Strategies for Thriving During and After Your Prison Term
Dear Friend,
You’ve been through a lot already—an indictment, a guilty plea or conviction, probation reports, and sentencing. Now, you’re staring down the uncertainty of prison, worried about your career, reputation, and financial future. I know there is a lot to take in. I was right there in April 2008.
Here’s the Good News: Prison Is The Easiest Part Full Of Opportunities!
Yes, you read that right. With the right plan, prison can become the easiest part of your journey. It sounds crazy, but it’s true. Your prison term has a clear beginning and end. Unlike dramatized prison movies, life in a minimum-security camp or low-security prison is typically free of significant violence and can be quite boring, presenting its own challenges. With a proactive prison adjustment, you’ll quickly realize that the real challenge lies in ensuring the pain of this experience doesn’t extend beyond your sentence.
Common Mistakes That Make Things Worse
Before Prison: Lack of Planning
You probably still need to map out a comprehensive plan. You need a strategy that includes:
- A writing schedule
- A budget
- A reading list
- A way to expand your network
- A method to document your journey
Without this groundwork, you’re in for a rough ride. Prison case managers, halfway-house bureaucrats and probation officers want to see documented progress and growth. Without this evidence expect more struggle.
In Prison: Following the Herd Mentality
It’s tempting to follow the crowd and waste time—I did until Michael started mentoring me. Many just play softball four days a week or adopt a victim mentality. Others think they have time to prepare. These choices continue to burden your family, who suffer more than you. Just for a moment, imagine what actions you will take to prove worthy of your family’s love and support.
After Prison: Failing to Meet Expectations
What do you know about halfway house staff and probation officers’ expectations? Do you have a clear plan to show what you’ve learned, how you’ll make restitution, and your commitment to living as a law-abiding citizen? You need documented proof of your efforts to support your requests for jobs, travel, or early release.
How to Prepare for an Earlier Release and More Freedom After Prison
At White Collar Advice, we prepare you for a productive prison experience, an earlier release, and more freedom afterward. Our approach teaches you to document your journey, leverage your skills, and create a record that proves your progress.
Don’t worry. If You Are Willing to Work, You Will Succeed
Jonathan Rouffe
Jonathan was willing to do the work. After being sentenced to 48 months at Miami Federal Prison Camp, Jonathan invested the time to create a clear record of what he planned to accomplish in prison. That vision included books he would read, how he would stay connected to his family, skills he would develop to ease his transition, and programming he would complete. Before his surrender, Jonathan completed our First Step Act-approved ‘Preparing for Success After Prison’ course. He wrote daily in his release plan and shared it with his case manager and probation officer. As a result, Jonathan served only 15 months of his sentence and transitioned smoothly to home confinement with an approved job in the halfway house.
Melinda Bixler
After being sentenced to 18 months and designated to a detention center, Melinda didn’t waste time feeling unfairly treated. She worked with our team to create a detailed plan, documented her progress extensively through Prison Professors Talent, and effectively engaged stakeholders.
Bernie Perconti
After getting sentenced to 18-months, Bernie reached out to us. “Justin, I’m ready to prepare and crush this term. Can you help?” He invested significant time in our PSAP course, creating over 15,000 words of content. He surrendered to prison with a release plan and a solid reading, writing, exercise, and content development routine.
In his Trustpilot review, he wrote, “Everyone in this organization brought huge value to me. They are committed to helping others navigate what they’ve already experienced. I can’t imagine doing this alone.”
Get Involved With Prison Professors Charitable Corporation (PPCC)
Join leaders like Mossimo Giannulli, Bill McGlashan, and over 100 other community members who have helped create Mastermind courses that reach over 500,000 people in prisons and jails.
Our ‘Preparing for Success After Prison’ course is available in every BOP facility and every California prison. This comprehensive video and written course (approximately eight thousand words) demonstrates your commitment to inspiring and educating incarcerated individuals who are desperate for values-based programming and job development.
So far, we have Masterminds on:
- Leadership
- Sales
- Real Estate
- Crypto
- And many more!
What expertise can you share? We need your help to influence and support more people. This documented volunteer work can show your dedication and potentially influence probation officers to grant you more liberty after prison.
Michael’s travel and content schedule only allows him to conduct one or two Mastermind courses a month. Call or text me personally at 818-424-2220 to get started.
Build Your Prison Professors Talent Profile, Like Melinda Bixler!
Prison Professors Talent lets you document your progress daily. This web-based service showcases your growth throughout your prison term. Building a profile over time demonstrates your commitment to change and your plans for a law-abiding future.
We Understand Your Challenges
As you prepare to surrender, I want to remind you that I know this is not easy. The last thing you ever imagined doing was preparing for prison. But if you can find the strength to do the work, your life will become easier—not just for you, but for those who love and support you. Remember, we are not asking you to do anything we have not done and documented ourselves.
Take it from me: the right mentor changes everything!
I found that mentor in prison, and you can benefit, as I did. The lessons we teach are rooted in Michael’s journey. I attribute my success to following these lessons which is why I often say, “I am the #1 ambassador of his message.”
The key is getting started, not with nonsense-type prison planning (like how to shop in the commissary), but by truly understanding how to architect a plan for the weeks, months, and years ahead. This includes creating a clear vision for your time in prison, such as books to read, ways to stay connected with your family, skills to develop for your transition, and programs to complete. Doing this will ease your journey and pave the way for a smoother transition back home.
It Is The Bottom Of The 8th Inning–Get Going!
Let me close by reiterating the obvious: many people regret not starting sooner. This letter, like our videos, is only successful if you take action.
Are you open to taking the next step?
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I wish you all the success you are willing to work for!
Thanks,
Justin Paperny
Co-Founder, White Collar Advice
P.S. People in our community succeed because they’re willing to do the work. If that interests you, we’d love to help. If you’re looking for a quick fix or outcome without effort, we cannot help.