• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Subscribe to the Magazine
American Police Beat

American Police Beat Magazine

Law Enforcement Publication

  • Home
  • Editor’s Picks
    • Seeking the right kind of help
      “Why does that call keep haunting me?”
      Mentoring: Leave ’em better than you found ’em
      A message to those considering suicide
      The power of teamwork
  • Topics
    • On the Job
      • Heroic Florida police officer rescues swimmers caught in rip current
        California deputies rescue teen dangling 700 feet in the air after...
        Washington deputy rescues injured dog from drainpipe
        “Wow, our career together is over”: Missouri police department...
        Heroic Pennsylvania officer saves father and daughter from drowning...
    • Labor
      • San Francisco “workhorse” deputy earns millions in overtime pay...
        “A financial tsunami”
        LAPD officers receive raises, bonuses
        Minnesota police force faces disbandment as chief resigns amid salary...
        We quit!
    • Tech
      • The rise of I2P
        Ann Arbor Police Department adopts AI technology to analyze body...
        Ohio law enforcement adopts powerful ballistics technology to combat...
        AI-powered surveillance program raises concerns over privacy rights...
        Chesterfield County announces real-time crime center to enhance...
    • Training
      • Investigating “swatting” incidents
        Leaders take note: A handwritten note goes a long way
        CIT training is not for everyone
        Mentoring: Leave ’em better than you found ’em
        Ohio struggles to secure permanent funding for law enforcement...
    • Policy
      • Texas enacts stricter laws to combat illegal street racing and...
        New Mexico Supreme Court clarifies police authority to question...
        New Texas law gives local law enforcement greater control over...
        Diversity in law enforcement
        Florida attorney general and John Walsh partner in new Crime Stoppers...
    • Health/Wellness
      • The emotional rucksack
        What threat does to the brain
        Seeking the right kind of help
        Working through grief
        Responding to trauma
    • Community
      • Fort Worth ISD launches inaugural criminal justice program to raise...
        Florida police department launches SPORTS initiative to build...
        Naperville police officer inspires generations of kids through reading
        Stockton P.D. launches Your Way Registry Program to protect...
        Committing to outreach
    • Offbeat
      • “It’s time to dive in”: Shaquille O’Neal joins forces with...
        “This little piggy didn’t make it to the market”:
        Seattle police find burglary suspect guzzling gasoline in victim’s...
        Univision Chicago TV crew reporting on armed robberies held at...
        California Highway Patrol arrests man on horseback for DUI
    • We Remember
      • Headstone finally marks grave of Pennsylvania officer who gave his...
        Memorial for the fallen: The sacrifice continues
        Paying Tribute to the Fallen Heroes of 9/11
        “He was like a protector …”: Genesee County sheriff’s deputy...
        Deadly police pursuit claims life of 19-year-old Vermont police...
  • On the Job
    • Heroic Florida police officer rescues swimmers caught in rip current
      California deputies rescue teen dangling 700 feet in the air after...
      Washington deputy rescues injured dog from drainpipe
      “Wow, our career together is over”: Missouri police department...
      Heroic Pennsylvania officer saves father and daughter from drowning...
  • Labor
    • San Francisco “workhorse” deputy earns millions in overtime pay...
      “A financial tsunami”
      LAPD officers receive raises, bonuses
      Minnesota police force faces disbandment as chief resigns amid salary...
      We quit!
  • Tech
    • The rise of I2P
      Ann Arbor Police Department adopts AI technology to analyze body...
      Ohio law enforcement adopts powerful ballistics technology to combat...
      AI-powered surveillance program raises concerns over privacy rights...
      Chesterfield County announces real-time crime center to enhance...
  • Training
    • Investigating “swatting” incidents
      Leaders take note: A handwritten note goes a long way
      CIT training is not for everyone
      Mentoring: Leave ’em better than you found ’em
      Ohio struggles to secure permanent funding for law enforcement...
  • Policy
    • Texas enacts stricter laws to combat illegal street racing and...
      New Mexico Supreme Court clarifies police authority to question...
      New Texas law gives local law enforcement greater control over...
      Diversity in law enforcement
      Florida attorney general and John Walsh partner in new Crime Stoppers...
  • Health/Wellness
    • The emotional rucksack
      What threat does to the brain
      Seeking the right kind of help
      Working through grief
      Responding to trauma
  • Community
    • Fort Worth ISD launches inaugural criminal justice program to raise...
      Florida police department launches SPORTS initiative to build...
      Naperville police officer inspires generations of kids through reading
      Stockton P.D. launches Your Way Registry Program to protect...
      Committing to outreach
  • Offbeat
    • “It’s time to dive in”: Shaquille O’Neal joins forces with...
      “This little piggy didn’t make it to the market”:
      Seattle police find burglary suspect guzzling gasoline in victim’s...
      Univision Chicago TV crew reporting on armed robberies held at...
      California Highway Patrol arrests man on horseback for DUI
  • We Remember
    • Headstone finally marks grave of Pennsylvania officer who gave his...
      Memorial for the fallen: The sacrifice continues
      Paying Tribute to the Fallen Heroes of 9/11
      “He was like a protector …”: Genesee County sheriff’s deputy...
      Deadly police pursuit claims life of 19-year-old Vermont police...
  • Between the Lines
    • Debunking the perpetual narrative of racial bias in policing
      The unspoken truth behind the recruitment and retention crisis
      The police reform goal: use of force without options
      The imprisonment of law enforcement technology
      Persecution of the LEO is classic schadenfreude
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Advertise
  • Contact
Search

