Editor’s Note: Beyond the Job, Who Are You?

For many military and law enforcement personnel, the job is their identity. They dedicate themselves wholeheartedly to their role and their mission, focusing on it constantly. But defining yourself by your profession can present many challenges down the line.

Having a singular identity—that is, building your personality and life around a single aspect of your world, like your job—is risky, especially if a single change in political environment or on-the-job accident could derail your public security career unexpectedly, as it did for ASIS International CSO Center members Anders Noyes, CPP, and Scott Wolford, CPP. When disaster struck, they were forced to reconsider career paths that had felt stable.

“Whether you were in law enforcement for 10, 20, or 30 years, the job often becomes your identity,” wrote Jessica Flores and Michael Bailey, Sr., CPP, in “A Strategic Approach to Transitioning from Police Work to the Business World.”  “The sense of loss that comes from accepting you are no longer a cop—along with any unprocessed trauma from a career in law enforcement—can begin to feel like, ‘too much.’”

Over-identifying with your job—whether public or private security—can wear you down and limit your perspective on your career path, your preferences, and even how to solve tricky problems. It becomes a form of personality tunnel vision, limiting your options to grow and see different points of view.

That isn’t to say security professionals shouldn’t take pride in their work and see their profession as a noble and worthy one. But taking breaks and fostering alternative pursuits can have multifold benefits.

In the security industry, there’s a tendency to adopt an always-on, always-alert mindset. However, taking time away is essential. Security professionals are not automatons—something that’s even more vital to remember in the era of AI and automated security tasks. Our perspectives, analysis, and ability to connect the dots set humans apart from machines, and security professionals need these skills more than ever in today’s complex environment.

So, how can you hone those skills? Step away from the desk and get yourself a hobby.

It’s hardly unheard-of advice, but it still rings true. Former ASIS President Tim McCreight, CPP, used to volunteer with his wife at his local animal shelter as a break from security work. Current ASIS President Cy Oatridge, CPP, enjoys a good round of golf. New ASIS CEO William Tenney makes sure to unplug from work in the evenings to spend time outdoors and exercising, if he’s not tuning in to a Minnesota Twins baseball game. Former ASIS President Godfried Hendriks, CPP, got into running 20 years ago to keep himself “healthy and sane,” and he continues to do two to three 10K runs every week, including at ASIS Europe and GSX with fellow running enthusiasts in the security industry. 

Hobbies can have tangible results for your mental health. Doing something for fun engages pleasure centers in your brain, rewarding you for taking time off. Hobbies are often social activities, too, which helps to boost the participant’s sense of community. In addition, hobbies can help mitigate the adverse effects of working long hours, according to a study in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Hobby engagement also resulted in higher mental wellbeing among older adults in 16 countries, according to research published in 2023 in Nature Medicine. Having pursuits outside of work also improves your personal resilience when careers go awry or when a crisis hits.

Security professionals are not automatons—something that’s even more vital to remember in the era of AI and automated security tasks.

Despite the research, though, it’s not always easy to make time for yourself to pursue that sense of fun and self-fulfillment. Especially in a work-from-anywhere era, it’s easy to heed the siren call of email, the beckoning glow of another Slack notification, the seduction of ticking one more item off your to-do list, even though it’s 9:00 p.m. But when that happens, remember—you are more than your job. Set practical boundaries from work and respect them as much as possible. If you’re attending GSX this year, strive to have some personal, non-security conversations and build connections with your peers outside of the job. And, when you can, try to start reframing how you introduce yourself to others to put yourself—not your job title—first.

I’ll start: I’m Claire Meyer. I’m a printmaker, sewing enthusiast, and Security Management’s new editor-in-chief. So, who are you?

Claire Meyer is editor-in-chief of Security Management. Connect with her on LinkedIn or email her directly at [email protected].