• Home
  • About
    • Authors
  • Articles
    • Archives
    • Chaplain
    • Crime & Controversy
    • Community
    • Cop Humor
    • Editorial
    • Op-ed
    • Gear & Technology
    • Investigations
    • Laws & Legal
    • Leadership
    • News
    • Officer Down
    • On Duty
    • Tactics
  • Network
    • Illinois Network
    • Minneapolis Network
    • Tulsa Network
    • Wauwatosa Network
    • Learn more
  • Training
  • Jobs
  • Contact
No Result
View All Result
Law Officer
Law Officer
No Result
View All Result

Creating Courage in the Thin Blue Line – Know Yourself

October 23, 2019
Tim BarfieldbyTim Barfield
Share and speak up for justice, law & order...

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” ― Sun Tzu, The Art of War


In this series, my goal is to help guide those who want to be leaders with the skills necessary to become one and not just know what the traits are.  Courage is a difficult trait to develop because there is so much personally at stake.  Knowing yourself is an important part of developing courage.  In the quote by Sun Tzu above, knowing yourself and knowing the enemy becomes a double entendre because sometimes they are the same.

Leadership is not a position but a disposition.  It is a desire to develop others who will lead and who can share a vision of success for developing others.  Those leaders you know or the leadership qualities you seek come from people who have taken the time to reflect and study who they are.  Leadership is almost always measured at critical junctures.  At that juncture, the successful leader already knew themselves well enough to know what was at stake for them and others to make the decision they did.  They had to know their strengths, weaknesses, values, plans, desires and the cost to them personally for each decision they make.  The knowledge of who they are, not who the world thinks they are, allows them to move forward having their vision, with all the risks and rewards, clearly in sight.

CREATING COURAGE: PRINCIPLES HIGHER THAN YOU

When you think about someone you respect as a leader, does the word confidence come to mind?  It should because leaders have the confidence of conviction, knowledge and purpose.  For every decision they make or principle they share, they have spent an enormous amount of time developing that thought and how it will impact others.  Others is the point of leadership.

Have you taken the time to get to know who you are?  Have you ever taken stock of what you believe, what you value the most?  Are your principles more important than what others think of you or the risk to your career?  Unless you take the time to know yourself, how will you be able to lead others?  Without knowing who you are, how can you develop and grow?  What are principles and what are yours?  Is this about you or those you lead?  What is worth fighting for and why?  Do you really believe what you say you do?  Are you willing to pay the cost?  How do you know?

Some people are uncomfortable knowing the truth.  You will need to talk to others.  This should include peers, mentors and subordinates.   Most importantly, you need to talk to yourself.  Have you spent time with yourself?  Quiet reflection on you, your motivations, values and the things you know or believe will guide your continued development.  People are often afraid of the quiet because they must look at who they really are, their vulnerabilities, doubts and insecurities.  They will need to reflect on their failures, where they came from and where they want to go.  If you want to lead you must know yourself to know the enemy.

Where you find yourself lacking, spend time developing yourself by reading, listening to those who have what you seek and honing your values and convictions.  Developing the courage to lead means having the courage to know the real you.  It is only after being knowledgeable and comfortable with you, that you can lead others.  We need good leaders and we need you to fill that need.  It is time for you to find out who you are so you can help others be the best they can.

Be safe.


You can read Chief Barfield’s first article in this “Creating Courage” Series here. 


Share and speak up for justice, law & order...
Tags: couragecourageous leadershipCourageous Leadershipknow yourselfLeadershipsun tzuthin blue line
Tim Barfield

Tim Barfield

Tim Barfield is in his 35th year as a police officer. He started as a police officer in a rural village before transferring to an inner ring suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. He spent 32 years in that department gaining experience in many areas of police work. In 2014, he accepted a position as police chief for another department. He is a husband, father and grandfather who has a love for police work and police officers with a goal of helping them succeed in a great profession. His responsibilities and desires have included patrol, traffic, DARE, SWAT, training and supervision. He is a member of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association. He continues to learn and instruct on subjects with an emphasis on awareness, police survival mindset and ethics.

Related Posts

Do not accept the leadership position if…

June 30, 2022

Weak Police Chiefs: A Top Enemy of Law Enforcement

June 30, 2022
Courtesy: Jersey Tactical

If You Can’t Get In – You Can’t Save Anyone

June 3, 2022
Defunding The Police-What Cops Support

Lies, bluster and blame

June 2, 2022
Texas deputy

How Charges Of Negligence Can Cripple A Police Career

June 2, 2022
occupy city hall

Some Inconvenient Truths for Police Officers

May 20, 2022
Load More

Latest Articles

American Independence

July 4, 2022
multiple people feared dead

‘Multiple people’ feared dead at 4th of July parade in Illinois

July 4, 2022
Folsom Street Orientation

The Folsom Street Orientation

July 4, 2022
SCOTUS marshal

SCOTUS marshal asks state officials to act on protests at justices’ homes

July 4, 2022

American Independence Day….Our Day

July 4, 2022
Akron

Civil unrest breaks out in Akron after police release OIS video

July 4, 2022
Load More

Weekly E-Newsletter

Subscribe—and get the latest news and editorials direct from Law Officer each week!

[newsletter_form type="minimal"]

MUST READ

Akron

Civil unrest breaks out in Akron after police release OIS video

July 4, 2022
Jayland Walker

Akron police release bodycam footage of fatal shooting while pleading for peace as the investigation proceeds

July 3, 2022
stampede

Officers leaving NYPD is like a ‘stampede,’ PBA president says

July 2, 2022
Joe Howard Teague

93-year-old man uses shotgun to defend home against intruders

July 2, 2022
Lance Storz

3 Kentucky LEOs and K9 killed, 4 more wounded, 1 emergency management director injured during barricade situation

July 1, 2022
Load More

JOIN THE FIGHT

SAFEGUARD RECRUITING

Police Officers Needed – Entry level and lateral applicants wanted!

February 14, 2022

Deputy Sheriff

February 3, 2022

Dispatcher

January 25, 2022

Deputy Sheriff (POST Certified)

January 25, 2022

BE COURAGEOUS

FIND MORE…

Law Officer

© 2021 LawOfficer.com

LawOfficer.com

  • Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • Corrections
  • Contact

Speak up for justice, law & order

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About
    • Authors
  • Articles
    • Archives
    • Chaplain
    • Crime & Controversy
    • Community
    • Cop Humor
    • Editorial
    • Op-ed
    • Gear & Technology
    • Investigations
    • Laws & Legal
    • Leadership
    • News
    • Officer Down
    • On Duty
    • Tactics
  • Network
    • Illinois Network
    • Minneapolis Network
    • Tulsa Network
    • Wauwatosa Network
    • Learn more
  • Training
  • Jobs
  • Contact

© 2021 LawOfficer.com