Thoughts On The Effective Police Firearms Instructor Part 2

Administrative/Political Acumen & Misc Skills

Yes, I said the dirty word—”political.” In 2025, no department has unlimited resources. If you are a primary firearms instructor (PFI), you will be competing for limited resources with other parts of the agency. Firearms training is expensive in terms of ammunition costs, range access/maintenance, time off the streets, overtime for shift coverage, etc. You will have to be able to effectively advocate for the resources you need to keep your people safe. 

While not a classic shooting text, many PFIs would benefit from reading and using the material in Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” The need for better firearms training is not ‘self-evident’ to most agency managers and the public. Don’t get upset when challenged—be able to effectively communicate how your plans and expenditures will improve the current situation.

Procurement: Learn The Rules, Play the Game

The procurement processes of most agencies are anything but easy. If you want to increase the odds of getting what you need, you need to master whatever byzantine process your agency uses. The more complete a form, the more likely it is to be processed. If you are smart, you will specify what you need down to the part number and locate the cheapest source yourself. If your agency requires two more competing quotes, have them ready to go as well. The ability to run common software like Excel allows you to communicate in “admin speak” and dramatically increases your odds of success.

Lesson Plans

Another common software program you need to come to terms with is Microsoft Word. While many amateurs think they are unnecessary, the highly effective PFI relies on written lesson plans, and you’ll need MS Word to help you write them. Lesson plans allow you to fully form and flesh out a class before you teach it. A good lesson plan will help you identify what resources you need, from mundane details like round count to specialized equipment needed. A good lesson plan can serve as a great way to make sure you stay on task, return from bunny trails, and make sure the main goals of the session are met.

Effective PowerPoints

The final software you need to be able to use is PowerPoint. In 2025, your audience is going to expect clean, professional slides for any classroom segment you teach. There is an entire art to effective PowerPoint design that warrants its own article. Let’s summarize a good slide design by using fewer words and more relevant pictures. Also, in worst-case situations, the PowerPoint you taught with may be introduced in court to document what training you presented. The best source of information for slide design is an online class intended for firearms instructors. Taught by Tiffany Johnson of Citizens’ Safety Academy, the class will dramatically increase your ability to provide relevant information that looks professional.

Mechanical Aptitude?

A final set of neglected skills for the effective PFI is the possession of some mechanical aptitude and the ability to perform basic blue-collar skills. Anything downrange will eventually get shot and broken. If you can repair it yourself, the budget will be stretched further, and downtime will be reduced. If you’re hiring people to work on the range for you, knowing their mechanical abilities can help make selection decisions in a pragmatic world. As a final thought, people with mechanical aptitude tend to be better at tasks like mounting optics, working on firearms, etc.

Continual Learning

If this sounds like a lot and something that won’t be mastered in a month, you are correct. Being an effective PFI is a lifelong commitment to one of the most important arts in police work. There is no single course or book that will teach all these skills. Any other profession must update its skills and stay current. You should seek out quality outside instruction to gain knowledge in all the areas listed above. This is also a good time to start your library of books so that you can learn the wisdom and mistakes of those who have gone before. Now is the time to join related professional organizations such as the International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, National Law Enforcement Firearms Instructor Association, and International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association.

Don’t Steal from the Mediocre

A common mistake made by many is to look down on the private citizen training world. There are plenty of excellent instructors worth your time, whether their classes are limited to “law enforcement only.” Tom Givens of Rangemaster Firearms Training has a well-developed series of instructor courses that cover many of the areas discussed. LAPD legend Larry Mudgett’s Marksmanship Matters has a phenomenal program for taking shooters from zero to competent, which is time-tested and open to any responsible citizen. A final course worth considering is the Citizen Safety Academy’s Gateway Instructor course. Gateway students are defined as those who have “overcome boundaries, obstacles, social disincentives, and other adverse odds to learn to shoot for the first time.” In 2025, many of the police cadets entering the academy are really gateway students and need to be taught as such.

A Lifelong Commitment

If this sounds like a lot of work, there’s a reason. It is a lot of work, time, and personal commitment. Sadly, “firearms instructor” is a title given too cheaply and mostly refers to folks who can administer the latest dumbed-down qualification course once or twice a year. If you want to be effective in conveying the information an officer will need on the worst day of their lives, when innocents are at risk, and the level of scrutiny that is unfathomable will continue for years, you need to do some work.