Free Agency
Successful workforce reentry involves a series of steps. Some are behavior-based (doing vs. thinking), and others are intangible (thinking that leads to new doing). One crucial intangible is taking on a Free Agent mindset, which is to say, seeing oneself as the captain of one's ship, a proactive and independent (internal) repositioning. It's a huge step.
I must introduce two essential concepts before getting into the Free Agent mindset. The first is the overall goal for those reentering and, from my point of view, for all of us: to become self-sufficient, independent citizens in good standing. That, in the end, is what we're out to achieve. I'll have lots to say about this in forthcoming posts.
The second, which is much more specific to reentry, is Personal Job One (PJO). It refers to the one big thing that must be addressed and managed before any hope of success. Here's what I mean: for the person with a drug addiction, it's getting and staying clean. For the alcoholic, staying sober, and for the ex-offender (especially repeat offenders), it means staying away from the people and situations that have contributed to confrontations with law enforcement and incarceration.
As noted, these are Big Fundamental Things—nonetheless, success in managing them is non-negotiable. I use the term "managing" deliberately. In most cases, seeking total victory over issues of this magnitude is unrealistic. Management isn't. It's practical and feasible. It works. Imagine the metaphorical mind-sign that says, "Under New Management."
A person must be ready to take on this mindset, and they are not while their PJO battle continues. This struggle must end, and they must win, be the victor. Addressing one's PJO comes first. Otherwise, there's no point in developing a Free Agent mindset. Doing so would amount to a premature misfire with little merit or benefit. However, when the PJO issue is dealt with and managed, the victory becomes a confidence builder and a foundation to launch free agency.
The Free Agent mindset is a benefit and a gift that keeps on giving. We live in the "Gig Economy," where new side hustles appear daily. Furthermore, tenure at full-time jobs with stints of nine months here and a year and one-half there are, by "back-in-the-day" standards, hardly more than “gigs.” Grabbing hold of the job search reins as a Free Agent positions the reentering job seeker perfectly with the actual job market landscape.
Another gift (frequently under-appreciated if not completely unrecognized) is that it sets the stage for becoming a first-rate employee. Seeing oneself as a seller of SERVICE to a customer (their employer) is a powerful attribute and something I'll explore in detail in future posts.
Like all mindsets, free agency is nonphysical and abstract. You can’t see or measure it. But as any experienced reentry worker will tell you, a change in perspective, such as integrating a Free Agent mindset, becomes a high-value asset for the challenged job seeker. There's no alteration in the physical world around the person and no immediate outward change in them either, but suddenly, they start rotating on a new axis. Some excitement, enthusiasm, and hope are now present, perhaps just a sliver, but enough for the heads-up helper to notice.
This shift in viewpoint may be subtle, but I can't overstate its importance. The job seeker is ready to take on more ownership and responsibility for their search. By absorbing this change in perspective, they begin to arm themselves for the actual search. They become more receptive to moving out of their comfort zone, such as it is, into the world of work, the Marketplace.
Onward.
You’re Not Looking For A Job, You’re Looking For A Person
“Not a job, a person…” is a core concept of my reentry approach. Simply put, background-challenged job seekers need to connect with other people – actual living, breathing human beings. Success depends on it, in the short run and particularly in the long run. Connecting with people is so important because it will be people who help mitigate the inevitable roadblocks reentering people always face. But connecting takes effort and often a mindset flush because meeting new people is something many challenged seekers don’t want to do.
Let’s be honest, society is becoming more digitized daily, which is not good news for someone getting back on track. More digits mean more ways to get knocked out early in the game. It means getting through to someone who might be able to help is increasingly problematic. There is no doubt about this, but it doesn’t change the fact that for most reentering job seekers, people, not digits, not an app or platform, will make it all happen.
What do I mean? What kind of people? In short, people in the work world. But here’s the thing, reentering people come from alternative worlds – the prison world, rehab world, homeless world. Worlds filled with people either caught up in them or working in them. These are not the people I’m referring to, even those helping with transitioning out.
To be sure, helpers such as counselors, job developers, or case managers play important if not critical, roles in reentry success. Still, they don’t represent the types of people that reentering folks NEED to meet; why? because they work from within the transition world, not in the heartless old marketplace world.
Many reentering people have trouble making the move outward. They stall and linger. Being around others with similar challenges creates peer groups and community, where challenges are shared, and there’s a sense of belonging. So, they hang on because the leap is scary, and contemplating it is uncomfortable with so many bad memories, disappointments, and failures “out there.”
To get moving, those reentering need a step-by-step plan that breaks down the mountain into ready-to-shovel piles of gravel, which they can take on with purpose and intentionality. This last point, intentionality, is important. As the job search moves into gear, the heads-up job seeker also looks for these work-related contacts who could become key contacts. Most people they encounter at this point will not become individuals who will take the time to understand and allow the job seeker to show what they can do and who they are.
