ABSTRACT
Eric's narrative takes you through the beginning stages of his career as a new police officer, and his recognition of how he wanted to perform as a police officer, serving the public at the highest levels. There is current research in the police community which reports that most police officers believe in serving at their “highest levels” (Charles 2009; Smith and Charles 2010). Eric's story of Earl brings forth such vivid pictures of leadership themes, which is why we have chosen to focus on it. In addition, Eric's description of his mentor and the lessons he has learned about how to serve the public are paramount. The themes within his chapter illustrate many of the most important concepts for today's leaders – issues surrounding changing environments, listening skills, pursuing education to keep up with changes in the environment, ethical behaviours, and building relationships even when the individual is repulsive are all discussed from the perspective of today's leadership in any organization and culture.
