No question about it – by almost any measure, America operates the world’s largest, costliest, and most dysfunctional criminal justice ($250 billion) and incarceration ($80 billion) systems. With nearly 2.2 million prisoners in state and federal institutions, another 12 million circulating in and out of jails and detention centers, and 77 million with arrest records, America is an arrested society with more troubling rap sheets than promising resumes!

Indeed, each year nearly 700,000 ex-offenders exit prison for the free world. Within three years of release, two-thirds return to prison where they each cost taxpayers between $25,000 and $210,000 a year to experience justice and retribution. Once released with a measly $200 in gate money and no housing, job, or re-entry/support plan, not surprisingly, ex-offenders are like fish out of the water – they don’t make it on the outside for long.

But help is on the way for surviving this criminal justice maze. Filled with powerful insights, advice, self-tests, examples, and exercises that focus on both hope and action, "The Ex-Offender’s Re-Entry Success Guide" is the ultimate guide for those who want to stay out for good and do something meaningful with their lives. While the whole re-entry process is fraught with challenges that can lead to rejections, disappointments, and temptations, this also is a time for self-renewal and transformation. There are silver linings here for those who see opportunities in adversity – a unique time for ex-offenders to inject greater meaning and direction into their lives so they will never again waste their time and mind in a prison, jail, or detention center.

This book addresses the major challenges facing ex-offenders as they re-enter the free world. It outlines a clear seven-step process for re-entry success:

▪ Changing attitudes and motivations ▪ Taking responsibility and building trust
▪ Developing a purpose in life ▪ Seeking assistance for life-long recovery
▪ Getting smarter through education ▪ Leaving a legacy as a good person
▪ Telling the truth about the new you

Highlights of this self-directed book include:

▪ a 146-item re-entry assessment test
▪ examples of making difficult choices
▪ examination of ex-offender mindsets
▪ recommended learning resources
▪ exercises for developing a purpose and legacy in life
▪ daily action-planning forms and activities
▪ a re-entry activity planning journal
▪ forms for budgeting and using support systems
▪ powerful quotes for guiding one’s life

Addressing the whole re-entry process from beginning to end, this book is “must” reading for anyone preparing to re-enter the free world. It’s also an ideal book for friends, loved ones, and supporters as well as those who are already on the outside but need better guidance on how they can jump-start their new life . . . and stay out for good!