How do you prepare mentally and physically to be a police officer?

Heck yea, you get nervous!

But that is what training is for. When you first start out, they will pair you with a Field Training Officer. This person will be both teaching you and evaluating you. He will take calls from other officers so you get the exposure to the activity. Only once you pass Field Training will you be on your own.

On the more serious calls, you will find that you are acting without thinking, because, there is no time to think. You rely on your training. You will also learn really quickly that people respond to the presence of a uniform. Sometimes bad, sometimes good. I remember as a rookie thinking "what have I gotten myself into?" But the people at the scene were looking at me and expecting me to take control. They did not know I was a rookie! Once I realized that, it became an acting game, so to speak. I put on my uniform and stepped into a role. It worked. You can't let people see that you are nervous. First, they rely on you to restore order, and look to you for reassurance that things will be okay. Secondly, bad people will take advantage of any sign of weakness. Again, acting. It will become second-nature.

The really cool thing about law enforcement is the bond you form with your fellow officers. You look out for each other. I remember standing on the side of a deserted road at 3 a.m. talking to a guy who just got out of prison on a homicide charge. Although the closest officer was about five miles away, I knew he was doing about 100 mph to come back me up (in violation of every policy we had!) And I would have done the same for him.

Mentally, you need to not be wrapped up in personal drama. You need to be 100% focused on the job.

Law enforcement is a rewarding career. I encourage you to continue to look into it!