Today we’d like to introduce you to Ray Beshirs.
Ray, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I began my law enforcement career in 1995 when I was 21 years old, where I graduated the police academy and went straight to work as a full time officer. I was young and naive at this point in my life and didn’t realize the importance of continual training. I also did not realize that training didn’t seem to be a priority with most agencies that trained very few hours in defensive tactics training or not at all. I had done martial arts as a kid, which mostly consisted of Kenpo Karate, but I soon realized there was much more to what could be offered to law enforcement. I went into the training side of things with my agency and continued to train myself in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Krav Maga.
I found these two martial arts were the best in my opinion for handling the struggles that officers find themselves in on the streets. I continued to go to other training offered by different training companies that specialized in use of force and defensive tactics training for law enforcement. I had been teaching for about 10 years at the time when I decided to start my own company, which was really terrifying when you think about the cost associated with starting a new venture and the inherent associated risk, but I also knew that I could provide topnotch training that was better than other training that I had seen. I’ve been married to my lovely wife Dana for over a decade at the time and she was supportive of my venture. I believe having that support system in place means a lot to the success of any entrepreneur or risk taker. I wanted to focus on actual issues that I had dealt with as a street officer and keep the techniques practical and simple at the same time. I started the company with the help of an attorney friend of mine that completed all my company paperwork at no cost to me, and that was a big savings that helped me with the finances. I also built my own website using an online format website builder, which I soon realized wasn’t going to be enough to keep up with the demand. I had no experience at the time building websites or establishing a company.
I soon contacted a local website management company that was able to build me a website that fit my needs at a cost that was reasonable for my budget. I actually lost money the first years, which is something that is not unheard of and expected. The second years was a little better but continued to lose money, because every dollar coming in was going back into the company. I continued the next year and it soon got a little better but still not enough to have a profit, but this year the company is finally in a position to turn a profit and start generating some income. I’ve had many days when I thought to myself “Why am I spending money and working for free!” But I also knew that with dedication to the services we offer that we could soon build something that was beneficial to law enforcement and the citizens they serve. I now have five other instructors that work with me that teach various law enforcement topics, and have even established international business connections where I’ve had products produced under our brand. I continue to have failures, which is something that we all experience in life no matter what we are doing, but I also have success at the same time, which is not always measured in money. I’ve learned a tremendous amount of about things that work for our company as well as the mistakes that I’ve made along the way.
The thing that stops most people from stepping out of their own comfort zone and starting their own business is fear. This emotion protects us from dangers that are out there, but it also can stop us from achieving success in business and in relationships. I can’t think of one successful person that hasn’t experienced numerous failures in business and I’m sure I will still have my share, but I know with hard work and determination I will overcome those and continue to establish a proven company that succeeds. I’ve learned that you must make your company about the quality of the product along with the relationship you build with your clients. You must go above and beyond the norm to make sure they know you care about the service you’re providing to them. I’ve taught classes where I didn’t turn a profit, but I was passionate about the people I was teaching and the services we were providing. I knew it was a matter of time that profit would be there, but I continued to focus on the students and what we were able to offer, because I also knew lives could be changed with the training. The company continues to grow each year and I”m looking forward to the future and continual improvements we’re able to make.
Has it been a smooth road?
I’ve found that having a useful and professional website can help to establish your business. You can always start with building your own to save some money, but you’ll soon realize you need more than what most of those sites can offer. I would say slow down when making decisions on something where you believe you need to invest to grow your company. I’ve found there are plenty of advertising companies that want to take your money but don’t always provide the best bang for the buck. I would suggest really growing your companies online presence in social media venues that are free for the most part and are a great way to advertise your company or products. I know getting feedback from my clients has been very important and listening to that feedback and implementing changes where they can be made.
I find that the office paperwork is the biggest struggle with any small business and seems to take up a lot of time, but you must find ways to juggle that and still keep posting online and making changes that are needed. I’ve found that I never have enough time to keep up with all the daily demands of running your own company. I would also suggest in investing in quality software that can help with building flyers and documents that you’ll need along with way. I recently invested in other video improvements to make better quality videos for my clients, which is something that is great for getting your name out there on social media.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Blue Shield Tactical Systems – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
We’re a law enforcement training company that specializes in the use of force and defensive tactics training, but we’re currently expanding on that and offering even more different types of classes. The quality of training we provide I believe sets us apart from other companies that are taught by civilians and not police officers. Our company instructors are all former police officers and have numerous years of various experience in law enforcement and teaching. I find it difficult for someone to teach police officers about what to do on the streets, when they themselves have never been in that position, but there are companies out there that teach topics like we do but have no law enforcement background. We care about our fellow officers and the training we provide, because we too know how important it is to return home to your family at the end of a shift. We have no doubts the training we provide gives each of them a better chance of success in doing that. We also specialize in de-escalation training, which is a critical tool for any law enforcement officers and those classes have been in high demand. The state of Texas now requires de-escalation training for all law enforcement officers and our company provides this quality training at a low cost to agencies. We currently teach all over the United States and are already filling in our 2018 schedule.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I really like the people of Fort Worth and the friendly clean atmosphere of our downtown area. I’ve had the benefit of traveling to many different cities across the U.S. teaching our courses, and I’ve found Fort Worth to be at the top of my list for being welcoming and safe to walk around. There are so many things that have changed with the downtown area within the last several years and I’m looking forward to continuing to see what new exciting things are still to come to our great city. I really can’t think of anything that I could say that would be a negative about Fort Worth, because it’s really a nice place to live and visit. The Fort Worth area has a lot of great restaurants like Bob’s Steak & Chophouse that offer some great steak and their amazing braised carrot. I would definitely recommend anyone giving Fort Worth a try.
Pricing:
- De-escalation Instructor $299
- Close Contact Defense Instructor $700
- Knife Defense Instructor $225
- Radical Islam & Terrorist Tactics $99
- Getting Convictions: Arrests are the Easy Part $199
- Understanding Violent Body Language $199
- Ground Control Instructor $250
- Use of Force from the Street to the Courtroom $99
- Edge Tool Concepts & Tactics $199
- Scenario Based Instructor $350
- De-escalation Practitioner $100
- Tactical Pen $14.95
Contact Info:
- Website: Blueshieldtactical.com
- Phone: 8175016087
- Email: blueshieldtactical@gmail.com
- Facebook: Blue Shield Tactical Systems
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
