Make a plan, build your skills, get proper training, get licensed, and work your first case. That's the short version. The longer version is covered in our Career Guide blog post. The sequence matters; too many aspiring PIs try to skip steps and end up spinning their wheels. Start with training, understand your state's licensing requirements, and get your first real case under your belt as early as possible. Everything else follows from there.

The best PIs are persistent, curious, and honest — in that order. They're natural problem-solvers who can follow a mission without cutting corners. They stay composed under pressure, pay attention to details that other people miss, and they deliver real value to their clients. You don't need to be fearless., but you do need to be disciplined. We dig into this in more depth in our Seven Steps to Becoming a PI blog post.

That depends almost entirely on your niche — and there are over 80 to choose from. On any given day a PI might be at a computer running OSINT research, sitting in a vehicle on a surveillance job, conducting interviews, writing reports, or managing a case file. Some days are all fieldwork. Others are all desk work. The variety is one of the things people love about it — and one of the things that catches beginners off guard

When you're starting out, the most common case types are infidelity, workers' compensation, basic surveillance, and locates. These are accessible, consistent, and good for building fundamental skills. As you develop experience you can move into more complex or specialized areas — fraud, missing persons, corporate investigation, criminal defence, and many others.

Yes — and specializing is actually the best strategy for building a successful PI practice. Generalists exist, but the investigators who build strong, sustainable businesses are typically known for doing specific things exceptionally well. Clients and referral sources remember a specialist. We recommend picking two or three niches that match your background and interests and getting genuinely good at them.

The basics are a smartphone, a computer, a digital camera, and — most importantly — knowledge. Don't skip that last one. The right tools in the hands of an untrained investigator produce bad evidence and worse reports. We cover the full equipment breakdown in our Seven Steps to becoming a PI blog post, but the knowledge comes first. Everything else can be acquired once you understand what you're actually trying to do with it.

Look for programs that give you hands-on experience with real cases and instructors who have actually worked in the field. Make sure the program will guide you through the licensing process and help you work toward your first real case. Ask specifically about group sizes, whether you'll work live or cold cases, and what support exists after the class ends. StriderPI checks all of those boxes.