Why do you want to be a police officer?

+39 votes
asked Jan 15, 2019 in Career & Work by Dustin (750 points)
edited Feb 4, 2019
I want your true-to-the-heart answer. I don’t want to hear what you “think” I want to hear. There is never a perfectly “correct” answer to this question, so I want the absolute truth. Why exactly do you want to be a police officer? What drove you to this decision?

3 Answers

+12 votes
answered Apr 19, 2019 by Rick (840 points)
edited Jun 4, 2019

I love to help people. It is what I am good at anyway. I get joy when I can help people and make them smile. I am a “fixer” at heart. My own friends come to me for advice and help in dealing with their issues. I have always known that I wanted a career in an area where I can be a service to others; a direct service to others.

Honestly, though, I never saw myself being a police officer. All through high school, I assumed I would go to college to go into social services, or become a counselor of some sort. It took a crazy incidence my senior year in high school to realize this was the field I was meant to be in.

It was in October. I was walking home, with some friends, from a Varsity football game on a Friday night. About three blocks from my house, we saw flashing emergency lights and heard sirens. Of course, we were curious, so instead of taking a different way we went straight on to see what was going on. A neighbor’s house was blazing! It was crazy watching the firefighters try to control the fire. What really caught my eye though, were the police officers. Some were guarding and making sure no one entered the house or got too close but what was going on with the other officers and the family really took my attention and my heart! The youngest of their children couldn’t be found. The parents were panicked. Two officers calmed the parents and kept them from being too hysterical. Another, I could hear, was talking to someone else reporting the missing child. And yet, another was actually looking for the child in the crowd. The little girl was only 4 years old. The officer that was looking for the girl did finally find her. She was in a bush in the very front of the yard, crying. The officer held her close, reassuring her it was ok and that he was bringing her back to her mom and dad.

Don’t get me wrong, it was a wicked fire, and the firefighters did an amazing job. It’s just, what took me, was how all of the police officers worked together. It really took a team effort to do all that they were doing. I realized then, that I really wanted to be part of a team like that. A team where we may have our own duties but we need to work together to help a situation. Even though, usually police officers are at the head of a situation; it seemed this force was working the real potential tragedy and bringing a happy part to a very unhappy situation. They helped not only the family, but the firefighters as well, by ensuring everyone else’s safety. Now, becoming part of a team like this is my passion!

Wish my story would help you!

+10 votes
answered Feb 28, 2019 by Anna (670 points)
edited Jun 20, 2019
My entire family has always been in the military: Army, National Guard, Navy, and the Marines. I didn’t want to let my family down by not “following suit” but I could never see myself that far away from my family and friends. I have always wanted to serve, just not like that. I thought about the National Guard but still just didn’t seem a passion for me. A friend had decided she was going to look into joining the local fire department and wanted me to go along. I did enjoy what was talked about and the duties but still wasn’t what I was looking for.

Heavy on my heart to find my place, I started remembering things that had gone on in high school. We had a campus officer that I would talk to on occasion. I remember he was nice and even funny sometimes. He had character even in the difficult career he had chosen. I remember once seeing him chase one of the juniors and having to take him in. He had someone else’s prescription drugs and was trying to sell them. Remembering watching that and knowing he was a real person by talking to him. I decided to look into law enforcement and have decided that this is my destiny.
+2 votes
answered Jun 16, 2019 by ulinna (630 points)
edited Jun 26, 2019
I want action, good money, and a demand of respect from others in my town!
commented May 18, 2015 by Mareva (640 points)
Such a realistic answer to the question, why do you want to be a police officer?
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