In this episode I am being interviewed by a good friend and colleague named Luke Agajanian. He is a 10+ year veteran with a wealth of knowledge on many aspects of private security, he's worked on many continents with various client demographics. He has a black belt Brazilian Jujitsu from AOJ and he is a highly -ranked competitive shooter at the Masters level in at least one division. We worked together for years and we are currently working together on an ongoing detail during the time of this podcast. Luke is the man who opened the door to me and let me into the world of private security. During this interview we talk about how our first meeting changed my life as he recruited me from a bouncer position and brought me to the next level. We study the dynamics of this encounter in order to help all the replicated and understand a little bit more about what it takes to make it in private security. After talking about who I am, my background and how I got into private security we go into a number of different topics around the subject. 
•	Who am I
•	My background
•	Networking
•	Humility and confidence
•	Warlord and Guardian
•	Ideal executive protection mindset
•	What is executive protection?
•	Branding you represent three brands
•	The vanity of the industry
•	Why you may not be able to find work
Support the Podcast 
www.patreon.com/join/ByronR

For More 
www.executiveprotectionlifestyle.com

EP 3 : Getting Into The Protection Game

Ami and I really had a blast putting this content together! He’s an extremely knowledgeable private security professional with a solid handle on many different aspects of the games we play in the industry. Terrorist prevention operations, counter surveillance, surveillance detection are really just a few things he is proficient at and conducting operations in the field on at an expert level.  He is a public speaker and his book, “Surveillance Zone” has been an Amazon bestseller so it’s no wonder I was absolutely honored and very pleased when he agreed to come on our show.  In this first episode, we dig deep into who he is as a person, his past, his background and the experiences that have brought him to the place he is currently at in his career.  

By the end of this episode, we begin talking about the subject matter that will consume part two of our conversation, “Terrorist Activity Prevention.”  This episode and series are very interesting on many different levels as we dive into the real-world experiences and hard-hitting non-PC tactics of the Israeli methods of prevention and protection. The beautiful thing about these types of operations is that they are also applicable to virtually every different type of private security operation; so standby for some valuable real-world content and don’t worry we also recorded in the episode all about surveillance for those of you who follow Ami for those tactics as well. ENJOY!   

Background:  

An experienced security director, consultant, trainer, operator and published author of the #1 Amazon bestseller, Surveillance Zone. 
Over 15 years of military and private sector security experience, and a successful record of providing full-spectrum, high-end services to Fortune 500 corporations, foreign governments, foundations, nonprofit organizations, and wealthy individuals. 

Professional experience includes: security consultancy and risk assessments, terrorist activity prevention, surveillance, surveillance detection, Executive Protection, security training, intelligence gathering, full-spectrum facility security, special event security, low profile and covert security, metal detector operations, estate security, shareholder meeting security, electronic security systems coordination, public speaking, professional writing, executive presentations, account management, business development, recruiting, marketing and strategic planning.  
 

Links: 
https://protectioncircle.org  

Twitter 
https://twitter.com/protectioncirc  

LinkedIn 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ami-toben-316b9527/  

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/protectioncircle/  

Book - Surveillance zone 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0728JYHL8/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

EP 46 Terrorist Activity Prevention [Part 1]

Terrorist prevention operations, counter surveillance, surveillance detection are really just a few things he is proficient at and conducting operations in the field at an expert level. He is a public speaker and his book, “Surveillance Zone” has been an Amazon bestseller so it’s no wonder I was absolutely honored and very pleased when he agreed to come on our show. In the first episode, we dig deep into who he is as a person, his past, his background and the experiences that have brought him to the place he is currently at in his career. In this second volume we go straight into the techniques and tactics he uses in real-world security details in order to keep himself and his clients safe. 

“Terrorist Activity Prevention.” This series is very interesting on many different levels as we dive into the real-world experiences and hard-hitting non-PC tactics of the Israeli methods of prevention and protection. The beautiful thing about these types of operations is that they are also applicable to active shooter/active human threat situations as well as virtually every different type of private security detail; so standby for some valuable real-world content and don’t worry we also recorded another episode all about surveillance for those of you who follow Ami for those tactics as well. ENJOY! 

