Is the grass greener...

[bigcop97]

Hey all,
Been doing a lot of thinking the last few months. I dont really enjoy what I do anymore. I have been a police officer now for 12 years. I am tired of a lot of things about the job and have noticed the other day how increasingly miserable I was.

I dont want to sound whiny but several things have been wearing on me and have me thinking life would be better just to leave this job behind me. A lot of the reasons are personal but it comes down to the fact I just dont think its worth it.

I kind of feel stuck though. The job market is horrible. Any job I would get (if I were lucky enough to land one) wouldnt be the salary or benefits I currently have. I look at my pregnant wife and two year old and know I need to continue to support them at all cost. They are the number one priority in my life. Uprooting and selling our house and moving somewhere and to a smaller house isnt really even much of an option with the local real estate market.

I wonder if the grass is greener on the other side? Am I just in a funk, a part of my career that drags that I will come out of later and enjoy what I am doing again. I used to really look forward to going to work. I would hate to make a drastic change in my life to find out it was a mistake. Its not really a fair question to pose to all of you, I guess I just want some feedback.

Just FYI
I still go to work each day and do everything I can tactically and safely. I remain active and aggresive in my enforcement, its all I have ever known and the only kind of officer I will ever be.

[David Hineline]

Hopefully your supervisory staff is not active on this forum. I never understood people who job hop having just finished 27yrs with the same company, at the company choice I get to start the next group of years with another company. I just worked earlier this week with someone who is younger than I am and has had 58 different jobs since High School and now I have had 3

It's called a job for a reason, Family and Hobby is where you have fun, job is what you do so you can have life outside Job.

[deputy x 2]

Plain and simple...................Nope.

Yep I think you are in a funk.....it will pass. What part of the job isn't worth it?

Maybe you can do something different within your dept..pardon me but I didn't look at your bio. Maybe investigations...school resource officer...warrant/extraditions....or something simple like a shift change.

You are correct...the housing market sucks, jobs are non existent...you have benefits now...and a family to support. SO push on the pedal..uprooting the family now is not in their best interest.

[oneoldcop]

What you're feeling is not that uncommon. Typically you have that honeymoon phase that lasts anywhere from 5-10 years; in your case 12. I'm not sure what advice I can give you, but you should really think long and hard about your decision.

[Street_Cop50]

Like deputy x 2 said, have you considered the following...

Moving to a different shift?
Moving to a different district / precinct / sector within your jurisdiction?
Putting in for a different / special unit?
Putting in for a promotion to Sgt, Lieutenant, etc.
Applying to a different agency (local, state, or federal)?


Maybe you just need a vacation or a new hobby.

[deputy x 2]

5000 people took the Buffalo PD exam today.........................that's 5000 people who would love the opportunity to do what you are doing.

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/comm...icle400815.ece

[Justsaying]

I have gotten that way and it passes, you can start taking some classes at a local college and start towards another career. What ever you do have a solid career and a job before you leave your job, benefits are important so you need to think about that too.

[bigcop97]

Your very right Deputy x 2. The last time my agency tested it came down to just over 100 QUALIFIED applicants for one position. I am thankful for the job I have and the path that life has led me this far.

I think I just need to refocus and change something up. Make my job "new" again. I do have other opportunites but I never wanted to get very far away from regular street patrol since it was what I knew the best and what I was good at. I think a change in shift or assignment would be great.

[bigcop97]

Thanks for all the replies

[deputy x 2]

No prob.....that's what we are here for.

IMHO- LE is the best job on earth! Congrats on the baby!

[913]

I feel the same way you do.....have for several years. Countless times I have wondered what it would be like to have a "normal" job, and wished an opportunity would come along where I could bail and not look back.

I have issues with age, starting a new career, few good opportunities, etc. I have chosen to try to stick it out, and have found the best way for me to maintain my sanity is to change my focus and ride it out until someday hopefully things get better.

My advice to you if you stick with it and the funk continues........try to focus on your family and taking care of them. Do your job, but don't let the job consume you. Sometimes I have to tell myself over and over "My job is to feed my kids......not fix all these problems or be a superhero, etc." Often it works, sometimes it doesn't, but I think it helps. Good luck.

[Iowa #1603]

Hopefully your supervisory staff is not active on this forum. I never understood people who job hop having just finished 27yrs with the same company, at the company choice I get to start the next group of years with another company. I just worked earlier this week with someone who is younger than I am and has had 58 different jobs since High School and now I have had 3

It's called a job for a reason, Family and Hobby is where you have fun, job is what you do so you can have life outside Job.

David,
The generation of workers we have starting careers within the last 15 yrs don’t care about job loyalty. …….it’s a generational thing David.


BigCop’s command staff probably feel some shade of the same thing he is feeling.

And since you aren’t a cop you can’t even begin to understand why enjoying the job and having some fun in it is so important. This isn’t selling medical supplies.

BigCop,
As previously stated you are at the balancing point right now. 10-12 yrs, wife and kid, mortgage, just when you are probably topped out on the journeyman salary table…………………….


Knowing where you are (and am pretty sure I do) you are well aware of the incidents within 50 miles of you the last month . It’s been rough the last month or so and THAT takes a toll on you, especially when you look over and see the family.

Yea, you will probably come out of your funk after something happens that reminds you why you got into this career. And don’t worry, you will get the same feeling a couple more times before you retire. Shift work sucks, missing a holiday sucks, the worry sucks…………….but you are making a good, stable salary and have made a comfortable life for your family.

No, its not greener out there. You already mentioned salary and benefits--------------think about the vacation time, seniority so you can get the days off you want, & other perks the job has……

A couple weeks ago I told my son that it was not a real good time to make decisions right now that could very easily bite him in the arse later.

I truly know where you are and have been there. I however wasn’t in a position where I could change assignments or better myself…………………I just made it though the last 5 yrs by the skin of my teeth. Think about a change of scenery in your department --------------You will thank yourself in 6 months.

[RoadKingTrooper]

Big Cop
I have been where you are now, for me it was as you explained. As others explained I have seen it in others and they weathered the storm. I transferred to Investigations after 11 years in uniform and LOVED it. Even thought about the MCSAP team or Executive Security detail.

.....and no, for me the grass was not greener. I had worked in many private sectors before joining.

Good Luck with your decision!

[Justsaying]

I also think we get in a funk with life, not just the job and I think it is normal. Bigcop, maybe part of it is you are having another child and it may just be the stress of your family growing. Good things that happen do add stress to our lives, I am sure you love your wife, child and the one on the way, but maybe you are just feeling pressure and don't know it. That may be why you are in your funk.


You have a great job, you don't work in a boring office where your coworkers don't give a crap about you. LE is a family, if you get sick or hurt or your family does, your fellow officers will be there for you. Mine may care a little but we don't have the family you do.

[FromOhio]

Life is what you make it and nothing more. You just have to ask yourself what it is that you want. If you're not happy where you are, it's not a good enough reason to leave. You may have been doing the same things for so long that it just becomes a part of everyday life. Maybe get new gear, try new approaches when doing stops, do things that involve kids from the community like charity or something. You can do so many things being a cop. One of those things includes becoming better at your job. Maybe start to apply to higher up agencies or something. What you really want may already be in front of you.

The second you leave, you'll want to go back. You may not belong in the world as anything else even though youre capable. You deal with the bottom 5% of society on a daily basis. You have morals and a mentality to help people. In another aspect of this world, everyone is for themselfs. No one will have your back anywhere else. You'll see a cop pull someone over and the inner cop inside you will want to assist. Maybe even take a vacation. You've come too far to give it up.