Overview
#044 – Today, I am delighted to introduce Jerry Heying, CEO and President of the International Protection Group (IPG), overseeing global executive protection, secure transportation, and security services across 40+ countries. He also serves as Executive Protection and Security Director at the Executive Protection Institute, a training school certifying specialists and trainers over his 18-year tenure. He carries an incredible depth of knowledge and experience from his career, which you’ll hear more about in our conversation. In this episode, we explore career lessons on educating practitioners, thoughts on continual learning, the business of security, and more.
Highlights from This Episode
- Discover your passion in the security profession; it sustains long-term engagement and drives daily excitement, even after decades in the industry.
- Embrace the mindset of an eternal student, continual learning is essential, as “we don’t know what we don’t know,” and humility often follows early overconfidence.
- Mentorship plays a critical role in development; seek it actively, learn from others’ experiences (even unknowingly), and pay it forward by helping newer practitioners succeed.
- Facilitate adult learning rather than traditional top-down teaching; draw on students’ existing knowledge and life experience to create richer, more collaborative educational environments.
- Get actively involved in professional organizations like ASIS, volunteer, join committees, and attend conferences; involvement creates opportunities that passive membership never will.
- Networking through face-to-face interactions and conferences is invaluable; it’s often “who knows you” rather than “who you know” that opens doors.
- Map your career like a GPS: define where you are, where you want to be, visualize success, and set practical milestones while staying open to valuable detours.
- Pay your dues without shame, start from entry-level roles, prove reliability through timeliness and attitude, and recognize that every position builds essential habits and experience.
- Ethics are non-negotiable in this small industry; adhere to the golden rule, honor agreements, and consider long-term consequences, as poor decisions can permanently damage reputation and opportunities.
- Entrepreneurial lessons: watch cash flow closely (growth too fast is a leading cause of failure), learn from mistakes, and plan for career transitions beyond fieldwork.
Memorable Quotes:
- “When you find your passion, then that’s what you want to go for.”
- “It’s not who you know, it’s who knows you.”
- “Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
RESOURCES MENTIONED
- Executive Protection Institute (EPI): https://personalprotection.com (also reachable via executiveprotectioninstitute.com)
- Book: Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
- Book: The E-Myth (The E-Myth Revisited) by Michael Gerber
- Book mentioned in context: Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson
- Professional organizations and events: ASIS International (asis.org), GSX conference, International Protective Security Board (IPSB), Close Protection Conference
- Book referenced by host: When McKinsey Comes to Town by Walt Bogdanich and Michael Forsythe
Use CONTROL + F to search the transcript below if you want to learn more!
Related Episodes
- Intro / About the Show
- Creating Your Own Path in National Security
- Big Ideas in Corporate Security
- How to Be a Remarkable Student of Security
- Texas Night & Career Principles
- Security Leadership: Integrity & Serving
- Shaping Your Role in Security
- Storytelling & Presence for Security Leaders
- Mastering Security Excellence