Community

What is a tactical mindset?

Dan Kickert Published July 28, 2021 @ 8:00 am PDT

iStock.com/zabelin

When it comes to cops, everyone knows that if they want to sell us something, all they have to do is paint it black and call it tactical. We cannot get enough of stuff like that. Tactical pens, tactical knives, tactical firearms, hell, even tactical pants. So why is it when we hear the words “tactical mindset” we want nothing to do with it? That simply doesn’t make any sense. Pens break, we lose knives, we sell guns and we’ll  either rip our pants or “grow out of them.” Our mind is something that is going to be with us for our entire career.

You don’t have to be a SWAT operator or MARSOC Marine to have a tactical mindset. It is simply taking things you learn, or hopefully learn, in the academy or field training and putting them into use in everyday life. Some agencies only train tactics once per year with a mock school shooting scenario, and other agencies train even less than that. If that is the only time you are practicing thinking tactically, when the day comes — and it will come — you will fail. We do not rise to the occasion; we fall back on our training.

Having a tactical mindset is putting training to use each and every day and thinking about all possible outcomes. There are more than a few different ways to make entry into a corner-fed room. However, that same room is always going to have that one deep corner. If the room is a right corner-fed room, meaning the door is along the right wall, the left corner would be the deep corner. Checking that deep corner immediately upon crossing the threshold, that’s having a tactical mindset. I check the deep corner of every room I go into on and off duty.

Another simple concept most cops have heard of is “cutting the pie.” On a corner-fed room, 90% of that room can be cleared before entry is even made. Once the pie has been cut, the only remaining unknown is that deep corner. I don’t cut the pie around rooms off duty, people would look at me funny. I do cut the pie on burglar alarms with or without forced entry. Tactics, like everything else in policing, is a perishable skill. Why wouldn’t we practice every chance we get?

Something I tell new cops in FTO is to play the “what if game.” This simply means to be constantly thinking “what if.” For example, what if we pulled up at the gas station and there were an armed robbery in progress? Where would you park the squad? What would you say on the radio? Where would you position yourself? How would you manage traffic in the parking lot? If the offender had a gun pointed at the clerk, would you take a shot? That is a pretty extreme example, but asking yourself all of those questions will help prepare for when that gas station does get robbed. Maybe your answer to “Would you take the shot?” is “no.” Then you get to thinking and realize if you would have positioned yourself here instead of there, you would take the shot. These are decisions that you have already made. You are exercising your mind just like you are hopefully exercising the rest of your body.

