Jen Shah surrenders to the federal prison camp in Bryan Texas today for 6 1/2 years or 78 months.

When Jen reached out to our team, she expressed a number of goals or aspirations for her looming prison sentence, including creating a record that documents how she is responding to problems that she alone created.

From our first call, we were encouraged by her willingness to learn and do the work. That work included asking her to consider how the stakeholders (case manager, warden, Judge, probation officer, and future business partners) perceived her.

Only then could Jen create a realistic plan. Part of Jen's initial "homework", was learning from the various subject-matter experts we have interviewed through Prison Professors Non-Profit, including:

Leaders of US probation,

The Federal Bureau of Prisons,

US District Court Judges,

and Prosecuting attorneys.

Each subject-matter expert we interviewed expressed the importance of a release plan. They want to see a record that shows positive ongoing efforts for change, showing a person's commitment to preparing for success upon release. Jen embraced the message and she invested the time to create a plan with clear goals and deliverables: the plan encourages people to track her progress and hold her accountable.

In this video, Jen and I discuss:

Her release plan and the process to create it with Michael Santos

Why it took one year for her to accept responsibility?

What are her plans in federal prison?

What are her plans after her release from federal prison?

What is her message to the doubters and skeptics? and more.

If you have questions about our work, please email [email protected] or text/call 818-424-2220.

You can also visit www.WhiteCollarAdvice.com and www.PrisonProfessors.com to learn more. Thank you,

Justin Paperny Co-Founder, White Collar Advice Author of Lessons From Prison and Ethics in Motion