This Career Isn’t About the Accolades
Not only is this the era of ‘everyone gets a trophy’, but everyone then shares it to social media and boasts about their experiences and accomplishments. Trust us, despite what your mom told you, you aren’t that great.
So if that is you, then look elsewhere for a career. The intelligence community is not about public recognition. It is about keeping our nation safe while no one knows you are doing it and then doing it again, and again and again.
To complicate things further, the IC is grossly misunderstood by the public and the mainstream media. People who do not have the clearance and information to articulately debate issues will ridicule you with 10% of the facts, and you will not be able to say anything back. As such our people are often ridiculed and rarely rewarded or applauded.
When you operate in the shadows, you celebrate in the shadows. Whether run of the mill tasks or being a part of a team that stopped a major terrorist attack, you will have to celebrate on the inside. Your wife, your family and your friends on social media are not privy to what you are doing on a daily basis – despite the mainstream media’s current efforts to make everything transparent.
