Former CIA Spy: How to Eliminate Self-Doubt, Build Confidence, and Protect Yourself in Today’s World

August 17, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

The Former CIA Chief of Disguise on Confidence, Courage, and What It Actually Takes to Change

Jon Amenders joined the CIA as a secretary. She had grown up in Wichita, Kansas, expecting to marry someone who worked at Boeing, have kids, and become a librarian or teacher. Instead, she spent three decades at the CIA, eventually becoming its chief of disguise—the person responsible for creating full-face masks so convincing that she wore one into the Oval Office to brief President George H. W. Bush, and he didn't notice until she pulled it off.

Her path to that role was anything but linear. After college, she followed a friend to Europe, stayed, and cold-called American banks in Frankfurt until one hired her. She met a boyfriend on the Vienna subway who proposed to her—and then revealed he worked for the CIA. She joined the agency as a secretary and became so good at it that she became the boss's secretary, the highest-level role available to a woman at the time. It was a dead end. So she told her boss she was leaving. He suggested she take photography classes. Those classes turned out to be CIA training. She became excellent at spy photography—developing film from hidden cameras disguised as pens, processing microdots that reduced a full page of text to the size of a period. Then she wanted an assignment in India. The only job available was in disguise. She took it. That pivot,

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What you'll learn

1 (00:08) **Opening & Guest Introduction** - Mel Robbins introduces former CIA Chief of Disguise, Jonna Mendez, and previews the episode's themes of courage, identity, and practical wisdom from a life undercover.
2 (06:36) **How Jonna Joined the CIA** - She explains her accidental path into the agency, starting as a secretary after marrying a CIA officer she met in Germany.
3 (09:50) **From Secretary to Spy Photographer** - Jonna describes how she transitioned from a secretarial "dead end" into the CIA's secret photography division by following a suggestion to take specialized classes.
4 (13:36) **Advice on Making a Change** - Jonna offers practical wisdom for anyone feeling stuck or underestimated, emphasizing that you never truly start over.
5 (16:52) **Aim High & The Argo Story** - Jonna discusses being underestimated as a woman and shares the incredible true story behind the Oscar-winning film *Argo*.
6 (20:22) **The Argo Operation Explained** - Jonna details how Tony Mendez created a fake Hollywood production to rescue six Americans trapped in Iran during the 1979 hostage crisis.
7 (25:50) **What the Chief of Disguise Actually Does** - Jonna clarifies her role, contrasting it with her husband's (passports and money) and explaining how they supported "James" (the field officers).

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

Today, a former spy and the former Chief of Disguise for the CIA is taking you inside the heart-pounding world of espionage and the secret life she lived working undercover for 30 years.

Jonna will share the tactics and strategies you need to read anyone and spot a liar, offer a powerful warning about the state of the world today, and give you practical wisdom to find courage and face life’s hardest moments.

For decades, Jonna helped intelligence officers assume new identities, disappear in plain sight, and carry out high-risk operations.

Jonna created disguises convincing enough to fool the President of the United States and the Secret Service.

Together, Jonna and her late husband, Tony Mendez, co-authored the bestselling book Argo about the CIA operation he led - the true story that inspired the Academy Award-winning film Argo.

But what makes this conversation so powerful is not just the spy stories.It is Jonna’s deeply personal reflection on courage, reinvention, trust, loss, and what it means to keep going when life feels scary or uncertain.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

- Why courage does not come first and how confidence and preparation create it

- How to stay calm under pressure

- What 30 years in the CIA taught Jonna about trusting your intuition

- The signs that someone may be trying too hard to convince you of a lie

- Why direct eye contact is not the lie detector most people think it is

- How Jonna would change the smallest details to make someone disappear in plain sight

- Why you are never starting over when you make a major change

- How to stop underestimating yourself and aim higher

- Why nothing meaningful is accomplished alone

- How taking small steps can help you face problems that feel too big to solve

Jonna will tell you that courage is not something you either have or you do not. It comes from knowing what to do, preparing yourself, and confronting the things that scare you.

After today, you'll understand how to build confidence, trust yourself under pressure, and have the courage to reinvent your life…at any age.

For more resources related to today’s episode, click here for the podcast episode page.

If you liked this episode, listen to this one next: It’s Not Too Late: How to Transform Your Life at Any Moment

Mel wants to add: