It ’ s commonly thought that experience is the best teacher . If that is true , why do some officers repeatedly make the same mistakes ? Why do officers fail to learn the lessons that each call provides ? John Maxwell said , “ Experience is not the best teacher ; evaluated experience is the best teacher .” So how do the best leaders help officers critically evaluate their experiences and learn the lessons needed to grow as an individual ? The best approach for police departments is to debrief every call .
The use of debriefings is not new . The military , aviation , and medical professions have conducted debriefs as a matter of routine for a very long time . The Army conducts After Action Reviews ( A . A . R . s ) after every operation . Debriefings are a vital for continuous improvement initiatives and developing advancements in tactics and techniques as well as better standard operating procedures . Instead of being reactive as a profession , implementation of daily debriefings offers a much more cost-effective approach to improving performance as well as reducing mistakes , complaints , and liability exposure . Debriefs can have the added benefit of improving the relationships and culture of the agency .
Often , when supervisors try to discuss a performance issue with an officer , the officer becomes defensive because they view the criticism as a personal attack . This usually occurs because the individual thinks they are the problem when , in fact , they merely have a problem . This defensiveness causes officers to minimize their mistakes and increases the likelihood that they will hide their mistakes rather than bringing them to light . A hidden mistake is bad both for the individual and the organization . This defensive response prevents them from learning the valuable lessons and skills needed to perform at their full potential . A proper debriefing process can avoid this response and create an environment conducive to sending and receiving constructive criticism .
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The magic of a debrief is the leader does not have to tell someone they made a mistake . Instead , they lead a conversation about the individual ’ s actions by asking what they were thinking and feeling when they made a decision or took an action . As the officer answers questions , they recognize there were better options available . This accomplishes two things . First , it forces officers to think about why they took the actions they did . If the officer was thinking they needed to go left when clearing a room , but through debriefing determines going right would have been a better response , they will recognize this and store that information for later . This creates a pattern and a template for this type of situation . The individual needs to recognize a pattern ( center fed room , corner fed room ) and apply the appropriate template ( move to right far corner , left far corner , etc .…). The more patterns individuals recognize , and the more templates they have available , the more quickly and effectively they can make an appropriate decision .
We ’ re impressed by officers who seem to be so fast and effective . Many people believe others who are excellent at making decisions on the fly , have some “ it factor ” that allows their brains to process information , account for variables , and generate alternatives in real time more effectively . Perhaps they are just naturally gifted with better physical and mental abilities . While this may be true for some , science tells us this is not what accounts for most of the difference . These officers are not better than others ; they are simply better trained .
These better trained officers are not actually making decisions when they identify a pattern , rather , they are searching for an internal template that will solve the pattern the situation presents . If an individual does not recognize the pattern or is not equipped with a sufficient template , they will inevitably choose the first thing that comes to mind and appears to solve the problem . The problem is humans ’ instincts do not function well under
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