Daughter of former secret service agent shares ‘most important’ piece of safety advice he gave her
The daughter of a former secret service agent has revealed the 'most important' piece of safety advice she was ever given.
When it comes to matters of personal safety, you're unlikely to go wrong by asking someone who made their living protecting important political figures.
And for 36-year-old Ashley, she was able to get all of this advice for free, as her father spent over two decades working for the US Secret Service.
Opening up about her life as the daughter of a secret service agent, the 36-year-old explained to MailOnline that she was told from a young age to never linger once inside her car or give out her address to people she didn't trust.
Advert
Pieces of advice which seem obvious when you say them but are likely to be things most of us are guilty of doing.
But what is the most important thing you can be doing everyday to improve your safety?
According to Ashley's father, nothing is more important than having a strong sense of 'situational awareness' at all times.
Situational awareness is basically a person's ability to understanding what is going on around you at all times and being ready to respond to any threats if they occur.
So what does this look like in day-to-day life?
"When entering a room, take a few seconds to locate the entrances and exits, know what is around you, and who’s around you," Ashley explained.
"[He also taught us] to always use our gut - if a situation feels off, it likely is."
Keeping an eye on your entrances and exits also means that Ashley never sits with her back to the door while out in public.
"You want to be alert," the American explained. "You want your back towards the wall to be able to visualise the entrances.
"My dad always took that position and now I do. It’s so you can see."
"It's about considering the wort case scenarios as you never want to be caught off guard," she previously added.
After growing with a parent who spent 25 years analysing and assessing threats every second of the day, you'd imagine Ashley would be overly cautious of the world – however she was keen to add that this was not the case.
"Statistically, the odds of being a victim of a random crime is low, so be aware but keep living life," she explained, adding that she'd never let fear get in the way of living the life she wants to.
Brenna Cooper