Roland Murphy

Activist, Athlete, Christian, Entrepreneur, Inventor, Life mentor, Parent

Roland Murphy Sr. is a proud father, loving husband, and resilient being. He's on a quest for success and is using what he learned from his past experience to get him there by remembering that the decisions he makes will ultimately decide his fate. Mr. Murphy was raised by two amazing parents who are now deceased but will forever live in his heart. They were excellent providers and always stressed the importance of working hard and getting an education in order to obtain sustainable success. By the time he was 12, he became very lazy at life and his decision-making, as he chose the streets over school, friends over family, and drugs over his dreams. By doing so, the only thing he achieved was a 25-to-life sentence. Hopeful that he'll receive a second chance, he is determined not to make the same mistake twice and is now embracing his parents' words of wisdom. While incarcerated he obtained his GED, completed various drug and anger management programs, vocational training for custodial maintenance, and also mentors the youth.

My Family, My Freedom, Mentoring the Youth, Suicide Prevention, Prison and Criminal Justice Reform, Becoming an Entrepreneur, Motivating Others, Sports, Exercising

Optimism (Turning Impossible to I'm Possible). Being optimistic, although simple in theory, seems to be extremely difficult to do while in the midst of the Impossible moments in our lives. But if applied during those moments, it could be very helpful in how we deal with life challenges. True optimism is being able to focus on the most hopeful aspect of a situation no matter how minor or severe the situation may seem, but what happens is usually the situation overshadows the most apparent hopeful aspect...being alive! So, the next time you're going through an Impossible moment, transform it to an "I'm Possible" moment by simply placing your hand over your heart and saying "I'm Possible." Your heartbeat is the most hopeful aspect of any situation, so be optimistic enough to know that you're alive for a reason.

Learning from my mistakes, Listening to sound advice, Playing chess

"Cut!" That's what the director yells upon the completion of a scene. Once the filming is done, the actors go on to live life as themselves, leaving the role they just played behind. Growing up, I pretended to be everything but myself. Then the director -- in my case, the judge -- yelled "cut" by sentencing me to 25-to-life. I now must leave the role of a stupid street kid behind and learn to embrace the role of being myself. My experience has taught me that there are many roles one can play in life, but we should select our roles wisely and the most important role we're ever going to play is ourself.

Playing darts and pool; Writing poems; Tattooing