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I think I’ve written about this before, but maybe it’s just rattled around in my head enough that I think I have. I have been to enough police “leadership” training and other leadership based stuff to know that I suck at “encouraging the heart”. I have completed a bunch of self assessment forms and even had a structured 360 evaluation done a few times. In those, subordinates, peers and bosses have evaluated me. Not my performance per se, but traits and characteristics.

In all of those events, I have received low marks on giving praise. In one class, there were leaders from the entire community, business people, cops, professionals in other areas etc. So we get the 360 done and we are supposed to share the finding if we feel comfortable with it. In addition, we are supposed to tell the group about a time when our weakness came to pass in a real incident. My team had just been involved in an OIS, the facts of that call aren’t important. What is important is that the teams performance wasn’t perfect. As a result, I gave the team an honest critique, it was not full of puppies and flowers. So I tell the class I suck at giving praise and bring up this incident. I am not shitting you when I tell you that a lady in the class cracked a tear that rolled down her cheek while I was speaking. I quickly told her that it was OK, the dude that got ventilated deserved it. It dawned on me that she wasn’t crying because a criminal suspect was killed, she was crying because I was so mean to the team.

Now boys, that kinda thing will make you think a little. Here is what I have come up with. SWAT isn’t a game for little girls, that statement isn’t gender specific. It is about attitude. We work in a business where people die if our collective crap isn’t wired tight. To get wired tight requires an intense and honest critique of performance. It requires me to put a shoe in your ass when you aren’t performing. I will not clap you on the back or tell you “Great Job” simply because you did your job, that is expectation. If you want medals, accolades or public acknowledgement of how neat you are, dont expect that from me. It simply isn’t going to happen, primarily because I wasnt raised that way. If I say notthing about your performance, then congratulations, you are meeting standards. If I tell you “Good job” or “well done”, it’s because you have exceeded standards. But you arent going to get much more.

For men who carry guns for a living, who put themselves in harms way, who have a standard of morals and ethics that are not debatable, then a nod from your peers is all you need. Anything more is fluff and is wasting valuable time that could be spent training, improving and refining our craft, or doing finger pushups. Still not satisfied, well then “Good Job!”, please print that shit and refer to it as often as you need.