Background: 

An experienced security director, consultant, trainer, operator and published author of the #1 Amazon bestseller, Surveillance Zone.  
Over 15 years of military and private sector security experience, and a successful record of providing full-spectrum, high-end services to Fortune 500 corporations, foreign governments, foundations, nonprofit organizations, and wealthy individuals. 

Professional experience includes: security consultancy and risk assessments, terrorist activity prevention, surveillance, surveillance detection, Executive Protection, security training, intelligence gathering, full-spectrum facility security, special event security, low profile and covert security, metal detector operations, estate security, shareholder meeting security, electronic security systems coordination, public speaking, professional writing, executive presentations, account management, business development, recruiting, marketing and strategic planning.

EP 47: Terrorist Activity Prevention [Part 2]

My conversation with Jerry was truly spectacular. He’s the type of man who comes across very meek, gentle, humble and who has a fun sense of humor. Conversely through all of these refreshing positive attributes, one can sense that he knows his craft of protection to an almost unconscious level of competence from all of the years of experience he has both doing and teaching the art. I would like to suppose that it is all of that experience that allows him to be so relaxed, however, I have a funny feeling it’s just his personality. I met Mr. Heying at this last Close Protection Conference after leaving the stage where I was a panelist being interviewed by none other than Christian West himself. I have tremendous respect and admiration for gentlemen like Mr. Heying who’ve been in this industry longer than I’ve been alive and who have strived vehemently to carry out a career that not just helps them reach their own personal goals but is also one of the extremely high levels of contribution. This deserves respect because this industry will literally chew you up and spit you out after wrecking any type of family and relational life you're trying to have if you’re not careful.  With all that having been said, Mr. Heying has been married for something like 40 years… RESPECT.  

The very nature of what we do demands that you have strong values, understand your worth personally and operate with a somewhat untouchable character if you are going to last in this game. Beyond all this, you must be able to manage your mind and heart effectively so you don’t get complacent or too arrogant or two damaged while living in the shadows of powerful people that are also doing their best to survive in their tumultuous world. So, when I see an individual who’s been in this game that long and it still smiling and has also dedicated considerable time to making others in the profession better… I value every moment of interaction with them as an opportunity to understand priceless lessons that are beyond my current available perspective and experiential information. This interview was priceless, ENJOY! 

 

Jerry Heying has more than 40 years of private security, investigations, personal protection, and protection driving experience while working in over 50 countries. Beginning in the late '70s, Mr. Heying was a team member of a large high threat personal protection team for an ultra-high net worth (UHNW) private family. Mr. Heying has attended numerous protection and driving courses and attained driving and protection Instructor status from multiple schools. He also holds numerous professional and state-issued certifications in a multitude of specialties. 
 
In 1989, Mr. Heying founded the International Protection Group, LLC (IPG) and the International Protective Service Agency (IPSA); licensed security and investigation companies in several states that specialize in special event security, investigations, secured transportation, and personal protection. Since 2009, IPG has owned and operated the Executive Protection Institute (EPI), the oldest executive protection training school operating in the United States since being established in 1978. Mr. Heying has also been an Instructor for EPI since 1996. 

>>> Read more at >>>
http://www.ipgcompany.com/jerry-heying.html

EP 48: Treat it like a profession

Mike is my type of warrior.  He is very cerebral, he’s a bit of a philosopher and an intellectual as well as a physical specimen. I believe this is what the evolution of man was supposed to look like rather than many of the things we see in today’s version of American masculinity. I always appreciate learning that a man has developed himself internally and physically. Mike is a successful businessman who created enough of a win in life to cash his chips in, on a previous career in banking and then go into a career in law enforcement.  To me achieving these levels of success in both business and modern-day warrior-ship says a lot about an individual’s internal and external potency. I’ve also noticed two more things that make Mike very special to me, he understands what Leonardo da Vinci meant when he talked about how “simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”  Simply take a look at his free target, simple yet extremely telling and requires a certain level of efficacy in order to execute properly.   

At the same time, much of his content is centered around thinking outside of the box, nonstandard problem-solving and real-world combat considerations. Mike has the luxury of leveraging his real-world experiences on the streets to improve the quality of his training regimen.  Recently I attended one of his courses and was so impressed that it inspired me to do a full course review (see link below).   