I’ll have much more to say about connecting with people in forthcoming posts. For now, know that the digit is no friend to the reentering person, but people will be. That said, looking for work requires interacting with the digit – the internet – there’s no choice. However, there is a choice to be made about HOW it’s done. Submitting apps online without a plan that includes job search and people search strategies is a Class-A counterproductive move and, maybe worse.
Look, the background issue will come up, it always does. That’s why there’s a plan with built-in deliberate strategies and tactics to facilitate getting the job and connecting with people who can help achieve milestones and objectives. And let me be clear on this: forging ahead without a plan is where most reentering folks go wrong. It’s like hitting the gas with no map, GPS, or clue.
Onward.
Why Write The Book?
A frequently asked question is, "Why did you write the book?" I wrote it primarily to capture the strategies, tactics, and overall reentry approach I had developed over the years, consolidating them into a single resource. It was essential to present the concepts and actions in the sequential order in which I typically used them, allowing readers to follow along step-by-step. I also added characters to liven up the "how-to" feel, making it more engaging and readable. Some were real people with changed names, while others were compilations based on actual individuals and events. I could have easily included twice as many characters.
The book-writing process was also important to me. I wanted to experience the whole circle, from compiling my notes to publishing an ebook and a paperback version. It took about twenty months in total.
I wrote the book for many reasons, some of which I'll explore further. But in essence, I wrote it to preserve the frameworks and methodologies I had developed, serving as reminders of the numerous situations I encountered and the amazing, fascinating people I met.
This Substack project is an extension of my book, delving deeper into the' why' behind it. Writing about my writing is a journey, often leading me to the edge of the rabbit hole. However, there are a couple of underlying reasons why. I wrote this book specifically for the underdogs, those who are facing challenges and are determined to overcome them. I also wanted to incorporate business concepts into job searching and advancing, which I felt was missing in the reentry process for background-challenged individuals. Understanding these reasons will help you, the reader, comprehend my perspective, both in terms of the book and in general.
For the underdog. I am drawn to the challenge of regrouping, taking on the odds, and finding success. Why is this? I don't know. It's just how I am. But I can say this: I am passionate about being part of making it happen, of seeing someone succeed from behind vs. adding more to an already full basket. I am, by nature, process-oriented, interested in more action and less drama, more step-mapping toward the objective, and less angst about the past or the future. This feature of my personality and approach fits the bill for reentry. It works.
Something’s missing. It suddenly occurred to me, why aren't business concepts such as organization, structure, marketing, and sales incorporated into job searching and advancement? Why aren't these basic, 101-level business strategies and tactics part of the reentry game plan for individuals with a challenging background? My journey from the social sciences and education sectors to the for-profit world and then back to working in reentry gave me a unique perspective. I had hands-on experience in both areas and could see what was missing. So, I decided to bridge this gap and rewrite my helper script, incorporating many business concepts.
Another reason was digits. By early 2008, when I returned to the reentry world, the transition from the old-school ways of paper to all things digital was underway. The internet, a novelty in the early-‘90s, had become much faster and more reliable. The same is true for cell phones. They were (now) everywhere and about to explode to the next level with the release of the first iPhone nine months prior. The point is this: job searching, in general, was undergoing a tectonic shift from how it had been to what it would become in the broadband/mobile phone era. This sea change created a new set of circumstances for reentering job seekers.
Here’s an excerpt from the book’s introduction referencing what I found early in 2008 when I began working at the Nevada Department of Corrections, Casa Grande reentry facility in Las Vegas:
The situation was crystal clear to me. If a background-challenged seeker was to have a shot at success, they would need a different approach.
I developed a method built around two critical concepts:
Digits are no friend to the background-challenged job seeker.
Using a strategy that is not dependent upon the digit can and will work.
This approach didn't just work; it really worked, and it continues to do so. The methodology I developed helping inmates and, in the years that followed, homeless and recovering clients reentering the workforce is what this book is about. Anyone with background snags and an inconsistent work history, for any reason, can use it effectively.
It’s a success story, not without irony. How interesting that lessons in people skills, rooted in a time well before cell phones and personal computers, would turn out to be just what's needed to counteract limits created by all things digital. Yet, that's exactly what I found.
I intend to present reentry ideas and concepts from the book, drilling into and expanding on them. To focus on practical ground-level strategies and tactics needed to progress, step by step, toward success. I will, however, take the liberty to move the discussion forward and upward, touching on personal, social, economic, and political factors that play a part in the reentry journey.
One more thing: why start on Substack? Here, too, there are a few reasons. To start with, I need to keep myself engaged. The second edition of Get Beyond Your Troubled Past is overdue. A lot has changed since 2015, and it needs updating. This Substack project will push me with the updating and other associated adventures. Additionally, I want to keep the many steps and tactics in the book out in the reentry eco-space. Some concepts, such as seeing yourself as a Free Agent or Delivering the Mail (telling a prospective employer you have baggage), come around frequently. Others, not so much. They are all important and worthy of equal airtime.
Please subscribe and pass the word. For the time being, my goal is to boost readership. The content is free. Over time, I will add a pledge button and a paid subscription. But for now, the mission is to add readers and connections by providing quality content.
Onward!