My police department has had its ups and downs. At this time, we happen to be in a down. Below is a note I sent to Field Training Officers because my gut told me it was needed…
“The powerful play goes on and you can contribute a verse…
What will your verse be?” ~Dead Poets Society
THE POWERFUL PLAY GOES ON: The powerful play called life goes on and on and on. Regardless of all the “stuff” that happens within an organization, things always continue moving forward. You know the “stuff” I’m referring to, it gets talked about in-between calls, while writing paper in a beat office, or shows up on the 10 o’clock news. We have zero control over those things. What I do know is that we have an incredible team of people that have taken on the responsibility of being Field Training Officers and that team is actively creating our next generation law enforcement officers.
YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE A VERSE: With every trainee you are assigned, you have the opportunity to contribute a verse which may last over the next 5, 10, 15, or 25 years. The value of that verse cannot be overstated. Look around you and decide right now what kind of officers you want to work with on your squad. Do you want to work with mopey, victims of circumstance that HAVE TO be here or do you want to work with positive, solution-focused officers that WANT TO be here? That is the verse that you, more than anyone else in this department, gets to contribute. If not for the organization, then for your squad, your team, your family.
WHAT WILL YOUR VERSE BE?: In this entire world there are only three things you truly control. Your actions. Your attitude. Your effort. Every challenge we face at work, at home, or in life can be made simpler by attacking it head-on with those three things. What are the actions I need to take? What is the attitude I need to have? How much effort am I willing to expend to be successful? I challenge you to consider these aspects as you decide what your verse will be. What are you willing to contribute to the success of another person? What are you willing to contribute to the success of your next backup officer?
As Field Training Officers, you have a tremendous amount of influence by contributing a verse to the organization one trainee at a time. They look up to you, they envy you, they want to be just like you because you make this very complex profession look easy.
Thank you for everything you do and everything you are going to do!
As leaders, I encourage you to follow your leadership instincts. When you feel that things are off and something encouraging needs to be said, follow that instinct. You never know who you may inspire during that tough time…
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