Laura Motes is a former police officer who served with the Athens-Clarke County Police Department for 21 years. She became a Sergeant in 2004, which meant she needed to quickly adapt to the new duties she was expected to take on in the role. These pointers will prove helpful to anybody who has managed to attain the same rank and wishes to do the best possible job.
Develop Your Communication Skills
You will be splitting a lot of time between your superiors and your team of officers on the ground, so you are going to need to develop your communication skills accordingly. You will have to develop a range of approaches so that you can effectively handle discussions with people at all levels of the force, from your new trainees through to your superior officers.
Become a Coach
As a Sergeant you are going to find that more of your fellow officers start coming to you for advice, particularly those who are new to the force. Be confident in your abilities and recognize that you would not have achieved the position in the first place if you didn’t have something useful to offer. Use your own experiences to help others develop.
Admit Mistakes
Laura Motes always took ownership of any mistakes that happened while she was a Sergeant. It is important to continue your professional development once you attain the rank by learning from your mistakes so that you don’t make them again later on down the line. This will ensure your continued development and improve your chances of progressing further up the ladder.
Laura Motes 