Best products from r/securityguards

You're asking a simple question with a complicated solution as there are many factors that go into conflict, stress, and decision making under pressure.

I think the first thing you could do is positive self-reflection. Recognize that stress and adrenaline diminishes your cognitive abilities, and impacts your ability to make rational and logical decisions. That's a biological response and you're simply being human. You said you were concerned about them getting violent, it was already tense, and I assume all three of them were against you. I would be reasonably concerned as well.

If you find this difficult, you need to stop beating yourself up. Ask yourself a simple question: Did you accomplish your goal or solve the problem? If the answer is yes, it's win and it's positive. Unless you broke a law or policy, it's all a learning experience and you can examine the situation to consider what you might do better next time.

You could take time to imagine yourself in future situations and how you would approach it successfully next time, mentally preparing yourself to act. Learning how to control your breathing can help to lower your heart rate and keep yourself more relaxed. Reminding yourself that the people you often deal with are mad at the situation, or what you represent, and not necessarily making it personal (unless you choose to) can help.

Having sufficient training and experience can help your confidence and inoculate you from some of the negative effects of stress, as mindset is a huge piece of the puzzle. Responding with a partner who has your back will also help.

There are a lot of things you can do, and there's no one single fix. If it's useful to you, two books I would recommend are Verbal Judo by George Thompson, and Blink by Malcolm Gladwell. As both touch on some strategies that might help you.

Best of luck and you're welcome to PM me if you want some resources and I'll see what I can drum up.

My hospital boots: Salomon Urban Jungle SZ my indoor or light duty boots. These are my best boots for breathability, mobility and simplicity. They are a lightweight boot and have more of a athletic feel to them and suit the hospital environment well. I love my 5.11 boots but they are more of a rough n' tough boot, and they are a bit heavy for the hospital environment, that is compared to the Salomons atleast. I would still vouch for durability on these boots though but I have little experience taking these out in rough terrain. Out of personal preference I like seperate boots for seperate tasks. For lightduty work that requires running or walking on mostly flat terrain I'd recommend these boots 100%
P.s. I've heard the Under Armour boots are similar to my Salomons but they appear to be a little less durable (just on visual inspection at the store)

My patrol boots: 5.11 ATAC 2.0 8" love these to death. Fave boots by far. Comfy, durable, and generally breathable (they are waterproof so that's saying alot) mine have been used and abused by walking through scrapyard and abandoned buildings for a year and the only downfall I've come across it the fact that the insides of the boot have a sealed cloth lining and the stitching on the right boot has come off on the inside so sometimes when I pull my foot out the inside tries to come out with it, and there's no real way to fix it to stop it from happening, unless I wanna bust open the lining and then stich it all back up again which would be difficult and not worth it. But again this is after hard use over the past year and no other part of the boot has broken, laces are like new, soles have barely worn down and are solid still, toe of the boot has no chipping or wear on it. Absolutely love em. Will be buying another pair when these eventually need to be replaced.

My (soon-to-be) winter patrol boots: Salomon Toundra Forces
(The 'toundra pro' model looks nice too but less grip it seems) can't say how good they are yet as I haven't tried em but I'm excited to get a new winter boot.

I have a couple pairs of S.W.A.T. Original boots and Danner Crosstech that I used to use. The SWAT ones I ended up bending the steel plate at the bottom kicking a tire, they were good boots and held up quite a while but I would have expected them to be a bit more durable, but they are on the lower end of the price scale. The Danner boots I actually received for free and use them as 'show boots' I guess. I don't like the feel of the sole and they feel a little clunky, I'm sure id get use to them but for now I just keep em clean in case I need em.

Edit: added reasons why I liked them

Kershaw 3920, it was >$30 when I bought it, now that I just looked it up I wish I had bought 10. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TAD2LVO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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It's fantastic, holds an edge and is very easy to sharpen. Quickly deploys. When I am an Armed Guard, I'll also have a fixed knife behind my duty belt on non dominant hand to be a backup, but the folding knife will always have a place for general tasks like opening my paycheck, and boxes. Employees at my contract love it when I can help them open something they need to open. It's the tiniest thing but it engenders a ton of rapport.

Buy


This cream


This polish


This brush


And


This heel dressing


Remove boot laces. Apply the cream liberally with a paper towel to all leather on each boot. Let dry 5min. Brush off GENTLY using the least amount of pressure necessary to remove the cream and add a light shine to the boot.


Next add a bit of polish to a second paper towel and apply a thing layer to each boot, again letting them dry 5min. Once again gently brush it off.


To add further shine repeat the polish step but wait 30min, ideally one hour to let the polish harden. Use a few drops of water with the polish after the first time.


Touch up the polish every 1-2 weeks, not more than 4 weeks. Rebrush the boots lightly before each shift to smooth the polish out, removes light scuffs and restore the shine. Use the cream every 1-2 months.


Use the heal dressing as needed to to rubber heals/soles to darken them. This is super important and must not be skipped.


Here is a photo of the unpolished undressed soles, versus the finished ones.

I didn't have a problem with the exam, it is mostly common sense and you shouldn't have any problems if you keep reading your guidebook.

Depending on how large the company is, they may or may not supply you with pants.

