time and place.) If I could operate in code yellow when it came to my business, I’d be able to focus on what I really needed to know and not let myself be bogged down by too much information. Getting off the X was also something I deeply understood. If someone is running at me with a sharp knife, the only way I cease being his target is by moving. As I was sitting at my desk surrounded by piles of papers and notes, I suddenly understood that if I wasn’t careful, I wasn’t going to get off the X. The papers, to-do lists, forms, and files represented something that could take me down if it got too out of control. I realized that getting off the X meant being deliberate and swift with my decision making. Getting off the X meant that I would not suffer from analysis paralysis, which is so easy to do in the age of easy information. With information about absolutely everything at our fingertips, it’s easy to get lost in a vortex of research, reviews, articles, and studies. The tactics I took from my training have helped me streamline, move forward, and run a lean and successful business. Practicing active awareness will help you stay focused, predict events, and remain connected to your team members. Following are some easy ways to start practicing active awareness.
SEPARATE IMMEDIATE-ACTION PROJECTS FROM LONG-TERM PROJECTS
I make a point to avoid analysis paralysis whenever possible. While some decisions require more thought and planning than others, entrepreneurs can easily get bogged down in the decision-making process. In the intelligence world, if you stay on the X, you die. You must move, just as in business decisions must be made and then executed. At Spy Escape & Evasion, I separate immediate-action projects from long-term projects. I’ve decided that when it comes to immediate-action projects, a decision will be made within twenty-four hours. Examples of things that fall into this category might be a new design for a newsletter, an idea for an article, or transportation arrangements for a private client flying in for training. Long-term projects may include new shipping procedures, an idea for a webinar, or a concept for a new book. Only you yourself can know when you start to feel stifled by the decision-making process. Decide which items can be taken off your plate by a quick decision and which require more attention. Predetermine a time frame for immediate-action projects. Give yourself enough time so that you are making a smart decision but not enough that you can overanalyze, ultimately creating bigger problems. Watch how dividing your decision-making process in this simple fashion makes life easier, gets things done faster, and removes stress.
What/who are your go-to sources? While it’s crucial to keep an eye on the competition and the various developments taking place in your industry, it’s not necessary to keep tabs on everything to stay relevant. Create a focus base for assessment and stick to it. Choose the events, companies, players, and publications that will provide you with the most valuable and useful information and focus on those. A spy isn’t going to run around town asking three dozen people what they think is going on—he determines who are his best sources and then maximizes the information he gets from them.
Know the baseline of your own business: It’s essential that you are aware of the baseline of your own business. This may include the approximate amount of income you’re bringing in each month, the expenses going out, the incoming orders for particular projects, and the timing of work being completed by your employees. Large corporations have software for tracking everything and analysts on staff to keep tabs on what’s going on. Knowing the baseline of your business can serve the same function. Expenses getting out of control? Maybe you need to change vendors or talk to your employees about expenses. If you’re a smaller operation like me, knowing the baseline can alert you to potential problems before they become actual problems.
[ SPY MYTHS DECODED ]
ONLY A VERY SELECT HANDFUL OF PEOPLE ARE PRIVY TO GOVERNMENT SECRETS.
False!
When I refer to my colleagues throughout this book, it’s easy to assume that everyone can be lumped into one category (spies). Ultimately, that’s not quite true. There are so many different branches of intelligence, and even more levels of security clearance. Over 5 million people in the United States have security clearance and are given access to sensitive materials. Nearly 1.5 million people have clearance to look at “top-secret” materials. It seems like “top-secret” would include all of our nation’s most valuable secrets, but the truth is that there are several levels of security clearance above and beyond “top-secret.” Some of these security levels are so elite that I can’t even tell you what they’re called. No kidding.