They’re strong, smart, alert, the best of the best - the elite body guards that look
out for politicians, celebrities, business moguls, and all manner of VIPs. Bodyguards
literally put their lives on the line to protect some of the most important,
or most threatened, people on earth. So how do they do it? How do they stay alert,
identify threats, and protect peoples’ lives? We sent in some undercover operatives to
find the thirteen secrets body guards don’t share with anyone...except us.
When most people think of bodyguards, they assume that if a threat appears,
the guard should be ready to fight someone off, or even draw a gun. In fact, if a bodyguard
has to reach for any sort of weapons or use his fists, chances are he or she has already failed.
The primary goal of any bodyguard is to protect, cover, and evacuate the VIP they are protecting,
not go all Jason Statham on any potential adversary. Don’t believe
us? How about Kent Moyer, the President and CEO of World Protection Group?
Moyer disclosed, “We’re trained to cover and evacuate and get out of harm’s way.
The goal is no use of force....if I fight, I failed. If I draw a gun, I failed.”
That actually leads us right to another surprising secret most bodyguards don’t like to share.
Bigger...[pause]...is not always better. That’s right guys, you can breathe easy now.
While many of us picture tall, muscled, hulking security people guarding those
dashing Hollywood leading men - [said as an aside] meaning we would expect at least a full
foot of difference in height between the two - size isn’t always an advantage for bodyguards.
As we pointed out before, bodyguards are not aiming to fight off a bunch of attackers
using their bare fists. While some clients who make their way through life as conspicuously
as possible enjoy the show of strength a team of massive bodyguards implies,
others prefer that their bodyguards can blend into their entourage and the crowds around them.
After all, an almost 7 foot, 300 pound, shirt popping muscle man eating dinner at the next table
or hanging around you at a gala event might draw a lot more attention than you need.
In fact, Alex Bomberg, the CEO of British bodyguard firm Intelligence Protection,
explained the third secret of the bodyguard trade; he likes to look for fast thinking,
communication skills and diplomacy over brute strength in prospective bodyguards. Someone
who can diffuse escalating situations and effectively communicate potential
threats and exit strategies to clients is extremely valuable in this profession.
And did you know, there is extra high demand for bodyguards that can speak a few languages!
After all, many CEOs and celebrities are constantly jet-setting around the world. Someone
who can speak the local language of frequent business trip destinations will always be helpful.
So for aspiring bodyguards out there, remember:
brushing up on that high school Spanish might be better than hitting the gym.
How helpful should bodyguards be though? How do they avoid crossing personal lines when
they’re constantly following, travelling with, and generally by the side of clients all day
long? Well, here’s the next unexpected secret of the bodyguard profession:
a big advantage in the field is something Dr. Phil might suggest - drawing healthy boundaries.
Avoiding becoming part of an entourage can be extremely difficult with very rich or
very famous clients. VIPs who are used to a team handling their every whim and request
can become too comfortable with their bodyguards and start requesting them to perform menial tasks,
such as feeding the family dog or picking up dry cleaning.
Bodyguards have to know how to firmly but politely draw the lines so they can focus on
doing their actual job. Otherwise, both they and their clients can get into trouble very quickly.
While being a bodyguard can seem glamorous - they are constantly around huge mansions and
that jetset lifestyle after all - spoiler: they don’t really get to live like the 1%.
They can’t be cracking open champagne bottles with their clients or watching
the football field length plasma screen TV; they have to be making their rounds,
staying alert, and keeping an eye out for potential threats.
Bodyguards who get sucked into the celebrity lifestyle and
get too chummy with their clients usually don’t last long. Worse yet,
some bodyguards start trying to keep up with their clients’ day to day habits on their own,
much, MUCH lower, salary. This usually leads to - you guessed it - a good ol’ case of bankruptcy.
These are just some reasons why keeping professional boundaries is a must. Even
relatively small things like posting selfies with clients while on the job can get someone fired.
Speaking of selfies, another bodyguard secret is that social media is a
nightmare [emphasis] for them, just like it is for democracy. Let us explain.
Either because they love the likes or their job requires them to always have an online presence,
celebrities are usually constantly on Instagram,
Twitter, TikTok, or whatever new platform will be stealing our personal data next.
This creates a security nightmare, as celebrities may often share their current location on these
platforms, or even just enough information in their videos or photos that stalkers,
disgruntled ex-employees, or for the extra cool VIPs,
archenemies, can locate exactly where they are in real time.
However, one media source provides unexpected assistance to bodyguards, although most of them
would probably love to keep this information secret forever: TMZ. That’s right! One of the
biggest gossip sites in the world helps personal protection agencies get great client leads.
CEOs of security agencies can easily see which celebrities have less than
professional bodyguards that aren’t providing good protection, or even creating problems,
with the paparazzi. Those celebrities can usually be converted into new clients!
Furthermore, gossip and paparazzi sites help current celebrity bodyguards train for potential
threats. Navigating a usually harmless threat like paparazzi can help bodyguards identify the best
ways to handle situations where a celebrity might be similarly swarmed or approached too closely.
Best of all, if TMZ photographers have shown up without a celebrity calling them - in other words,
this does not apply to any Kardashian - bodyguards have now identified a possible
information or security leak within the celebrities’ entourage or close contacts.
