If authorities have convicted you of a crime that could lead to time in the Federal Bureau of Prisons, I want you to know something that I wish more people understood: you do not have to go through this journey blindly.
When I began serving my sentence, I had to learn by reading, observing, and making countless adjustments over many years. Today, people have far more access to information than I had. In this era of artificial intelligence, search tools, and digital learning, there is no shortage of information. The challenge is not finding information. The challenge is finding credible information, then using it with discipline and intention.
At Prison Professors, we built our nonprofit to provide free, accessible, self-directed educational resources for people before prison, during prison, and after release. Our mission is to help people prepare for the highest level of liberty, at the soonest possible time, by learning how to advocate for themselves and document the work they are doing to build a better life.
Start With the Right Mindset
I always encourage people to begin with a simple question:
What can I start doing today to improve the outcome I get tomorrow?
That question matters because once a person moves deeper into the system, every stage brings new consequences and new decisions. If you wait until sentencing, or until designation, or until you are already inside a prison, you may have lost valuable time. It is never too early and never too late to start preparing, but earlier is always better.
The criminal justice system is a bureaucracy. It runs on records, reports, policies, classifications, and documentation. If you do not understand how those systems work, you may end up reacting to events instead of preparing for them.
Learn the Difference Between Stages of the Journey
One of the most important ideas I try to teach is that the system changes as your status changes.
Before conviction, you are fighting allegations. After conviction, the process shifts. A guilty plea or a verdict changes your status in a very real way. From that point forward, the system starts building records that will follow you through sentencing, imprisonment, and even supervised release.
That is why I encourage people to learn the stages of the journey:
pre-charge, plea negotiations, presentence investigation, sentencing, designation, prison adjustment, release preparation, and supervised release.
Each stage requires a different strategy. Each stage creates a different record. Each stage presents a different opportunity to show who you are and who you are becoming.
Why the Presentence Investigation Report Matters So Much
If I were speaking to someone who had just been convicted, I would tell him to focus immediately on the presentence investigation report.
Too many people think sentencing is the most important day. It is important, but the report that gets prepared before sentencing often has a longer impact than the hearing itself. The presentence investigation report influences how the judge sees the case, but it also follows the person into the Bureau of Prisons and later into supervised release.
That report affects classification, programming, designation, and how different authorities interpret your background. For that reason, I would never treat the presentence investigation process casually.
You should prepare for it with the same seriousness that you would bring to any major turning point in your life.
That means gathering records, thinking through your personal history carefully, understanding the narrative of your case, and preparing to explain what you have learned, how you are taking responsibility, and what steps you are taking to move forward.
Use Free Resources Instead of Waiting for Someone Else to Save You
One reason I built Prison Professors was because I saw how vulnerable people become when they enter the system. Fear creates confusion. Confusion makes people easy targets for bad advice, false promises, and expensive services that often do little more than recycle public information.
I want people to understand that they can begin preparing themselves right now, without paying a consultant.
Our nonprofit exists to provide free books, courses, lessons, and digital tools for people who want to grow. We created self-directed resources because real change starts when a person decides to become the CEO of his own life. That philosophy runs through our courses, our mission, and our educational model.
On our platform, people can find lessons on topics such as:
pre-sentence investigation preparation,
character reference letters,
personal narratives,
release planning,
journaling,
book reports,
and profile building.
These resources are designed to help people memorialize the steps they are taking so they can build a body of work that reflects accountability, growth, and readiness for a better future.
Build a Record, Not Just Good Intentions
I learned in prison that good intentions are not enough. People need a record.
If you say you want to change, what evidence can you show?
If you say you are preparing for release, where is the plan?
If you say you are learning, where are the book reports, journals, goals, and milestones?
That is why I believe in documenting the journey. At Prison Professors, we encourage people to build profiles, write biographies, maintain journals, create release plans, and collect testimonials. We built Prison Professors Talent for that reason. It gives people a way to show, in a transparent way, how they are using their time to prepare for success and advocate for higher levels of liberty through merit.
I do not say this as theory. I say it as someone who served 26 years in federal prison. During that time, I learned that every day can either push you closer to the life you want or leave you standing still. The people who prepare best are the people who make deliberate choices, document those choices, and build support around them.
Understand That Classification and Designation Matter
After sentencing, the Bureau of Prisons begins a new phase. The agency uses documents such as the judgment, statement of reasons, and presentence investigation report to determine where a person will serve the sentence.
That designation decision matters.
Security level, criminal history, violence, weapons involvement, sentence length, and release timelines all influence where a person goes. People with lower risk profiles may end up in camps. Others may go to lows, mediums, or highs. Every path is different.
What I want readers to understand is this: you may not control every outcome, but you can control how prepared you are. The more you understand the process, the more effectively you can respond to it.
Do Not Wait for the System to Build Your Future
One of the biggest mistakes I see is people assuming that prison programs alone will prepare them for success.
Programs can help. Staff can help. Family support can help. But no one should work harder than you to prepare for your future.
That means learning how visitation works. Learning how communication systems work. Learning what property rules apply. Learning how money gets sent. Learning what opportunities exist in education, treatment, or release preparation.
More importantly, it means deciding that you will become self-directed.
At Prison Professors, we believe in free, self-directed learning because transformation does not begin when someone else gives permission. It begins when a person starts building, day by day, with discipline and honesty. That commitment is at the center of our mission and the resources we publish.
Beware of Charlatans
I want to say this clearly.
Do not assume that paying someone makes the guidance better.
There are people in this space who market fear. They present themselves as experts, charge money, and make promises that no one can guarantee. I would discourage people from outsourcing responsibility for their future to anyone else.
You need to become your own prison consultant.
That does not mean refusing help. It means taking ownership. It means asking better questions. It means studying the process. It means using credible information. It means doing the work to understand your own case, your own goals, and your own adjustment strategy.
Hope Comes From Preparation
When I was sentenced in 1987 to serve 45 years in federal prison, I could have surrendered to despair. Instead, I learned to build a plan. Over 9,500 days, I kept working to prepare for a better life. That pathway did not erase the past, but it gave me a framework for building the future.
That is the message I want to pass on to anyone facing the federal system today.
There is always more opportunity in the future than in the past.
You cannot change the charge. You cannot rewrite the conviction. But you can start sowing seeds for a better outcome. You can begin learning. You can prepare for the presentence investigation. You can document your growth. You can build support. You can strengthen your narrative. You can make decisions today that will influence how you live tomorrow.
That is why Prison Professors exists. We built it to serve people with free resources, practical strategies, and a clear message: no matter where you are in the journey, begin preparing now.
Self-directed reflection question:
What steps can you start taking today to build a record that shows you are preparing for the highest level of liberty, at the soonest possible time?