How to Become a Private Investigator

The Hardy Boys, Famous Five, Secret Seven, Nancy Drew, The Three Investigators, Sherlock Holmes...As a child, these books were like the Holy Bible to me and I literally used to worship them day and night. I was so hooked onto them that I actually had dreams of growing up to become a private investigator. A detective who lurks in the shadows, hot on the pursuit of his suspect, finds clues, catches the suspect red handed and solves the case! Aha! The thrill of playing detective...how wow is that? So, if you too are serious about becoming an investigator, read on. Here is how to become a private investigator.

Requirements of a Good Private Investigator
Before we move on to how to become a private detective, it is important to know the characteristics and qualities that a good investigator must possess. In order to be a good detective, one must ideally have the following qualities and behavioral characteristics:

• Ability to think logically and analyze situations rationally. However, you should also be able to think out of the box whenever the situation demands.
• Extreme attention to detail and keen observation skills.
• A thirst for solving mysteries and a liking for adventure.
• A dislike for crime and criminals and a desire to bring them to justice.

If you have all of the above-mentioned qualities within you, you can go ahead and think of becoming a private investigator.

How to Become a Private Investigator
Here are some basic steps involved in the process of becoming a private investigator:

• Make a Mature Decision: First and foremost, you should make sure that your decision to become a professional private investigator is a well-thought one, and not one that has been taken in a rush of blood after watching 007 snoop around, having a good time with the ladies, using futuristic gadgets and apprehending (mostly killing) all the bad guys. James Bond is fictional, but you are real. Bond gets all the bombshell babes whereas you in all probability, will get a couple of boys (as part of your sleuth team).
• Identify Your Skills: Private investigation is an area of work that itself has a number of specialized sub-fields. Private investigators work in a variety of domains such as civil crimes, police investigations, business crimes, insurance frauds, family disputes, theft, etc. Each of these career opportunities has a different set of skill set requirements and job responsibilities. Identify what area interests you, what could be your niche, etc.
• Join a Detective Agency: Once you have zeroed in upon the specific investigative area that you wish to work in, the next thing you should do is sign up with a certified and licensed detective agency or investigative agency. Though in some places it is not mandatory, it is always beneficial to become a licensed private investigator. As licensing requirements vary from state to state in the US, you are advised to do adequate research about the license requirements in your city or state of residence. Use of firearms also require a special firearm license and you should keep this in mind as well. Undergoing training from a certified detective agency will help you to become familiar with criminal background checks, criminal psychology, various investigation techniques, as well as other specialized operations like fingerprint analysis, etc.
• Employment: After completing your training and getting your license, you can consider working with that particular agency itself and getting some work experience. Alternatively, you can consider joining the police force or other special services where you will be exposed to a variety of cases which will provide you with some valuable field experience. Quite a few investigators are self-employed, so you could consider this option as well. However, if all you can think of is 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service', then Scotland Yard is the only way out, my friend.

This was a short description of how to become a private investigator. Working undercover does invite a certain amount of risk and danger and is not always as picture perfect as it seems in the movies. You would be well advised to keep this in mind while making your decision.