Editor’s note: Careers in law enforcement aren’t built on skill alone. They’re shaped by reputation, trust and how you show up for the people around you. This piece takes a hard look at something many officers learn the slow way — your relationships inside the agency can quietly determine where your career goes.
By Master Police Officer Reginald Corey Smith
When I started my career as a police officer, I recognized very quickly that this job was not what I envisioned. I was not Bruce Willis in “Die Hard.” I was taking calls and doing paperwork. The diversity of skills and patience required for the job were not yet natural to me. My FTO told me it would take a couple of years before I felt like I had a grasp on the profession. He was right.
Early on, I realized I would have to surround myself with trustworthy people and follow their lead. There is a critical word in that sentence: people. I needed them more than I understood at the time.
As I gained experience, that became obvious. I never truly did any of this alone — not on calls, not in reports, not in opportunities that came later.
We sometimes hear people say, “I made it on my own.” In policing, that doesn’t hold up. Someone backed you up. Someone signed off. Someone gave you a shot. That doesn’t stop once you’re on the job — it continues to shape how your career unfolds.
Where things start to go wrong
One of the problems we encounter in this profession is how strongly we identify with our roles. Patrol, investigations, specialized units, training, supervision — each comes with its own responsibilities and pride. That diversity is essential, but it can also create division.
When we begin to focus only on the importance of our role and diminish the value of others, relationships start to break down. Resentment builds. Communication suffers. Over time, that impacts not just morale, but how effectively we do the job — and how we are viewed within the agency.
Relationships are our currency. They influence how we work, how we are supported and, in many cases, how our careers progress.
Avoiding role-based tunnel vision
After patrol, I transferred to a specialized unit called Center City. The work was more proactive, and I was still learning how to do it well. Around that time, I also became interested in becoming a general instructor.
As I gained experience, I noticed a mindset that I believe exists in many agencies: “I’m this, you’re not that. I do this, you don’t do that. Therefore, what you do doesn’t matter.”
I am not proud to say I contributed to that mindset.
My focus was on seizing illegally possessed firearms, narcotics and serving warrants. The “sexy stuff.” I experienced some success, but I also became impatient with peers who did not share the same priorities. That impatience led to poor decisions, including attempting to serve warrants alone on a night shift because I did not want to wait for coordination. That was not just a tactical mistake. It was a relationship mistake.
Looking back, I had placed myself in a narrow lane defined by my own interests. In doing so, I overlooked how much I depended on others — not just for safety, but for long-term effectiveness. I have since seen similar behavior in highly skilled officers and investigators. The issue is not capability. It is perspective. When we become too focused on our niche, we can overlook the very people and skills that help us succeed, stay safe and sustain our careers.
Role division does not equal irrelevance
We must constantly monitor our relationships and identify where the gaps are. We PM our cars. We clean our weapons. We refine our tactics. Yet we rarely apply that same discipline to how we work with each other.
Consider patrol and investigations. A detective’s role is to build a case — to gather information, analyze it and bring it to a conclusion. Much of that information comes from patrol: initial response, scene management, interviews and report writing.
Now consider what happens when those relationships are strained. If a detective views patrol as “lower tier,” or a patrol officer views a detective as “disconnected,” cooperation suffers. Important details can be missed. Frustration builds.
The same dynamic exists between specialized units and patrol. Officers who leave patrol may feel they have moved to another level, forgetting the importance of the work they once did. Calls like domestics, crashes and disturbances remain critical to the community and to the agency’s overall function.
No role is irrelevant. Each one supports the other.
From a career perspective, this matters more than many realize. In most agencies, reputation and trust influence opportunities. Assignments, training and advancement are often shaped by how others perceive your ability to work with them.
Maintaining relationships like you maintain your equipment
When we see issues in our professional relationships, we need to address them.
If an instructor struggles with communication, pull them aside and explain what you are seeing. If an officer has concerns with how you teach, ask them directly what could improve the experience. Find areas of alignment where possible.
These conversations are not always easy, but they are necessary.
As a trainer, I have come to appreciate how much effort goes into preparing and delivering training. It requires certification, ongoing proficiency and coordination. Like any role, it is work that the agency has deemed important.
Taking the time to understand that — or helping others understand it — builds respect.
The instructor lens and what it reveals
When I transitioned into a full-time training role, I began seeing my peers more consistently than before. Training brings the agency together in a way that shift work often does not. That environment reveals a lot. You see how people interact, where friction exists and where relationships are strong. You also see opportunities to improve both skills and morale.
I try to treat training like a family reunion. Not because it is always convenient, but because it is one of the few times everyone is in the same place, working toward the same goal.
Consider this scenario. A major crimes detective criticizes a patrol officer for poor report writing. Later, they are on the range together. The patrol officer demonstrates stronger shooting skills and more recent street experience. Should each walk away thinking the other is inferior? Or is there an opportunity to improve both sides?
The detective can help develop the officer’s attention to detail and investigative thinking. The officer can challenge and sharpen the detective’s tactical skills. That exchange only happens if the relationship allows it.
Self-awareness and accountability
There will always be individuals you cannot reach. That is reality. But in most cases, relationships can be improved with intentional effort. That starts with self-awareness.
Ask yourself: Would I want to work with me? If the answer gives you pause, there may be something to address. Sometimes we are the ones who need the conversation.
At the same time, if you see a coworker who could benefit from feedback, approach it with professionalism and genuine concern. Meet them where they are and look for common ground. This takes effort, but it pays off.
Careers in law enforcement are long. Reputations are built over time, through consistent interactions. The way you treat people — especially when it is inconvenient — shapes how you are viewed.
Why this matters for your career
Skills, productivity and assignments matter. But they are not the full picture. Your relationships influence whether others support you, recommend you or choose to work with you. They affect how opportunities come your way and how sustainable your career feels over time. In many cases, they quietly determine your trajectory.
The challenge is simple: put the same intentional effort into your working relationships that you put into every other aspect of the job.
About the author
Master Police Officer Reginald Corey Smith is an 11-year veteran of the Greenville (North Carolina) Police Department. MPO Smith has worked in the Patrol Bureau, Special Operations Division, and was transferred to the Administrative Services Bureau in 2025 to work in the Training Unit. A purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, MPO Smith specializes in training officers in Subject Control and Arrest Techniques and holds other various instructor-level certifications, to include Rapid Deployment and TASER 10. He has been a member of the Greenville Police Department’s Emergency Response Team for 10 years.
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