CIA Spy: "Leave The USA Before 2030!" Why You Shouldn't Trust Your Gut! - Andrew Bustamante

Intro (00:00:00)

• Andrew Bustamante is a former CIA officer who teaches people how to use spy skills in business and everyday life.
• He says that one of the biggest tells of an unskilled liar is that they have bad eye contact.
• The CIA trains its officers to recognize and distrust their own perceptions because emotions are often wrong.
• Andrew's company has grown 300% every year for the last 3 years because he uses the "SAD RAT" acronym in all of his marketing and human interactions.

Your Time At The CIA (00:02:47)

• Andrew was in the CIA for a relatively short period of time, only 5 years.
• He also served in the US military for 7 years before that.

What Is The CIA? (00:03:15)

• The CIA is the United States's foreign intelligence collection platform.
• It is responsible for collecting foreign secrets that have any kind of impact on American National Security.
• The CIA is one of 36 community members in the Intelligence Community (IC), but it is the one charged with centralizing all of the intelligence collected.

You've Got It Wrong About Spies (00:03:57)

• A spy is someone who collects information secretly in another country and sends it back to their home country.
• Spies are also known as intelligence operatives, intelligence officers, operators, agents, or assets.
• The term "spy" is often used incorrectly to refer to either a handler or an asset.
• Handlers are officers who collect intelligence, while assets are foreigners who provide intelligence to handlers.

Applying Real Spy Skills To Overcome Any Barrier In Our Lives (00:06:43)

• Spy skills can be used to overcome various barriers in life, such as income inequality, lack of a father figure, financial difficulties, educational barriers, anxiety, and more.
• The CIA teaches its officers to understand and overcome barriers, and this knowledge can be applied to everyday life.
• By understanding someone else's barrier better than they do, you can help them through it and gain their trust.

How To Manipulate People (00:08:13)

• Andrew Bustamante, a former CIA officer, discusses manipulation techniques used by intelligence operators and emphasizes the importance of radical transparency in understanding manipulation.
• Bustamante had a childhood marked by unmet emotional needs and a focus on academic success rather than emotional support, leading him to develop secretive and deceptive behaviors.
• He believes that people raised in environments without trust may develop sociopathic tendencies and engage in socially unacceptable behaviors in secret.
• Bustamante warns of potential challenges facing the United States in the coming years and advises considering leaving the country before 2030.
• He encourages individuals to seek diverse perspectives and information from various sources when making decisions and suggests redefining success based on internal feelings rather than solely on financial and economic measures.

The Psychological Profile Of A CIA Agent (00:18:15)

• CIA recruits individuals with a specific psychological profile that makes them suitable for field operations.
• CIA officers are trained to be highly loyal and productive, and they often spend over 30 years in service to their nation.
• CIA recruits individuals who have experienced childhood trauma, as it is linked to high performance.
• CIA officers are trained to view secrets and lies pragmatically, and they may consider certain actions to be acceptable in certain situations but not in others.

I Held The Key To Nuclear Missiles (00:21:13)

• The speaker was a nuclear missile officer in the Air Force, controlling nuclear ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles) capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
• To launch a nuclear weapon, two individuals with separate keys would insert them into the Silo operating system and turn them in unison.

It Was A Horrible Job (00:23:15)

• In 2007, the speaker worked as a nuclear missile officer, sitting in an underground launch control capsule for 72-hour shifts with one other person.
• Their job involved waiting for nuclear war to break out, which never happened, leading to reflections on the purpose and impact of their role.
• Approximately 200 Americans and many others from countries with nuclear weapons are currently performing the same duty.

Would You Have You Pressed The Nuclear Button? (00:25:00)

• The speaker was trained to follow orders and launch nuclear weapons if instructed.
• There are redundancies in the system to ensure that orders are valid before they can be executed.
• The speaker mentions that the job has shockingly low attrition because they are good at identifying the right people for the job.
• The speaker does not believe the CIA scouts people from a young age, but rather uses an algorithm to identify suitable candidates from government website applications.