Bio background 

MIKE, OWNER/LEAD INSTRUCTOR 

Mike is a Post Certified Law Enforcement Range Master, Sig Law Enforcement Master Instructor, a current SWAT team member for 11 Years. He focuses his training methods on proven combat tactics with an emphasis on performance. Mike is also a successful problem solver and can identify and remedy most people’s shooting deficiencies. 

Mike holds a Master’s Degree from Pepperdine University and is known for his critical thinking as it relates to self-defense. Source: http://assaultdynamics.com/about-our-company/   

Mike’s Website: www.assaultdynamics.com 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/knockoutlights/  

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Knockoutlights-114008039194217/  

Target: http://assaultdynamics.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/knockout-target.pdf  

Combat Essentials course review: https://byronrodgersmotivation.com/knockout-lights/

EP 49: You win every fight you don’t get in

If you ask me, Brian Jentzen is one of those rare people who sees the game differently than most. He sees things from something more like a bird’s eye view while most of us are at a high phase with the components of our day dealing with what’s right in front of us. This conversation has lots to do with the business of executive protection, the trajectory of a career in executive protection and what it could look like spanning beyond the years of simply working the streets with your client. After speaking with Brian for only a few moments, his decades of experience in this game and the perspective that comes with it became very apparent, it was also very interesting to learn that we have many of the same interests with regards to the industry at our core. 

He talks about how an executive protection agent should be regarded as a professional, a specialist such as a banker, doctor or lawyer and that the relationship between the professional and client should be as such. My goal with this podcast and many of the projects I partake is simply to help restore order to our trade by creating higher-quality agents. This interview with Brian will help you think big picture with regards to the private security industry, how to run your business and the trajectory of your career. Enjoy! 

 

 Background:  

After leaving the US Marine Corps as a captain in the early 1990s, Brian has pioneered corporate executive protection services internationally for Fortune 500 companies, high net worth families and NGOs. 

Brian has provided protection at the highest levels of corporate and philanthropic environments in over 35 countries. With his demonstrated ability to align security operations with both the client’s organizational goals and personal preferences, Brian uses his strong relationship building, collaboration and project and vendor management expertise to create security solutions that deliver program efficiencies and customer satisfaction. Brian graduated from the University of Washington with a BA in Sociology and is the subject matter expert chair for the ASIS Executive Protection Council.  

Source: https://assolution.com/people/brian-jantzen/  

Links  

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianjantzen/  

https://assolution.com/people/brian-jantzen/  

https://instagram.com/bjantze?igshid=u4t3wdrqsok2

EP 50: The business of executive protection

Mr. Hamilton is a rare man. To me he comes across as someone who in many ways is built of the stuff, I hope I’m built of as well. He’s not a Marine but the values of honor, courage, and commitment really don’t seem foreign to him.  During this interview, I genuinely felt I was talking with a more evolved kindred spirit. He is an eternal student of the game first and foremost but he is also one of those rare individuals who genuinely believes and strives to bring accountability and raise the standards of everybody he is involved with. It is a well-known fact and something that is also made obvious during this interview that Mr. Hamilton has and is living a consistent life of contribution. 

These principles of discipline, contribution, a life of service, accountability and raising standards are values that are very rarely found in people in the civilian sector or anywhere in America these days for that matter. In my opinion, Mr. Hamilton is a man amongst men, a leader of men and a man I really feel honored to be able to have had this conversation with.  I also found it inspiring that he shares my passion for empowering people to understand how to protect themselves… It appears we both want to make good people smarter about violence and more dangerous! 

Furthermore, I believe he is one individual that is definitely contributing to the small body of growing professionals that are restoring honor, dignity, and respect to what we do as private security professionals and our industry. Enjoy! 

 About James Hamilton 

James Hamilton served 17 years as a Special Agent in the FBI, where he developed the Bureau’s Close Protection Course and served as Security Adviser for the Director of the FBI and the U.S. Attorney General. His specially designed training courses are still taught at the FBI, NSA, NYPD, and many other government agencies. Mr. Hamilton’s Active Shooter training modules teach both Prevention and Response. Modules are interactive, practical, and tailored for each client’s unique circumstances.  

