Early in my journey through federal prison, I learned how to begin living a values-based, goal-oriented life. That adjustment strategy empowered me through each of the 9,500 days that I served. While confined in the county jail I made a commitment to work toward reconciling with society. My initial thoughts were that every decision I made would comply with a commitment to:

• educate myself,
• contribute to society,
• and to build a support network that would have a vested interest in my success upon release.

As the months turned into years and the years turned into decades, my values evolved. By the time I concluded my 26 years in prison and authorities released me on August 12, 2013, seven value categories defined my life and I set clearly defined goals within each value category to guide my actions. I list them below:

• Community
• Discipline
• Fitness
• God
• Industriousness
• Integrity
• Marriage

My daily logs show how I track my progress and I encourage you to review those daily logs. Those who do will see that I continue to make values-based, goal-oriented decisions.