The CIA Message That Changed My Life (00:27:18)

• The speaker received a popup message while applying for the Peace Corps, inviting them to consider other government opportunities.
• They received a call within 24 hours from an unlisted number, offering them an airline ticket, hotel reservation, and rental car reservation to come to DC for more information.
• The speaker initially thought it was a prank call but decided to follow through when the travel arrangements turned out to be real.

The Interview Process For The CIA (00:29:13)

• The interview process for the CIA involves multiple rounds of interviews.
• The first round of interviews assesses the candidate's interests and suitability for the National Clandestine Service.
• Candidates are required to keep the application process confidential and are instructed to inform others that they are applying for a government position.
• Subsequent rounds of interviews are more intense and include scenario-based questions, puzzles, and psychological assessments.

How Did You Feel When You Received That Letter? (00:31:31)

• Felt great and validated.
• Thought checking the boxes would lead to freedom.
• Had to keep the job offer a secret from his family.
• Told his family he was looking at government jobs in DC.
• Was not close to his family and had few friends.

Did The CIA Tell You To Cut Off From Your Social Circle? (00:33:54)

• The CIA explained that he would eventually need to disconnect from his social circle if he went into covert service.
• During the psychological evaluation, he was asked about his need for close relationships and how he felt about severing ties with secondary and tertiary relationships.
• He found it easy to cut off less important relationships as he was excited about the opportunity to become a CIA officer.

Your Ethnicity Factor To Be Recruited By The CIA (00:34:44)

• In 2007, six years after 9/11, the CIA sought to diversify its workforce and recruit individuals who could connect with modern-day threats.
• Andrew Bustamante's ethnicity and extensive government file, due to his prior service in the Air Force, contributed to his recruitment.
• The onboarding process for Andrew took approximately nine months, longer than the typical 18-month process.

Do You Have To Change Your Identity? (00:36:03)

• CIA training involves attending a classified school where agents are pulled out of everyday life and placed in a controlled simulated world.
• The simulated environment allows for the testing of various skills, including driving, first response, lying, and living under alias identities.
• Agents undergo extensive training in a controlled environment for a prolonged period to develop and assess their tradecraft.

How Expensive Is To Train A CIA Agent? (00:37:14)

• Training CIA agents is expensive, leading to the implementation of batch training.
• There are typically two to three batches of trainees per year, with different classifications of officers, such as analysts, technical officers, and field officers.

What's The CIA Training Scheme? (00:37:21)

• Trainees undergo the same curriculum within their respective disciplines, attending lectures and participating in exercises.
• Performance is evaluated, and the bottom performers are eliminated while the top performers continue.

Do They Show You How To Kill? (00:38:04)

• Killing is not part of the basic training curriculum for all CIA agents.
• It depends on the discipline and level of the officer.
• Paramilitary officers receive training in various killing methods, including using blunt weapons, bladed weapons, projectile weapons, and explosives.
• Standard human intelligence field collectors focus on living and working without detection, as killing may increase the risk of being caught.

How You Teach The Art Of Lying (00:39:06)

• Skilled liars are recruited from those who are already good at lying.
• Good liars are taught to refine their natural lying abilities.
• Good liars talk less and ask more questions to avoid revealing information.
• Skilled liars use body language to appear truthful, while unskilled liars have a disconnect between their words and body language.

Body Language & Lying (00:41:00)

• Skilled liars can use body language to appear confident and open, even if they are not.
• Unskilled liars may stammer or show other signs of discomfort when lying.
• To avoid giving away a lie through body language, mimic the person you are talking to.

Demystifying Lying Signs (00:42:46)

• Mirroring the person you're lying to creates a subconscious foundation of trust.
• Pushing the envelope with untruths or fabrications becomes easier once trust is established.
• Eye movements alone cannot accurately determine if someone is lying.
• While certain eye movements may have biological relevance, many others do not.
• Factors such as cultural differences, personal habits, and environmental conditions can influence eye movements.
• Relying on eye movements to assess honesty or dishonesty is unreliable.
• Micro expressions are not a reliable indicator of deception.
• Micro expressions can be influenced by various factors such as cultural differences, personal habits, and emotional state.
• Relying on micro expressions to assess honesty or dishonesty is unreliable.

