Police Promotion Information and Resources.

The Officer.com forum thread on voluntary demotion is one of the most candid discussions in the law enforcement community on this subject — and worth quoting from directly.

Key observations from the thread:

• "I wouldn't say it is 'common' but it happens more than once in a while."
• "In a 15-year career I've only known one that did it — Sgt to Officer. He made Sgt, didn't like it, and went back to patrol. No one thought any less of him."
• "About 5 years before I retired, I was this close to busting back to Officer from Lieutenant."
• The financial calculation matters: since Lieutenant and above are not eligible for overtime, and the salary spread isn't always that great, many officers were able to make far more money via overtime than salaried supervisors.

The Wrong Assignment Problem — Not Just the Wrong Rank

The Transition Points — Where Mismatches Most Commonly Occur

Based on the research and the framework of career transitions in policing, the following are the moments most likely to produce a mismatch. The career transitions research identifies these as the major inflection points:

moving from patrol to detective
promotion to sergeant on patrol
assignment to internal affairs as sergeant
promotion to lieutenant on patrol
assignment to a public information or administrative office.

Questions Officers Should Ask Before Pursuing the Next Promotion

Here is a powerful and practical checklist — the 6 honest questions a self-aware officer should answer before pursuing promotion:

1. Do I want to lead and develop people, or do I want to do the work I do now?
2. Am I pursuing this promotion for the right reasons — leadership fulfillment — or primarily for pay and prestige?
3. Have I spent time in the rank below watching how supervisors actually spend their time — and do I want that life?
4. Am I the kind of person who can hold people accountable, including friends and people I came up with?
5. Will this promotion improve or damage my family life and personal health?
6. Am I being encouraged to promote by people who know me well and see genuine leadership potential — or by people who just want the department to fill a spot?

The Officer.com article on past performance puts it memorably: past performance is a predictor of the future. When you are on a promotional board or a chief about to make a promotion, you must consider the career and the career path of the person, not just their test score and recent behavior.

So, it all comes back around to the beginning of your law enforcement career, and all the reasons you first chose the profession; helping your community, fighting crime, comforting victims, facing the personal physical, mental, training and professional enforcement challenges, and having pride as an integral member of a truly meaningful organization.

Have you met these things head on, and can say you've accomplished all or at least most of them?

The 2 most important questions to ask yourself; 1. are you ready to lead the next generation of law enforcement officers, show them the way, lead them to the right accomplishments, methods and mindset? and 2. Do you know exactly what you are giving up, and is this the exact right time to let it all go and move on?

If you answered yes to the above 2 questions, get to the bulletin board and sign your name to that promotion list.

Otherwise, keep doing what you have enjoyed doing all along - the meaningful and fulfilling work you are good at. Promotion? Maybe one day, just not today.