One of the first things I learned as a new FBI agent was that risk would always be part of my job. Not every day, and not in every investigation, but there would always be some element of risk if I wanted to move toward success. This applies to all areas of life...
The ability to accurately interpret body language is a tricky business. A shrug could mean a person doesn’t know what’s going on, or it could mean they don’t care. When someone crosses their arms, it could mean that they are shutting you out of the conversation or...
It took courage to tell my parents that I was transferring from the University of Wyoming to an out-of-state college in Arizona. It took courage to pull a loaded weapon from my holster and say these four little words: “FBI. You’re under arrest.” It took courage to...
When I landed on my new FBI squad, I was given the sobriquet of Princess. I treated the nickname with a healthy combination of suspicion and curiosity. I knew my male colleagues would watch my reaction as they asked themselves this question: can she take a joke?...
What started as a brutal few months has spilled over into a couple of hard years. We kept our nose to the grindstone because we thought grit and determination would keep us on track. We haven’t experienced this much lack of control since our diaper days. We now know...
The best way I can describe my 4 months at the FBI Academy is “coping ugly.” I got through the special agent training but it wasn’t a pretty sight. While I’m a big believer in positive thinking, I knew it was going to take more than gray matter to turn me into an...
Feeling stressed? Join the crowd. No matter your viewpoint on what’s going on in the world, the reality is that you have burdens a little closer to home—as parents, leaders, students, or simply as adults who need to pay bills and navigate the complexity of your...
The self-help industry is a booming business. It’s made celebrities out of people with minor talent but a major understanding of how to capitalize on the problems of others. God knows from under which rock some of these people come, but their good fortune is the...
As a new agent, right out of the FBI Academy, I felt as though I could conquer any roadblock or setback because I’d spent 4 months learning how to prepare to make arrests, interrogate suspects, and gather evidence. So, it was a bit of a surprise that, when I attended...
Chances are good that, at some point in your life, you tried to change your behavior. You probably relied on willpower to stay focused, and chances are also good that you failed and ended up back where you started. If you are unlucky, you blamed yourself which only...
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