How To Tell If Someone Is Lying (00:45:44)

• You can't tell if someone is lying until you have established a baseline of what's normal for them.
• The environment can change a person's behavior, so you need to know someone's baseline to understand if they are lying.
• Time on target is needed to understand the delta between someone's baseline and their behavior under pressure.
• Skilled liars are difficult to detect because they have learned how to lie through formal training or experience.

Human Psychology (00:47:34)

• Unskilled liars exhibit constant body movement, fidgeting, and discomfort, making them easy to detect.
• Children's attempts at lying often involve similar behaviors, such as avoiding eye contact and making verbal noises.
• Micro expressions or eye tracking are not necessary to identify unskilled liars.
• Psychological processes learned during training are more valuable than specific skills like dead drops or surveillance detection.
• Understanding core motivations is crucial for effective manipulation.

The Essence Of Manipulation (00:50:32)

• Core motivations include reward, ideology, coercion, and ego.
• Rewards vary based on individuals and can include money, vacations, or personal desires.
• Ideology refers to beliefs and values that drive people's actions.
• Coercion involves negative tactics like guilt, shame, or blackmail to force actions.
• Ego encompasses how individuals view themselves, including those with big egos and those who sacrifice for others.
• Understanding core motivations allows for increased probability of influencing others' actions.
• Ideology is the strongest motivator, followed by ego, reward, and coercion.
• Movies often misrepresent the effectiveness of coercion compared to other core motivations.

How To Find Someone's Ideology To Manipulate Them (00:52:09)

• Appealing to someone's ideology is more effective than manipulation because it builds trust and long-term compliance.
• Moral flexibility allows one to view actions as merely useful or productive, rather than good or bad.
• Manipulation is necessary when motivation fails, but it requires setting aside feelings of guilt.
• People often volunteer their ideologies, especially when they are passionate about something.
• Active marketing, where messages are crafted with specific emotions in mind, can reveal a person's motivations and ideologies.
• Messaging, not narrative, is the true power in influence. Messaging builds narratives over time.

Have You Changed The Way You Look At The World? (00:56:12)

• The speaker, Andrew Bustamante, discusses the concept of messaging and narrative and how it is used in various fields, including politics, geopolitics, and business.
• Bustamante emphasizes the importance of understanding messaging and narrative in the intelligence world and how it can be used to influence people's thoughts and actions.
• He highlights the fact that many people in business have not yet fully grasped the power of messaging and narrative and continue to rely on traditional marketing strategies.
• Bustamante describes his experience in the CIA and how it changed his perspective on the world.
• He reveals that during his training, he discovered that he was "broken in certain ways" and that his high performance was due to childhood trauma and sociopathy.
• Bustamante explains that the CIA exploited his ideology and ego to keep him loyal to the organization.
• Bustamante reflects on his early life and how he observed hypocrisy in society, such as the discrepancy between what people said and what they did.
• He mentions specific examples, such as the "customer is always right" slogan and the fact that criminals sometimes escape justice despite a legal structure.
• Bustamante explains that he felt unable to speak out about these inconsistencies because he believed they were secrets.

Perception vs Perceptive (01:00:01)

• The CIA trains its officers to see the world as it is and provides them with the vocabulary to understand it.
• The author realized that he could use CIA skills to succeed in business.
• Perception is what you believe you see, while perspective is how others see you.

Leaning Into Objective vs Subjective Feelings (01:01:59)

• Perception comes from your own five senses and can be subjective and emotional.
• Perspective involves gathering objective data from the world around you.
• The CIA trains its officers to distrust their perception and rely on perspective to think objectively.
• To train yourself to lean more on your perspective:
  • Identify your biases and assumptions. Everyone has biases, but it's important to be aware of them so that you can avoid letting them influence your judgment.
  • Seek out different perspectives. Talk to people who have different backgrounds and experiences than you do. This will help you to see the world from different perspectives and challenge your own assumptions.
  • Be open to new information. Don't be afraid to change your mind when presented with new evidence. This shows that you are willing to learn and grow.

How To Train Yourself To Apply Rational Objective Perspective (01:03:25)

• Distrust emotions and don't trust your gut as it is often based on emotions.
• Understand that your perception may not be correct and always gamble on the bigger chance.
• Gain perspective by considering multiple data points and stop to let emotions happen before acting.
• Train yourself to think objectively and rationally by intentionally exercising perspective over perception.
• Realize that most people are trapped in their own perception and emotions.