But it is always best to go out and buy your own so you know you have some that fit.

The industry standard is black cargo pants, but less intense positions will let you get away with black workpants, slacks, or even black jeans if you aren't interacting with people often. You can find these virtually anywhere, I prefer Mark's Work Warehouse because their cargo pants are almost like canvas and don't wear out as easily.

I would also drop by any dollar store and get pick up a few packs of black pens. I also keep a personal notebook with me for recording any problems with your work area that aren't worthy of the work notebooks you receive (if your co-workers are leaving the office messy for instance), or any interactions between yourself and your coworkers/superiors.

Flashlights can be bought virtually anywhere. I bought a $25 multi-tool and it came with a free penlight which while not ideal, is serviceable if my actual flashlight dies on me.

I would buy a buff if you are working outside in the winter. Though I would talk to your employer about wearing anything that could obscure your face.

Also get a good pair of steel-toe boots. Most every site will require them and those that don't will usually require plain black shoes which the boots still qualify as. And good in-soles, your feet are important and you need to take care of them.

A multi-tool or pocket knife will be handy at most sites. Especially if you are doing any sort of maintenance such having to put up signs, tie any gaps closed in a fence, etc. Again ask your employer before bringing one to work.

A Bluetooth headset is also handy. Whether it he for taking calls, or so you can discretely listen to music/podcasts.

I have Smith and Wesson model 100 and 300. 100 is chained and 300 is hinged. They're great cuffs and they do the job.

Most high end cuffs won't come with a case afaik and if they do, it's usually cheap. I use this case for both sets. The cuffs fit great and I like the open top design.

You'll also want to pick up a cuff key if you don't already have one. I have one of these. Again, no complaints with it. Zak makes great keys.

I love working nights. I get off at 6a, stay up until 730a or so, then sleep until 11a. Then I handle any errands, chores, etc. and go back to sleep around 3:30. Then I'm up at 8pm, at work by 9 (I work 2 mins away) and then I just hang out and watch Netflix and browse Reddit all night.

I don't really watch TV or anything like that at home - I save it all for work lol so I might browse YouTube and instead of watching something right away I'll just throw it in my watch later Playlist and binge it all at night.

Edit: I'll add that something that's really helped me sleep is this bad boy. It's just a soft headband thing that has soft headphones inside, so you can lay comfortably on your side while wearing it. I use it to listen to rain/storms, and it's been a game changer for me. I have ridiculously noisy roommates, and the white noise drowns them out entirely, which is great. You can also kind of slip it over your eyes to use as sleep mask. Plus I use it often at work when it's cold out to keep my ears warm! I sound like I'm advertising it here lol but it really is awesome.

As a hospital security officer, I rarely approach any situation without putting gloves on. A couple of pairs in a keeper pouch is a good idea, but almost every hospital in the US has a glove dispenser and a hand sanitizer station within a few steps of wherever you may be at any time. When dealing with psych patients, remember it's the illness talking, not the person. Compassion is a big the biggest part of hospital security.

Keep an extra uniform at work. This is actually a requirement at the hospital I work at. Keep a Vick's Inhaler handy, a couple quick snorts will get funky smells out of your nose in a jiffy. There are lots of funky smells at the hospital.

If you stay there and decide you like the hospital setting, I'd advise you to pick up a copy of Dean Vaughn's Medical Terminology and Baron's E-Z Anatomy & Physiology. It will make following the conversations taking place around you much easier, and those two books present it in a very easy to learn manner.

Bates make a large variety of quality shoes if your company requires something in the oxford fashion, also find out if they just want well kept black leather or high polish corfram shoes. If you can go for the straight leather that would be my best bet, Timberland makes a good pair of black oxfords that are water and slip resistant and maintain a semblance of dress shoe appearance I paid 80$ for mine and love them.

If your company doesn't care too much about obscure rules and is willing to look the other way on you not being certified and cleared for respiratory protection then a 3M half mask is your best bet. P100 dust/ash filtration plus organic vapor using activated carbon to scrub chemicals out of the air or just for odor relief. Use it all the time for changing a relative's cats' litter boxes and I do not smell a thing with either filter.


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007JZ1N00/ plus https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007STCT00 (less expensive, wears out and odor breaks through faster than the big filter, but very lightweight) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AEFCKKY (more expensive, lasts a very very long time, heavier)


If your site is super anal about OSHA rules when it comes to masks then you'll have to stick to disposable masks and not reusable rubber masks with filter cartridges. 3M makes ash/dust protection ones with a thin activated carbon layer for odor relief.


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0052EA7NY

I currently run https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LW1R4E6/ with https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01G6IN84O/

It's been really reliable, though at full-on can heat up quickly (which in the winter time can also be a positive for warming hands lol), it's USB rechargable functionality is great if you need to do a quick charge at work (or just end-case keep a spare battery in a throw bag or something).

It doesn't have an adjustable focus at all but it more than lights at a distance, it's pretty much my definitive go-to for dark perimeter observation.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B015SJ8AM2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I use these curtains in my bedroom and they work perfectly. I just got some adhesive hooks so it can be as close to the wall as possible and now it's pitch black in my room.