Then
and
Now
and
Now
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A lot of things have changed since I was a 23 year old rookie police
officer. The pay wasn't that good, and the opportunity for overtime was
almost non-existent. I joined a police department that was so efficient
in its operations that if you failed to comply with even a minor
requirement, someone would track you down and dog you; until, you
were in compliance. Overtime wasn't available, because the patrol
division was so well staffed and deployed, there wasn't a need to require
overtime. The administrative procedures were so tight you couldn't lose
a piece of paper even if you tried. You could ask ten different
supervisors the same question and get the same answer.
As a rookie police officer, my opinion on anything didn't mean anything
to anybody. My sergeant watched me like a hawk; he even made sure I
was in his leave group so that I'd never be out from under his watchful
eye. He was critical of nearly everything I did; even though, I pointed
out to him that nearly everything I did was under his direct supervision.
While he was never abusive toward me, I was sure he didn't like me...oh
boy, was I wrong. Good leadership has its rewards. A few years later,
that sergeant retired, and I hounded everybody in the district for a
contribution toward his retirement gift. When I presented him with the
gift, he looked puzzled and said, "I thought you didn't like me." Oh
boy, was he wrong.
Like I said, a lot of things have changed. The pay is dramatically better,
and the opportunities for overtime are not in short supply. However,
your chances of joining a department as operationally and
administratively efficient as the one I joined is rapidly becoming a thing
of the past. Most of the older, experienced leadership are gone, and
they've been replaced with a new breed of leadership more interested in
enhancing their personal resumes than providing you with an
organizationally stable and efficient working environment. It's not that
they would intentionally deny you stability, but the pursuit of personal
aggrandizement simply requires a lot of time and effort.
You could get lucky. You could have good people looking after you, as I
did, during those critical early years of your career. More likely, you'll
find yourself surrounded by police officers as young and inexperienced
as yourself. Your sergeant might only be a few years older than you
and a lightweight when it comes to knowledge and experience. If your
department is organizationally weak from people constantly "thinking
out of the box," the youth and inexperience around you could be
detrimental to your success. More than ever before, a new police officer
needs to seek out the knowledge to recognize and properly address
situations and circumstances essential to one's success. Becoming a
Police Officer: An Insider's Guide to a Career in Law Enforcement is my
contribution to that quest.
officer. The pay wasn't that good, and the opportunity for overtime was
almost non-existent. I joined a police department that was so efficient
in its operations that if you failed to comply with even a minor
requirement, someone would track you down and dog you; until, you
were in compliance. Overtime wasn't available, because the patrol
division was so well staffed and deployed, there wasn't a need to require
overtime. The administrative procedures were so tight you couldn't lose
a piece of paper even if you tried. You could ask ten different
supervisors the same question and get the same answer.
As a rookie police officer, my opinion on anything didn't mean anything
to anybody. My sergeant watched me like a hawk; he even made sure I
was in his leave group so that I'd never be out from under his watchful
eye. He was critical of nearly everything I did; even though, I pointed
out to him that nearly everything I did was under his direct supervision.
While he was never abusive toward me, I was sure he didn't like me...oh
boy, was I wrong. Good leadership has its rewards. A few years later,
that sergeant retired, and I hounded everybody in the district for a
contribution toward his retirement gift. When I presented him with the
gift, he looked puzzled and said, "I thought you didn't like me." Oh
boy, was he wrong.
Like I said, a lot of things have changed. The pay is dramatically better,
and the opportunities for overtime are not in short supply. However,
your chances of joining a department as operationally and
administratively efficient as the one I joined is rapidly becoming a thing
of the past. Most of the older, experienced leadership are gone, and
they've been replaced with a new breed of leadership more interested in
enhancing their personal resumes than providing you with an
organizationally stable and efficient working environment. It's not that
they would intentionally deny you stability, but the pursuit of personal
aggrandizement simply requires a lot of time and effort.
You could get lucky. You could have good people looking after you, as I
did, during those critical early years of your career. More likely, you'll
find yourself surrounded by police officers as young and inexperienced
as yourself. Your sergeant might only be a few years older than you
and a lightweight when it comes to knowledge and experience. If your
department is organizationally weak from people constantly "thinking
out of the box," the youth and inexperience around you could be
detrimental to your success. More than ever before, a new police officer
needs to seek out the knowledge to recognize and properly address
situations and circumstances essential to one's success. Becoming a
Police Officer: An Insider's Guide to a Career in Law Enforcement is my
contribution to that quest.
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