Your Business Success (01:05:54)

• People who understand the difference between perception and perspective, emotion and logic, and subjectivity and objectivity have an advantage over those who don't.
• Trained individuals are aware of alternative options, while untrained individuals are not.
• Most people are unaware of alternative solutions and are trapped in their emotions and subjectivity.
• Understanding these concepts allows individuals to use rational, objective perspectives to influence others.

What Is SADRAT? (01:09:01)

• The skills used in espionage, such as finding assets, translate directly into business.
• Gaining perspective over a customer's position allows businesses to anticipate their needs and problems.
• The SADRAT process (Spot, Assess, Develop, Recruit, Handle, Terminate) is the foundation of the company's sales and marketing processes.
• SADRAT is used for sales and marketing, while in espionage, it is used for human intelligence conversion or collection.

Change The Game When Selling Your Products (01:11:07)

• Assess customers based on lifetime value, referrals, positive reviews, and profitability.
• Don't accept every customer; focus on a specific cohort that aligns with your business goals.
• Prioritize profit over revenue and target the right customers to achieve exponential growth.

What Is Espionage? (01:13:13)

• Espionage involves assessing targets to determine their potential value as assets.
• In business, customers are the most important assets, providing value in exchange for what they want.
• Understanding the language of espionage and business allows for effective customer assessment.

What Is Our Secret Life? (01:14:08)

• Espionage is defined as the stealing of secrets and is illegal in all countries.
• CIA and MI6 officers have a carve-out in their laws that allows them to commit Espionage overseas without being prosecuted.
• The goal of Espionage is to get people to let you into their Secret Lives.
• There are three lives that anyone lives: public life, private life, and secret life.
• Public life is the life that we live for everyone else to see.
• Private life is the life that your partner, closest friends, and family know.
• Secret life is the life that only you know and contains your darkest secrets.

How To Enter Someone's Secret Life (01:18:16)

• CIA agents use perception and perspective manipulation, leverage the four core motivations, and build trust through "sad rat" to gain someone's trust and access their secret life.
• Emotional mirroring is a subtle technique used to build rapport and gain control in a conversation.
• Vulnerability can be used to create vulnerability in others, making them more likely to open up. However, it is important to present real vulnerabilities in the form of "windows" rather than fake vulnerabilities or "doors" to encourage the other person to share their secrets.
• The "two and one combination" technique involves asking two questions and then seeking confirmation to gain information and build trust.

How To Apply It To Business (01:23:33)

• The speaker suggests a technique to make people feel understood and encourage them to share more information.
• The technique involves asking follow-up questions and confirming statements, which makes the other person feel like they are being listened to and understood.
• This technique can be applied in various business contexts, such as interviews, sales, and marketing, to gain control of conversations and obtain desired information.
• The speaker emphasizes the importance of asking questions rather than making statements to maintain control and steer the conversation in the desired direction.
• The speaker's company has grown significantly due to the effective use of this technique in sales, human resourcing, marketing, and advertising.

Adapting To Change Faster Than Your Opponent (01:26:19)

• People want to feel heard, listened to, and validated.
• Automating this process can lead to successful digital marketing, direct sales, and salesmanship.
• Most business owners focus on talking about their products, while customers want a product that solves their problems and a helpful salesperson.
• The CIA teaches that accepting change is crucial, as it provides an advantage over opponents who struggle with change.
• Time is a resource that can be used to one's advantage, as secrets don't withstand the test of time.
• In business, taking time and not rushing can be a significant advantage when others are rushing.

Were There Times Your Life Was At Threat? (01:29:18)

• The speaker mentions an incident in 2011 where they felt their life was at risk.
• They were in a foreign country and believed they were under surveillance by a local country's surveillance team.
• The speaker's job in that country made them believe that the surveillance team's goal was to apprehend them at a point where they could gain the most propaganda and political leverage.
• The speaker is currently trying to get clearance from the CIA to talk about this incident.

