Hanging on the wall in my office is a large print with a portion of President Theodore Roosevelt’s Citizenship in a Republic speech delivered at the Sorbonne in Paris France in 1910. Most people recognize the speech by a section commonly known as The Man In The Arena.
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
I do, that’s who. And so do you. I spent a great deal of my life waking up each day and going through the motions. No real direction—just jumped on the hamster wheel and was happy when it stopped spinning at the end of each day.
Maybe that vein in your neck bulges just to hear the question.
You’re not alone. Gauntlets are being thrown against both words. Seth Stoughton calls the warrior mentality a “Problem.” Dave Smith calls a guardian mindset the position of “uninformed activists.”
The topic cuts to the core of identity as law enforcement officers. Who are you in uniform? Who are you when you take the uniform off? Who are you at the core?
6 Seconds, an international corporation invested in building emotional intelligence (EQ) around the world, presented a webinar on gender and leadership. The online session examined the differing emotional competencies between men and women in leadership positions.
High performers of either gender displayed a high level of EQ. But the breakdown between men and women were inverse images!
Why. A simple three-letter word that has a profound effect on people. It also carries many meanings depending upon where, when and how it is asked. The Why question is too often taken as a challenge to authority.
The attacks in Paris have once again reminded us of the pure evil that exists in this world. As American law enforcement agencies continue to struggle with a false narrative that permeates social media, law enforcement leaders need to step up and prepare for what might be. After September 11, 2001 law enforcement officers were at the center of an outpouring of support around the country. I’ll never forget how proud I felt to be part of this profession in the aftermath of those horrific attacks. I stood ready to defend my fellow officers, our communities and our country from the radical misguided beliefs that had attacked the very core of the belief system that made America great.