211: Light Amidst Darkness with Former FBI Special Agent Nicole Parker

Nicole Parker is a former Special Agent (SA) with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (also known as the FBI). She served in Miami from January 2011 through October 2022, and for the first four years she worked securities fraud cases - investigating multi-million-dollar Ponzi schemes, money laundering, embezzlements, and more. In January 2015, she transferred to violent crime, where she worked a myriad of high-profile cases including the high school shooting in Parkland, Florida; the 2017 Fort Lauderdale airport shooting; bank robberies; murders for hire; suspicious deaths; sexual assaults; extortions; and more. Nicole was the only female Special Agent on the FBl's number one ranked violent crime fugitive task force in the United States. Prior to her FBI career, Nicole worked at a multi-billion-dollar hedge fund in LA, and at Bank of America securities in New York, as a VP in their prime brokerage unit. But after living through the life-changing event of working in Manhattan's World Financial Center on September 11, 2001, and witnessing firsthand the World Trade Center attack, she vowed to find a significant way to give back to her country. Before the decade was up, she left the lucrative finance industry and applied to be a special agent for the FBI. Today Nicole and I talk about her experiences, including September 11 and working in the FBI, seeing light amidst darkness, and sharing her opinion on what we can do in response to the tragedies that surround us in the world as good continues to fight evil. Time Stamps: [01:34] - Nicole Parker hopes to spread light, truth, and hope. [03:56] - Nicole recalls the events of 9/11 while working close by the World Trade Center. [08:25] - “I knew that there was something more.” [10:22] - How did Nicole keep going even during difficult times in her FBI experience? [15:21] - Despite the darkness of the world, there are so many people who are trying to help and bring light. [19:22] - “We realized we were going to need each other.” [24:21] - There are people who are placed in your life for a reason. [27:47] - Every step of the way is a guided step if you pay attention. [31:50] - “You have amazing things in store for you.” [36:37] - Nicole offers her thoughts about school shootings. [40:59] - Is there any way to notice signs before tragedies happen? [45:01] - Nicole talks about law enforcement, security systems, and security procedures during public shootings. [49:27] - Nicole shares tips for what parents can do to prepare for and respond to school shootings. [54:00] - “Live life fearlessly.” Supporting Resources: Nicole Parker's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/nicoleparkerusa/