Here’s a bodyguard secret that’s also a celebrity secret. The kind of celebrities
that like to tip off the paparazzi, also like to hire bodyguards just to show off their status.
After all, what says “I’m super important!” more than a swarm of suited-up bodyguards
following and protecting your every move? This can make even the least recognizable Real Housewife
of Des Moines feel like someone might actually be following her career closely enough to stalk her.
For celebrities that 99.9% of the general public might not recognize even if they’re
standing two feet in front of them, a group of bodyguards leading the way might
make random passerbys say “oh….is that person famous or something?”.
It’s a nice ego boost for some.
There’s one more secret that both celebrities and bodyguards would like to keep from you.
A bodyguard isn’t only there to protect a VIP from other people;
sometimes, a bodyguard is there to protect you…[pause]...from yourself.
When a celebrity hires someone to provide protection, this means they also have to
protect them from accidents and medical emergencies. For clumsier
clients, this usually means their bodyguards have a lot more to do.
This might sound farfetched, but statistically, a celebrity is much more likely to trip backstage
and sprain an ankle, or fall on a hard sidewalk after a few too many martinis, than have an armed
psycho try to take them out in public. Therefore, bodyguards must try to intercept such accidents,
and if they can’t, well, that’s why they usually carry portable medical kits with them.
In that case, a bodyguard also has to try to protect the celebrity from embarrassment.
They must get them out of the area quickly if they are in public or surrounded by photographers,
and take them to a private location where they can take care of them.
It might be a little late to reveal this next secret since we’ve been using this word for
the whole video but here’s another one: Don’t. Call. Them. Bodyguards.
Turns out a lot of bodyguards hate the name they’re given. Most will go
by titles like “executive protection agents” instead. This isn’t just them being finicky;
the word “bodyguard” has a negative connotation in a lot of peoples’ heads nowadays.
Rather than thinking of someone intelligent, highly trained,
and able to protect people who are high-value targets, people usually associate “bodyguards”
with big, hulking, intimidating members of a celebrity’s entourage.
The truth is, though people like that exist, they give real bodyguards
[pause] - WHOOPS! We meant “executive protection agents” - giant headaches.
Sometimes VIPs do hire their own security as part of an entourage.
The people who work these jobs are usually untrained but larger-sized,
and usually overly aggressive, childhood pals celebrities trust and want by their side.
Though the celebrities’ intentions may be good in having extra security in the form of
someone they trust, these security people generally have no idea what they’re doing,
but will call themselves “security” or, you guessed it, “bodyguards” anyway.
If they’re working side by side with professionals, it’s like they’re just going
to make their job more difficult and get in the protection agents’ way.
Bodyguards - yes, we’re temporarily calling them that again because it’s easier - can
be closer to secret agents than you think. Sometimes, bodyguards have to go undercover.
This can happen for one of two reasons. Either the client wants protection, but doesn’t want their
protection to be visible - meaning bodyguards have to find a way to blend into the crowd around
the VIP, or the location in general. Or, some clients don’t take their security too seriously,
especially when it’s been hired by their company, film or TV show instead of personally hired by
them. This means they’re more prone to change plans last minute, throwing out hours of careful
coordination and research by bodyguards to ensure their target is safe. In that case,
the bodyguard has to adapt and protect their client in any way possible, even disguised.
On one job, bodyguards had to go undercover in Exuma, in the Bahamas, an island famous
for its beach of swimming pigs. To be honest, we could think of worse ways to spend the time than
snorkeling in the Caribbean and swimming with cute little piglet, so we won’t feel too bad for them.
We’ve already talked about the image most people have of bodyguards, and how it’s usually of tall,
big, aggressive, burly…[pause]...men. So for VIPs trying to hide their security, it might not
surprise you to know that recent years have seen a huge increase in requests for female bodyguards.
Single women and VIPs with children tend to especially prefer women guarding them.
That’s because there are a huge number of advantages to employing
female bodyguards over men in some scenarios.
Women walking with other female celebrities are less likely to look imposing, out of place, or
draw attention. They are more likely to be thought of as personal assistants or friends than male
bodyguards. When bodyguards have to protect the children of the family, in places like playgrounds
for example, a female bodyguard can also easily be overlooked as a nanny or family friend,
and will probably stand out less in the usually majority female crowd at such places.
Some of the most high-profile celebrities in the world, including David Cameron, Tony Blair,
JK Rowling, Beyonce, and the Duchess of Cambridge, all employ female bodyguards. And you know that
whoever was deemed good enough to work for Beyoncé is probably one of the best bodyguards around.
This last secret is a bit of a downer: being a bodyguard can be kind of lonely. Even though they
may constantly be surrounded by their client’s family, friends, and co-workers, bodyguards for
high-profile clients can find maintaining their own personal life very difficult.
Many VIPs are constantly flying around the world, going out at night, and generally
called on to attend last minute events at all dates and times. This usually interferes
with most bodyguards’ family and social lives, or doesn’t allow them to develop those lives at all.
While the constant travel and glamorous events can seem thrilling on the outside,
there definitely is a downside.
Now that you’ve learned all the secrets of the bodyguard trade,
are you ready to go on your first mission to protect a celebrity client? Or better yet,
would you rather continue to discover fun facts and cool stories on our channel?
The second is much easier to do! Just click on this video right here, or this video instead!