by Ayman Kafel

Over the past several years, the term “warrior” has been used, labeled, demonized, idolized, and applied to all kinds of professions. These days when someone mentions the word “warrior,” typically, it is synonymous with members of the military, sports figures, MMA, UFC, and others. The term “warrior” in the law enforcement community has been a taboo title. It went as far and removing the word completely from the culture and replaced with words like “guardian” and “sheepdog.”

In the law enforcement community, when the word “warrior” was used, it was referred to as a mindset. The warrior mindset. Political correctness demonized it in the profession and associated it as part of the “militarization” of police. Across the country, that word was wiped out from any curriculum at police academies. It meant that police officers were too aggressive for modern society, it meant police officers will only use lethal force, it meant police officers will think of themselves as above their fellow man.

The warrior mindset is far from that. The core beliefs of someone adopting the warrior mindset are discipline, respect, selfless service, honor, courage, and integrity.

A warrior mindset, at a deeper level, helps individuals realize the true enemy is not external forces but the internal. Weakness, fear, jealousy, greed, ego, laziness, and many other negative traits are recognized as the enemy of the warrior mindset. Miyamoto Musashi once said, “If you wish to control others you must control yourself.” Think about it, Musashi did not mean literally “control” people, he was referring to the idea of the “self.” To have a warrior mindset is to look inward and defeat those negative traits in our hearts to be an effective officer in the community.