Sexpionage, What Is It? (01:31:43)

• Sexpionage is the use of sex to obtain information or influence someone.
• It is used in different ways based on a country's civil rights.
• In the United States, sexpionage is not widely used because it violates the individual rights of the citizen who works at the intelligence agency.
• In countries like China and Russia, sexpionage is not considered a violation of individual rights and is more commonly used.

Disguise, Did You Ever Do It? (01:33:49)

• Sex with an asset creates an operational security risk as it leads to feelings and connection, making it harder for the Handler to maintain control.
• Disguises are more common than people think but are of lower quality.
• The CIA refers to disguises as "costumes" and their main purpose is to make the person not look like themselves, not to make them look like someone else.
• Light disguises involve changing noticeable features like hair, facial hair, and accessories.
• Deeper levels of disguises include long-term disguises, where physical changes are made for a long-term operation, and prosthetic disguises, which involve the use of prosthetics to alter appearance.
• Light and long-term disguises are considered safe as they don't raise suspicion if discovered by law enforcement.

Do CIA Agents Get Trained To Not Feel Fear & Anxiety? (01:38:44)

• CIA wants people with a certain level of anxiety because it leads to heightened observational skills.
• Anxiety is seen as a superpower by the CIA as it keeps agents alive, sharp, learning, and attentive.
• CIA agents receive training to understand how fear works and how to manage it.

How Do They Train You To Slow Down Your Emotional Brain? (01:41:23)

• Fear is processed by the emotional brain, which reacts quickly, while logical thinking is processed by the logical brain, which is slower. Fear can hold people back from taking risks and achieving their full potential.
• To overcome fear, one should gradually expose themselves to small, controlled amounts of fear in a safe environment. This process involves recognizing that fear is an emotional response and allowing the logical brain time to catch up and provide objective facts about the situation.
• Many people understand the concept of overcoming stage fright by performing on stage, but fear of judgment and failure holds them back.
• The former CIA officer emphasizes that those too afraid to take the first step should remain where they are because their inability to act provides an advantage to those willing to take risks and change their lives.

Your Wife & You Leaving The CIA (01:47:28)

• People trapped in the consumer cycle and prisoners to their fear run the economy.
• Those willing to break the cycle and capitalize on others' fears provide needed services.
• The speaker encourages those willing to take risks and discourages those who are too afraid.
• The speaker is an investor in a company that helps people find 1% gains in health and fitness.
• The speaker uses a Whoop to track health data and make small adjustments to improve their health.
• The speaker recommends Whoop to others interested in finding 1% marginal gains in their health.

America Is Going Through A Hard Period (01:48:55)

• Andrew Bustamante, a former CIA operative, plans to leave the United States by 2027 due to concerns about the country's current state and its impact on his children's future opportunities.
• He believes the US is struggling to define its identity and values, and he doesn't think it will provide equal access to opportunities for his children in the next 5-10 years.
• Bustamante sees Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America as more suitable places for his children to explore their interests and have a wider range of opportunities.
• He expresses concern about the potential dangers and uncertainties that could arise if the US and China reach economic parity, making both countries primary targets for each other.

What's The Advice For Everyone To Make That Change? (01:54:15)

• The most probable outcome is that China will surpass the US in terms of GDP by small amounts, leading to a cycle where the US and China take turns as the leading GDP.
• World War III is already happening as a war of proxy nations, with smaller countries competing against each other funded by larger countries in conflict.
• The real conflict in Ukraine is between the West and Russia, and the same will happen with Taiwan and China.

How Does Your Identity Stop You From Evolving? (01:56:27)

• The most important thing is to take action, even if it's the wrong action, as it shows that you're not trapped by fear and willing to challenge your perception of the world.
• Taking action gives you an advantage over the majority of people who don't take any action.
• Waiting doesn't provide any advantage and only gives others a chance to take the first step.

What Is Something You Used To Believe That You No Longer Do? (01:57:39)

• The CIA rewrites one's identity to provide cover, but one's own identity can hinder taking action.
• People often have an inaccurate view of themselves due to self-magnification, while others see them differently.
• Equality is not the true goal; people secretly strive for advantages and a better position than others.
• Politicians claiming to want equality are not genuine and actually desire the current status quo with conflict and control over the population.