Focused through Disruptions

I have been absent from our Daily Mission Updates since Monday, May 25. That absence was not intentional.

On Tuesday, May 26, I woke to an email from Coinbase indicating that a five-figure transfer had been initiated from my bank account. I did not authorize that transfer. After further investigation, I learned that hackers had completed scores of unauthorized transactions in my account.

I believe in the digital economy. I believe it can expand access, create opportunity, and contribute to what CZ has described as the freedom of money. At the same time, this experience reminded me that new opportunities also bring new risks. Hackers and other bad actors try to exploit the systems that many of us use to build, save, invest, and transact.

For the past two days, I have been working with Coinbase to reverse the fraudulent transactions. The matter is not yet resolved, but I have done everything within my control. Now I must work through the process.

That experience disrupted my routine, but it did not change the mission.

Update

Today is Thursday, May 28. When I checked our website this morning, I saw that our community now includes 7,751 profiles. Together, those participants have written more than 12.5 million words.

Those numbers show progress.

When people in prison work to develop writing skills, they also strengthen critical thinking skills. They learn to organize thoughts, document progress, communicate with stakeholders, and prepare for the income streams they will need upon release. Those skills matter because success after prison requires more than hope. It requires preparation, discipline, and measurable effort.

We need to keep growing those numbers.

Historically, much of our growth has come through my visits to federal prisons. When I visit a prison and make presentations, I have the opportunity to speak with hundreds of people at a time. Sometimes, it takes effort to help people accept that they have a role in working toward the change they want to see. Yet once people begin to understand the relationship between preparation and opportunity, they can begin building a stronger record.

We have also begun distributing our new self-directed workbook, Playbook: Become the CEO of Your Life. I am hopeful this initiative will bring more people into our community. As participation grows, we will have more evidence to show stakeholders the value of reforms that incentivize excellence, accountability, and self-directed preparation.

Last night and this morning, I also began responding to questions that people sent to our team. The questions included:

1. How can crypto education truly transform lives?

2. Are prisoners truly empowered by self-directed learning?

3. How can we expose the true nature of prison systems?

4. What are effective prison reform strategies?

I filmed responses to those questions. Our team will publish the videos on social media and convert the content into blogs. We hope these efforts will bring more attention to the need for prison reform and to the work our community is doing every day.

With that goal in mind, I am also working with others to bring more visibility to our mission. It is exciting to collaborate with a Web3 community that supports our work. The next step will be an “Ask Me Anything” session.

By the end of today, I hope to have a schedule in place. Once it is set, I will invite anyone who wants to learn more about our work to participate. I would like to make these interactive sessions a regular occurrence because they may help us spread awareness, answer questions, and build a broader coalition around the reforms we are trying to advance.

Disruptions will come. The work must continue.