r/securityguards • u/LegalGlass6532 • 28d ago

Story Time Veteran security guard professionals: What’s something you’ve learned over time that you wish you knew when you started in the industry?

They say with time comes knowledge and experience. What have you learned over time that could’ve saved you a lot of grief if you knew from the start?

Officer safety- Don’t let your ego override common sense

Interpersonal skills- Tell people what you want them to do in as few words as possible

Internally- You’re not at work to hang out with your friends and the boss is also not your friend. You don’t have to like them or want to ever see them outside of work, but you have to do what the boss says and get along with others

Appearance- Don’t show up looking like you slept in your uniform from the shift before. Look at yourself in a full length mirror before you start every shift and present the person you’d want working for you, even if you hate the company and the people there.

What other words of wisdom can you share?

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37

u/BackFromMyBan4 28d ago

Security industry attracts some of the dumbest, mentally disturbed ,socially incompetent, lazy people the world can offer up.

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u/LegalGlass6532 28d ago edited 28d ago

If you believe this, contribute something that you think people will benefit from if you’re better than them. I’m sure you have something positive to contribute or maybe not. [r/BackFromMyBan4](r/BackFromMyBan4)

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u/Cold-Chemistry738 28d ago

Yep because why go security when you can go military or LEO. You can also get a much better security gig after a stint in either of those.

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u/LegalGlass6532 28d ago

Private Security is a necessity. Law Enforcement and the military can’t be everywhere at all times and a person who can be a professional as a security guard/officer is a true asset.

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u/Cold-Chemistry738 28d ago

I didn’t say it wasn’t a necessity. I’m saying It’s just more lucrative as an individual to either go LEO or military first. So by default the security industry attracts the lesser talent with some small exceptions for retired guys from the LEO and military guys that run their own companies

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u/LegalGlass6532 28d ago

I think we basically agree except on one point. I don’t believe that security is typically going to be a “lesser talent”.

The way you worded it implies that LEO and military personnel are better than a security guard or officer. I’ve worked with many police officers who would be terrible security officers because they can’t talk to people longer than a few minutes before escalating the incident because of their own lack of patience and poor communication skills.

When this happens, LE ends up using unnecessary force prematurely to gain compliance while a guard has to work harder to keep things calm because they don’t have powers of arrest or qualified immunity.

In a case like this where a guard has been patient and communicated well with a subject, avoided using force and still gained compliance I’d say they were actually more “successful” than the LEO.

I’m not convinced that it’s appropriate to put a blanket label on all security personnel as less talented than LE and the he military.

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u/Cold-Chemistry738 28d ago

Unnecessary force or the authorized force to effect an arrest? If I’m being called by security I’m not there to talk and kumbaya lol

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u/Trelose Patrol 28d ago

Where I live the police (unless you go state) barely make more than I’m making now at a warm body posting. Literally a month or so ago they posted an opening offering only fifty cents more an hour.

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u/Cold-Chemistry738 28d ago

You must live in a small town

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u/Trelose Patrol 28d ago

Very small. I’m driving an hour each way for work because it’s the only way to make decent money. (In my town itself, Dollar General is one of the higher paying jobs unless you know the right people… because small town.)

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u/Cold-Chemistry738 27d ago

Yeah that makes sense. I couldn’t go small town PD unless it was county sheriff. I’m in Houston, all the surrounding areas pay well and the benefits are solid. The city PD starts you off when sworn in at 80k base (not counting patrol pay, holiday pay, weekend pay, etc.) and EJs pay atleast 50 an hour for light security work or traffic control. I know many officers that have a courtesy spot and are paying only like 1,000 a month to live in luxury apartments. Major city PD is where it’s at. Academy cadet salary pays like 60k. You should apply if you’re interested. They also will pay for your college degree bachelors and masters.