 
Links:
https://gdba.com/active-shooter-prevention/   

http://a.co/ibRAPhe

EP 51: Standards & Accountability

So this is the episode you’ve all been waiting for and no doubt expected me to roll out with Ami Toben. We go deep into surveillance detection in this episode. We dispel rumors on the topic and we discuss salient techniques and tactics that are being used in the real world.  Ami is at the top of the game and a very sought after instructor and specialists on this content as I’m sure you’re all aware judging from the following he has on his blog Protection Circle and his best-selling book Surveillance Zone.  It was an honor and privilege to have a discussion like this with such a sought after specialist on this topic. What I really enjoyed is how he breaks a lot of the concepts down and relate them with real-world tactics so everything makes sense and isn’t over-the-top technical. Ami Is a wealth of knowledge and I believe we will all get something out of this episode once again.  If you liked this episode I want to encourage you to go back and check out the first two episodes (46 & 47) I did with Ami on Terrorist Activity Prevention. 

Background:  

An experienced security director, consultant, trainer, operator and published author of the #1 Amazon bestseller, Surveillance Zone. 
Over 15 years of military and private sector security experience, and a successful record of providing full-spectrum, high-end services to Fortune 500 corporations, foreign governments, foundations, nonprofit organizations, and wealthy individuals. 

Professional experience includes: security consultancy and risk assessments, terrorist activity prevention, surveillance, surveillance detection, Executive Protection, security training, intelligence gathering, full-spectrum facility security, special event security, low profile and covert security, metal detector operations, estate security, shareholder meeting security, electronic security systems coordination, public speaking, professional writing, executive presentations, account management, business development, recruiting, marketing and strategic planning.  


Links: 
https://protectioncircle.org  

Twitter 
https://twitter.com/protectioncirc  

LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ami-toben-316b9527/  

Facebook 
https://www.facebook.com/protectioncircle/  

Book - Surveillance zone 
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0728JYHL8/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

EP 52: Surveillance Detection

So why do an episode on 511?

Honestly, it’s because their gear is improving the quality of my work product. The pocket configuration on the pants, the quality of the jeans with the stretch and the new cut, the new overall low profile look, and style they are putting out is extremely relevant to the way more and more of us go to work these days. 

511 has always been relevant but less relevant to executive protection and more relevant to uniformed work in contracting in my opinion. Over the course of this last year, I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the fact that I can now get dressed head to toe in their gear and go to work with my clientele of any type, looking just as smooth as I would look when getting clothes from my other vendors. 

The major difference and advantage to wearing 511 gear of course it doesn’t come from the style but rather from the durability, dependability and overall tactical considerations put into their products. In my opinion, 511 is now pulling forward to give you the best of a few different worlds with regards to style, tactical advantages plus durability. This episode is about what we wear as professionals. Enjoy!

EP 53: 511 - Always Ready

The Protector Symposium is a live event put on for protectors by protectors from all walks of life. Whether you are a private security professional, first responder or civilian, this symposium will teach you how to take your protection skills to the next level.  

This year it is a two-day event with three amazing speakers (Ed Calderon, Yosef Badou & Mike Pannone) who regularly instruct some of the world’s most elite fighting forces on their given subjects and fieldcraft. The goal is to arm modern-day protectors of all types with tools that will help them identify threats before they become problems and deal with them in ways that keep the innocent safe and increase on-scene accountability.    

I chose to do the symposium model because I wanted to get as much of this information out to the public as possible in order to do my part to defend against the changes we are seeing in American culture with regards to active threat solutions.  Going to the range is good and we must all be extremely proficient with our hard skills in order to get the job done but for this symposium, I also wanted to aim at the soft skills in order to make people better protectors. I wanted to bring content to the market that could be applied by women and children but would also be just as helpful for SWAT operators, beat cops and private security operatives. I wanted to offer the type of information that would cause people who were already playing at high levels to understand ways they can improve on their game and also cause people who are just waking up to the game to be better when they walk out the door. 

You may not always have your gun with you but hopefully you’ll always have your brain with you and this information is designed to upgrade your software so you’re more a harder target no matter where you are or what you have with you. 

