r/GuardGuides

What skills gained from working security, would you say can transfer to other industries? Which industries exactly?

I'm asking specifically concerning someone who has only worked security, assume no other secondary education or vocational training has been acquired. Just trying to clarify because people will often say, "I worked security for 10 years, then became an accountant", that's great, it's awesome in fact, BUT, your degree in accounting and C.P.A. license probably had a lot more to do with that transition than your experience in security.

work in an industrial area 7-7. hard to stay awake i read allot of books to help. currently going through Robert greens books. I personally drink one canister of coffee and water thought the night. the crows keep me in good company but they fall asleep so it gets really quit. like having Halloween decorations on all the cameras and lights.

One thing I’ve always found interesting about security work is how much value people put on routine patrols versus unpredictable patrols.

A fixed patrol schedule makes sense operationally. Guards know what areas need to be checked, supervisors can verify that rounds are being completed, and the client gets a consistent level of coverage. But at the same time, if someone watching the property can figure out exactly when a guard will pass through a particular area, the patrol becomes fairly predictable.

There’s also the practical side. You can’t realistically make every patrol completely random, especially on a large property with specific checkpoints, access points, parking areas, loading zones, etc.

So where do people draw the line?

Is it better to have a consistent patrol schedule with some variation built into the route and timing, or should patrols be deliberately unpredictable whenever the site allows it?

I’m also curious whether people have noticed a difference in what actually gets reported during patrols. Sometimes the value of a patrol seems less about catching someone in the act and more about noticing things that would otherwise turn into problems later unsecured doors, damaged gates, lighting issues, blocked access, suspicious activity, or something simply being out of place.

For those who have worked different types of sites, what approach has worked best in practice?

lonestarprotectionagency

I know "Just" is doing a lot of heavy lifting here, and I'm well aware that it's a long, rigorous selection process. However, the guard shown, as many others, are intensely interested in CQB tactics, and that's fine. But I'm always IDK, confused, concerned, about people involved in this level of drilling for job training purposes as guards.

I even question people in my area opting for limited peace officer status on their properties/sites (NYC Special Patrolman, it's a thing, look it up), rather than just applying for local PD, or even searching nationwide for openings at various agencies. It's half in/half out. You're duty bound to act in certain situations, sometimes with force, but confined in scope to how/when/where you can act out those duties. Yet, you have none/very few of the benefits granted full blown PD, like pensions, medical benefits, legal protections, government backing. More so for normal armed guards without any peace officer status.

The joke is "lul, security too dum/fat/criminal to be cop", but that isn't the case for a lot of guards. They're fit, capable, and hyper competent, which makes me question it even more. Marketing like this blurs the line between armed security and tactical law enforcement.

How many officers out there can work when things get tense like a customer acting up but cannot take it when a client or their staff is just being an asshole for no good reason?