There are circumstances in life (e.g. political status, fame, fortune, wealth, etc) that may place our lives in some form of danger.
When situations like this occur we may find ourselves seeking the Professional Services of a Bodyguard or bodyguards to keep us protected.
How Bodyguards Can Help
The term bodyguard is now used as the informal version of the phrase 'Close Protection Officer', which is becoming more predominantly used in modern society to describe a person, or persons hired to protect a key figure.
A lot of the professional training courses available today describe themselves as 'Close Protection' training, rather than bodyguard training.
Protection can range from a single bodyguard to having a group of bodyguards, depending on the level of security needed and the amount of danger involved.
Bodyguards are highly trained individuals who will professionally protect someone from dangers such as assault, kidnapping, assassination, loss of confidential information, or other threats.
Bodyguard Skills
Bodyguards may be armed, depending on the laws in their jurisdiction, and have expertise in unarmed combat, tactical driving, and first aid.
However, the most important skill for a bodyguard is the ability to assess a situation and decide how best to respond to minimize danger to his principal.
Most important public figures are protected by several bodyguards who work as a unit (or even Agency), using sophisticated tactics.
Less-important 'protectees' (or those with lower risk profiles) are accompanied by a single bodyguard, who may double as a driver.
However, some billionaires and dignitaries choose to dispense with bodyguards in all but the most risky situations.
Bodyguard Agencies
In the protection of higher powered individuals, where multiple agents are used, some may specialise in specific areas of expertise in order to become more successful as a group.
For example, a Protective Escort would be more useful and better trained in the personal protection of the individual whilst they are on foot, or in public.
A protective driver would specialise in the protection of the individual during journeys in a vehicle rather than on foot, being trained in the Technical Aspects of Driving that are associated with body guarding.
Some bodyguards specialise in the search for explosive or dangerous devices and are also trained to deal with the situation as well as, if need be, to attempt to disarm the device. The particulars of this field include very good vision and a knowledge of what could potentially be an explosive device.
These bodyguards are only used in the most extreme circumstances where the protectees life has previously been threatened.