Procedures

Every successful organization relies upon Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)—the blueprint for achieving predictable, measurable results. I learned a lot about SOPs by interviewing the business leaders who mentored me while I was in prison.

Those leaders told me that businesses use SOPs to ensure efficiency, consistency, and excellence. Without them, operations fall into chaos, productivity declines, and success becomes uncertain.

“The backbone of success is a solid foundation of methods and procedures.”
– Steve Jobs

Since I wasn’t running a company while I served my time, I modified the SOP-strategy so that I would have a guide to get me through a challenging time.

Anyone striving to reach a higher potential can use the same strategy.

As we build our new Prison Professors website, I’ve been developing SOPs that will ensure our team understands exactly how we accomplish each task. These SOPs will:

• Create consistency in how we execute our mission.
• Ensure efficiency, so new team members can seamlessly integrate into the workflow.
• Scale our advocacy efforts, opening more opportunities for justice-impacted people to earn freedom.

The process of writing these SOPs feels familiar—because it mirrors the same strategic approach I used to navigate my prison journey. I knew what success looked like:

• I wanted to leave prison with opportunities, not obstacles.
• I wanted to build credibility and independence.
• I wanted to create value that would extend beyond my own experience.

To get there, I had to develop my own SOPs—structured, methodical processes that would make success inevitable.

Since getting out, I’ve used the internet to learn more about the concept of Standard Operating Procedures. They originated in the military. Armies needed clear, repeatable methods to train soldiers, execute missions, and maintain discipline.

Later, as industrialization spread, companies like Ford Motor Company adopted SOPs to streamline production. The assembly line was designed to get repeatable success, ensuring quality, and reducing waste.

“Quality means doing it right when no one is looking.”
– Henry Ford

Today, businesses across all industries rely on SOPs to ensure predictable success. The same principles apply to personal development. If you want to build a high-performing life, you must create clear systems and routines that set you up for success.

SOPs align perfectly with the Straight-A Guide, the course we designed to help people reach their highest potential. If a business knows what it’s striving to achieve, it builds SOPs to increase the likelihood of success. If a person knows what success looks like, he should architect a clear pathway to get there. The Straight-A Guide teaches people how to:

1. Define Success – Know where you want to go.
2. Create a Plan – Build a framework that moves you forward.
3. Prioritize Daily Actions – Break big goals into repeatable steps.
4. Stay Accountable – Track progress and adjust when necessary.

“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.”
– Albert Einstein

SOPs in business prevent failure. SOPs in personal development create clarity and direction. No one handed me a roadmap for success while I served my sentence. If I wanted to emerge stronger, smarter, and better prepared, I had to design my own process—my own SOPs. Some of my daily operating procedures included:

• Reading and writing every day to build knowledge.
• Physical training every day to build discipline.
• Building a network through letters and outreach to prepare for success upon release.

These small, repeatable actions compounded over time, leading to opportunities I never could have imagined.

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
– Aristotle

Now, I apply the same structured thinking in my nonprofit work, investing strategies, and advocacy efforts. Whether I’m:

• Developing a new program,
• Growing my business, or
• Teaching others how to prepare for success,

I document the process, refine the approach, and build SOPs that make progress repeatable. If you’re serious about achieving any goal, ask yourself:

1. What does success look like?
2. What daily actions will lead me there?
3. How can I create repeatable systems that guarantee progress?

Intentional success requires intentional systems. Whether you’re trying to build a business, lose weight, master a skill, or change your life, the principles remain the same:

• Define the goal.
• Build the process.
• Execute with discipline.
• Adjust when necessary.

That’s how you go from hoping for success to ensuring it.

Self-Directed Learning Question:

• What area of your life could benefit from a structured system or SOP? How can you design a process that guarantees progress toward your goals?

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