Reconnaissance Missions

Some years ago, my friend, Lefty, was teaching a Sunday School lesson centered on the events of the Book of Joshua in the Bible. For those who do not recall, I'll refresh your memory with a brief summary:

Joshua opens with the new Nation of Israel about to enter the "Promised Land" that is the land of Israel itself. Of course, this is just after the death of Moses. As it would make sense before any military invasion, Joshua sent spies into the land to determine exactly what it was they were up against.

I'll never forget Lefty's opening remark after we covered those basics:
"Spies. I think of Usagi when I think of a spy. A guy in camouflage, peering through a rifle scope, learning what he can and maybe taking out a bad guy if he gets the chance."

Of course, we all thought it was a funny statement.

But, the more I think about it, he was right. Maybe not the camo and scoped rifle part (though I might indeed be guilty of both at one point or another)... but the reconnaissance part to be sure.

"[Usagi] is the best field rep I have ever seen at obtaining market data and competitor intelligence."
- From a supervisor of mine on a prior annual review.
Actually, this has come up time and time again... but this instance was the most succinct.

It is my opinion that if you do it right, you can quite easily march into "enemy" territory and find out exactly what you want to find out. Sure, the actual wearing of camo is not always necessary (OK - almost never). But to be sure, one must camouflage oneself to the situation appropriately. The "enemy" cannot know that you play for the opposition.

In these days, finding out information on a person is also just too easy. Most people post it up for you to read on Facebook or Twitter (or both), or perhaps some other outlet. Google helps a lot.

Occasionally, I'll pick out one to perform in my regular everyday life. It's amazing what you can learn. Couple that with an intuition borne of necessity in an environment where getting the right read on a person is of the utmost importance, and what you get it proof positive that your suspicions were correct. Be mindful telling people that sort of thing, though. Folks don't like to hear that you have them pegged. People like to pretend that they are a "mystery," though few really ever are.

Keep the "sword" sharp, people! Practice your skills!


.