What makes a good cop? Care and compassion most of all, says Michael Letts

Despite how policing in America has become more difficult in recent years, there are still thousands of young Americans across the country who are considering and interested in becoming a police officer.

But their reasons can vary greatly. Some reasons are understandable and reasonable. Other reasons might be cause for concern.

If you want to be a police officer for the money, then you’re off to a bad start. You will never become rich with a law enforcement career. At best you may be financially comfortable, but even then, that’s a long shot.

If you want to be a police officer because you want power and control over others, that is not a good reason. Police officers are empowered by enforcing the law and that is an enormous responsibility that must be taken seriously. You’ll find yourself in trouble more than anything else.

If you want to be a police officer because it “sounds cool” to wear a badge and carry a gun, you are seriously misinformed. A badge and a weapon are merely tools needed to get the job done and nothing more.

If you want to be a police officer because the thought of sitting behind a desk all day doesn't appeal to you, you're getting warm.

But Michael Letts, the CEO and founder of one of America’s longest-running nonprofit organizations that serve the LEO community by providing tactical vests to police officers, InVest USA, knows the key to what makes great police officers.

And it boils down to care and compassion.

“They don’t do it for the money. Lord knows they don’t do it for the money. They don’t do it for the glory because look how the mainstream media portrays them to be. They do it because they care about each one of you. They care about their community. They have a passion for people and that's something you can't put a value on,” Letts said in a recent interview.

Aside from running InVest USA, Letts is also a political analyst, an LEO advocate, and has been supporting and fighting for the law enforcement community for decades. When many Americans were turning their backs on the police, Letts was stepping up.

As an avid LEO supporter, he understands what it takes and what it means to be an effective officer.

Will some people enter law enforcement for the wrong reasons? Of course. But those are far and few in between. A vast majority of them enter the law enforcement profession because they simply want to help others – much like other first responders like EMTs, firefighters, and so on. They are all cut from the same mold.

That is why Letts encourages everyone to support them.

“So the least we can do is to let them know how much we support them. So I encourage us to do a number of things. Make sure that law enforcement in your area have what is necessary to go home safely to their families,” Letts said.

Letts’ speech (see it here) comes from a conversation he had regarding an off-duty police officer who stepped up to help someone. He explained that it was the officer’s big heart that led him to help another person in need. And that is the key to what makes a great police officer.

“But I tell people even more important than that, that’s tremendously important, but when's the last time you told a first responder ‘thank you for your service’ because of the story you just heard. He didn’t have to do it, he was off duty, it was in his heart. That's what represents law enforcement,” Letts said.

Michael Letts is the author of Truth, Lies and Control: Finding Hope in an Upside-Down World. Order your copy on Amazon today!