Paying it forward

Back in the dark ages, when I first fell in love with money laundering (and its anti cousin), I was lucky enough to meet two or three people who knew a lot about the subject and were so generous with their time and expertise – in fact, I often refer to it as my apprenticeship (thankfully without the nasty shouty man who bullies people who dare to suggest that he might be a bully).  So now that I am World Famous and Terrifically Important in Money Laundering*, the time has come for me to pay it forward by sharing my time and expertise with those who are starting out in the exciting world of AML.

Because I have a website that I update daily, and a blog to which I try to post two or three times a week, and a rather bizarre surname, I tend to do quite well in Google searches when people are looking up “money laundering” or “AML” or “AML training”.  And this means that when students or young graduates are considering a career in AML, they will often come across my name.  So at the moment I am receiving about three emails a week, asking for help with which AML qualifications I would recommend, or a review of their research proposal, or pointers as to which are the best sources of information about money laundering.  Ever mindful of the hours and hours that others were willing to devote to my education, I am always happy to help – although I do take the precaution, always, of telephoning the educational establishment quoted to make sure that I am dealing with a genuine student and not simply someone wishing to learn the dark arts for nefarious purposes.  And about once a month I get a request from someone who would like an internship with Thinking about Crime Limited.  Much as I like the idea of having an intern – well, I’ve seen “The Devil Wears Prada”, so I know how internships work – I’m not sure where I would put one.  In my office there is my chair and the cat’s chair, and that’s it.  And we’re miles from the nearest Starbucks.

* I am simply quoting here from an email I received last week from someone seeking my help – I think the capitals are a nice touch