When evaluating your decisions, either in police work, life or even the “what if game,” there are two important questions that must be asked — “What do I gain?” and “What do I lose?” By simply asking those two questions, it is easy to see what decision is tactically sound. Start looking at every decision this way for about a week and see what happens. You will realize that where you park in the grocery store parking lot, where you stand when picking up your lunch, where you sit at the bar, hell, even where you sit at the kitchen table at home all have tactical advantages and disadvantages.

Trying to pause to see tactical advantages and disadvantages and checking deep corners may seem like a lot to do, especially off duty. There are cops who are going to talk about being tired, busy, having kids and all the other excuses. Those are all valid. It is a big change, and it does take a little work. But after about a week of simply thinking tactically and forming good tactical habits, it will become second nature to you. You will even start to incorporate more of your training into everyday life. You are going to start walking down hallways different, getting into your personal car different and wondering why you never did before.

For those of you reading this and thinking it is entirely too much, I have one question for you. You do these things at work, for the people you have sworn to serve and protect, what makes those people so much more important than the loved ones you are with when you are off duty? I care very deeply for the people I have taken an oath to serve and protect, but I also care very deeply for those I call my family. So ask yourself a “what if.” What if you tried this and it actually worked? It could potentially save your life or the life of another. What if you tried it and it simply didn’t work for you? It is a simple decision; you have everything to gain and nothing to lose.

Dan Kickert

Dan Kickert

Dan Kickert is a police officer in the south suburbs of Chicago with 15 years of experience. He is currently assigned to patrol and training. He serves his agency as a field training officer, range master, tactics instructor and training coordinator. He was previously assigned to investigations, where he worked as a homicide investigator in a task force setting for seven years. 

View articles by Dan Kickert

As seen in the July 2021 issue of American Police Beat magazine.
Don’t miss out on another issue today! Click below:

SUBSCRIBE TODAY!

Categories: Community

Primary Sidebar

Recent Articles

  • Fort Worth ISD launches inaugural criminal justice program to raise the next generation of “homegrown heroes”
  • Heroic Florida police officer rescues swimmers caught in rip current
  • California deputies rescue teen dangling 700 feet in the air after botched stunt on state’s highest bridge
  • Washington deputy rescues injured dog from drainpipe
  • “It’s time to dive in”: Shaquille O’Neal joins forces with Los Angeles Port Police Department in recruitment drive
  • “This little piggy didn’t make it to the market”:
  • Florida police department launches SPORTS initiative to build positive community relationships
  • Seattle police find burglary suspect guzzling gasoline in victim’s garage
  • The emotional rucksack
  • Naperville police officer inspires generations of kids through reading

Footer

Our Mission
To serve as a trusted voice of the nation’s law enforcement community, providing informative, entertaining and inspiring content on interesting and engaging topics affecting peace officers today.

Contact us: info@apbweb.com | (800) 234-0056.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

Categories

  • Editor’s Picks
  • On the Job
  • Labor
  • Tech
  • Training
  • Policy
  • Health/Wellness
  • Community
  • Offbeat
  • We Remember
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Events

Editor’s Picks

Seeking the right kind of help

Seeking the right kind of help

September 26, 2023

“Why does that call keep haunting me?”

“Why does that call keep haunting me?”

September 20, 2023

Mentoring: Leave ’em better than you found ’em

Mentoring: Leave ’em better than you found ’em

September 19, 2023

A message to those considering suicide

A message to those considering suicide

September 18, 2023

Privacy Policy | Your Privacy Options | Notice at Collection | Copyright © 2023 APB Media, LLC | Website design, development and maintenance by 911MEDIA

Open

Subscribe

Close

Receive the latest news and updates from American Police Beat directly to your inbox!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.