New officers have a lot to learn. You will misunderstand things, need help, and make mistakes as you gain experience.
What matters is how you respond. Do you listen when someone corrects you? Do you take responsibility? Are you becoming more dependable, or picking up habits that make the job harder?
Some mistakes involve duties and decisions. Others involve your attitude and the people you choose to learn from.
Picking up someone else’s negative outlook
One mistake new officers make is spending time around officers who have a consistently poor attitude about the job.
I’m talking about a pattern: constant complaining, treating people poorly, and never having anything good or constructive to say. That is different from having a difficult week or raising a legitimate concern.
A new officer is still forming an impression of the profession. If the people around you describe everything negatively, you can start adopting that outlook before you’ve had enough experience to develop your own.
Sometimes you can see a new officer displaying the same worn-down, cynical attitude as someone who has been unhappy for years. That does not tell you whether the new officer is experiencing burnout. It does tell you to pay attention to the influence around them.
Give yourself the opportunity to form your own opinion of the job.
Assuming experience makes someone a good example
An experienced officer can teach you a great deal, but experience alone does not make every habit worth copying.
Watch how people perform their duties and treat others. Notice whether their actions help the shift function or create problems for someone else.
You can learn from an officer who does something poorly. Their mistakes can show you what to avoid. Learning from that example does not require adopting their behavior or joining in their complaints.
Seek out officers who do the job well and are willing to explain their decisions. You may learn different things from different people.
Staying silent when a training pairing is not helping
You will not choose everyone you work with. Learning to cooperate with different personalities is part of the job.
However, if an officer’s behavior is interfering with your learning, speak with your training officer or supervisor. Explain what is happening and how it affects your ability to learn. Ask whether working with someone else is possible.
Keep the conversation specific and professional. Describe the problem rather than simply labeling the person a bad officer.
In my experience, supervisors often already know when someone has a poor attitude. They may have tried to address it without much success. That does not make your concern pointless, and it does not mean a different assignment will always be available.
Your responsibility is to raise the concern appropriately and remain professional yourself. Suspected misconduct or safety concerns should be reported through the required channels.
Acting as though you already know everything
New officers sometimes damage their own learning opportunities by being unwilling to listen.
Experienced officers are handling their duties while helping you learn. If every explanation becomes an argument, some will stop offering informal guidance because they feel they are wasting their time.
Ask questions. Seek clarification. Speak up about safety concerns. But approach ordinary teaching moments with a willingness to understand.
You do not have to prove how much you know in every conversation. Show that you can listen, apply instruction, and improve.
Staying busy without completing the essentials
Being active all shift does not necessarily mean you managed your responsibilities well.
You might spend too much time addressing minor behavior or working on one task while another duty reaches its deadline. When required work is left unfinished, the consequences can carry through the rest of the shift or fall on another officer.
Learn which responsibilities have fixed times and how experienced officers organize the work around them. Follow your post requirements and ask for help when priorities are unclear.
When you fall behind, look at what caused it. Use that experience to plan the next shift more effectively.
Letting a mistake become a question of honesty
A mistake gives you something to correct. Concealing it creates another problem.
Accept correction for minor errors and follow any reporting requirements that apply. If you make a serious mistake, tell your training officer or supervisor even if nobody else appears to have noticed.
Waiting to see whether someone finds out can leave a problem unresolved. It can also damage the trust people need to have in you.
Being dependable includes being honest when something has gone wrong.
Letting your attitude become everyone else’s responsibility
A supervisor can offer advice, instruction, and opportunities to improve. Changing someone’s attitude is much harder.
If I see a new officer developing a consistently negative outlook, I address it directly. They need to understand that their behavior can undermine their ability to succeed in the job. I can help them work toward a better outlook, but they have to participate in that effort.
You do not have to enjoy every assignment or pretend that every day is good. You do need to take responsibility for how you treat people, how you approach your duties, and whether you remain willing to learn.
Legitimate concerns deserve to be raised. Constant negativity without any effort to improve the situation can become a habit of its own.
Remember why you took the job
When someone else’s negativity starts influencing you, remember why you came to work here.
Perhaps you wanted to improve your financial situation. Perhaps you wanted to provide for your family or build a steady career.
Those reasons still belong to you, regardless of how another officer feels about the job.
Remembering your purpose does not remove difficult conditions or excuse poor treatment. It can help you decide how you want to approach the next shift and whose example you want to follow.
You will have discouraging days. I have had long stretches when I doubted whether I was doing well enough. Continuing to show up, learn, and try my best helped me move through that doubt.
Learn from the people around you, but take responsibility for the officer you become.
This article shares personal experience and general career guidance. Follow your agency’s current policies, reporting requirements, approved training, and supervisory direction.