Be The Spy

Dan paused at the door to survey the party goers.  He quickly picked out the host holding court with several well dressed men near the bar.  The hostess was looking with concern at the buffet as though trying to divine the exact volume of caviar remaining on the tray.  He put on his best smile and strode into the main room.  Dan had long ago mastered the confident yet open walk that said he was friendly and comfortable.  He approached the hostess walking slowly, picking out bits of conversation.  The current topics seemed to focus on the stock market and the novel the host, Karl Bjornson had just completed.

Dan stepped up to Mrs. Bjornson and said with a sincere smile, “I really can’t imagine how you managed to do everything else in your schedule yet still put together such a wonderful party.  You are a gifted woman, Mrs. Bjornson.”

She smiled at Dan and said, “You are too kind.  Mr. ?”

“Please call me Dan.  I consult with your husbands publisher on occasion.  I’m afraid that I don’t know even half of the people here though.”  Dan said flashing his most charming smile.

“Well Dan you must call me Lana.  As to the rest let me introduce you to some of our friends, I’m sure you’ll get along famously.”

A spy must be able to walk into a Diplomatic Reception or child’s birthday party with equal comfort and style.  A spy may attend an event to meet a contact, scout a location, establish a cover story or simply to befriend a target.  When doing this the spy must never seem out of place or ill at ease.  He must always give the impression that he is the ideal party guest.

• You must judge the makeup of the party guests. Make sure that you are not to under/over dressed for the occasion. Be ready to improvise if need be but a good plan is to always keep 2 sets of clothes in the trunk of your car one casual, one business.

• Stop at the entrance for a moment to survey the crowd. Identify people you know, obvious cliques and people of obvious importance. Even if you don’t see anyone you know smile and walk into the room as though you recognize most of the people there.

• Always greet the host as quickly as possible. A party is quite a bit of effort to plan and organize so they will be open to compliments when offered sincerely. Hosting a party is also seen by many as carrying a responsibility to help people mingle and make friends. If you mention that you don’t know many people at the party they will often be happy to introduce you around. This will also help to build an impression for the party goers that you must be an insider of sorts with the host, as you will be observed walking around in conversation with them.

• As you are introduced be sure to greet people with a firm handshake as though they were a friend you hadn’t seen in a while. As you shake there hand look them in the eye and repeat their name, this will firmly embed it in your memory but can be passed off as making sure you have the pronunciation correct.

• Be complimentary. Appear to be impressed by the achievements of the speaker and interested in what they are talking about. Remember to maintain a balance between too much interest or enthusiasm, which will make you seem weird or even mocking and too little which can make you seem distant and aloof.

Basic Practice – Being able to mingle in this type of situation has more to do with attitude than technique. You have to be comfortable and appear friendly. Practice starting conversations with strangers in your normal life. The person in line behind/in front of you at the checkout stand or other places. You will quickly find yourself becoming adept at small talk.

Advanced practice – Once you’ve become adept at starting conversations for a purpose work on starting them with a goal in mind. Pick a random piece of information and get it from the other person in the least obvious form possible. Don’t start with anything to personal. For a start try favorite food, favorite sport or where they went to high school. Don’t be direct work it out of them as a natural part of the conversation.