Learning how to read people and understand pre-indicators is a game-changer and Yosef Badou of Emergence is the man whose teaching the best of us how to do it.  Learning hard targeting and about anti-kidnapping techniques and tactics can help you win the fight before it even starts and Ed Calderon of Ed’s Manifesto  is at the top of the game with regards to teaching the subject matter to the pros right now, he was just on the Joe Rogan podcast. Mike Pannone of CTT- Solutions belongs to a few of the world’s top fighting force brotherhoods to include Marine Corps recon, Army Green Berets and also Delta force. He single-handedly dishes out more law enforcement and government training hours than 90% of his peers on the training circuit, who better than to teach CCW principles and dynamics. 

Because how good are we truly if we don’t possess the ability to protect ourselves and our loved ones?   

Beyond all of this, every single person who attends this training event will receive in return for their $250 ticket purchase over +$200 back in gear and gift cards.  This does not include the value of the training or networking that will be taking place at this event as there will be booths set up with local private security companies and a mixer taking place on the last evening at a secret location. 

- A catered lunch 

- AS Solutions gifts: 2 books – Public Figures & Private Lives | Corporate Executive Protection and a Data Blocker  

- N-Ear Gifts: automatic entries to win a stealth 360 surveillance kit 

- A certificate of completion from Ed’s Manifesto and Yousef Badou  

 - A $70 gift card to train with Artifacts Firearms Training 

- Executive Protection Lifestyle | Protector Nation swag  

GO TO for more info: https://byronrodgersmotivation.com/the-protector-symposium/

EP 54: Protector Symposium

Finally, we have the opportunity to learn from someone who has been on both sides of protection. Yana kaytukova’s Story is remarkable and her experience is very valuable to any practitioner who wants to understand what it’s like to be on the other side of protection. When she was a little girl growing up in the Caucasus mountains in a small republic called Ossetia. 

Her father chose to keep her under the protection of a bodyguard as a result of some very traumatic events that unfolded at their home one evening. These events shaped Yana’s life in many ways because it was this relationship with her newfound friend and bodyguard that not only helped her feel safe as a child but also heavily contributed to her adult aspirations to join the protection game. From joining the resistance in her country and fighting in a war to winning multiple boxing and kickboxing championships in all over Ossetia and Russia to now being one of the industries young and upcoming talents. 

Yana brings a full spectrum of experiences that her clients and security detail counterparts all benefit from. Beyond all of this, she has a perspective on life and what we are doing here that is refreshing and will do most anyone some good to hear.  She is a powerful, positive and highly perceptive young agent with the advantage of understanding what it feels like to be on the receiving end of what we do. I’m looking forward to seeing where her career will go.  This interview has value on many different levels not only for security operatives but also for anyone trying to possibly understand themselves on even deeper levels. Enjoy

EP 55: Understanding both sides of protection

The Executive Protection Lifestyle Podcast hosted by Byron Rodgers takes the brand to another level by educating security practitioners and opening the world of private security up to the public.

In this podcast You will experience the private sector in a way that you never have before. The podcast is highly educational focusing on the most salient protection tactics while being careful not to forget the foundational principles that make us great at what we do. You will meet and become acquainted with various industry professionals who are making a difference in the protection game and you you will benefit from a behind the scenes look at the reality of the lifestyle behind the job that is only 1% of the security industry. While it can be a very glamorous and exotic lifestyle, the requirements to survive the lifestyle and achieve professional success can be crushing and many who attempt success in this industry fail as a result of various on scene after balls. This podcast will help professionals overcome those obstacles and mitigate risks to both their professional and personal lives as we talk about the lifestyle behind the game of executive protection.

Whether you are a civilian, you are in law-enforcement or the military, we believe this podcast has something for you because on a very basic level we are all protectors of the people we love and things we believe in on a daily basis. The truth is simply that there is so much more to this than meets the eye and if you really want to be good at what we do you must know that it’s more than just a job, this game requires a lifestyle. So please listen enjoy and take your protection game to the next level by enjoying the show. 

One mind many weapons 
- Byron

EP 3 : Getting Into The Protection Game

Byron Rodgers

Related tracks