One of my personal favorite SE stories was going on-site as a "pest inspector." I met with the client the morning before the engagement, and they candidly told me that they didn't expect me to get into any of the locations because they have such a good security program (it actually indeed turned out to be above average compared to what I usually see). Challenge accepted!

I had an approximate 40-minute drive to the first location, so I had a bit of time to do some scheming. I had already sent fake emails to the local managers informing them of the inspection, which usually goes a long way if they're well done (I bought a similar domain, that used alternate letters, that was virtually indistinguishable from the real one, and I used the ops manager's name, signature, and formatting), but I felt I needed to go a little further for this engagement.

I ended up stopping by a grocery store and picking up a box of pastries for each location. As soon as I went into each location, I told the manager how much we appreciated their business in this economy and how much we valued them as a new customer. Not only did the managers go for it, but I'd randomly see people walking around the facilities with the pastries, and they'd exclaim, "Did you bring these!? Thank you so much!"

I was everyone's best friend and was able to go wherever I wanted, unescorted. It was utter annihilation. I also learned that sensitive information is worth as much as a box of pastries. It reminded me of the study where people shared their passwords in exchange for candy bars.

Like the article says, confidence is key. I don't consider myself to be "smooth" by any stretch of the imagination, but I was able to remain cool and collected despite the butterflies in my stomach going out of control, and that's what sells it.