Elise Hu

Today, his mission is to show that everyone can achieve freedom and create a life full of possibility, purpose, and joy.

Shaka and I sat down for this month's book club to talk about his new book, How to Be Free, a proven guide to escaping life's hidden prisons.

Through sharing the profound lessons he learned in and out of prison, he flips the script on traditional definitions of freedom.

We discussed the practices he developed to embody a mindset of joy, why he feels it's important to share his story, and why he believes that reinvention isn't just possible, but within everyone's reach.

Because for Shaka, most of our hidden prisons have doors.

We just need to learn how to open them.

Here's our conversation.

Shaka, welcome to TED Talks Daily.

Well, you are no stranger to TED.

You've given multiple TED and TEDx talks.

But would you introduce yourself briefly for those who don't know your story?

We are here today to talk about your new book, How to Be Free, a proven guide to escaping life's hidden prisons.

It came out just last week.

Congratulations on the release.

But you're pretty prolific.

You already have two previous books out, Writing My Wrongs, Life, Death, and Redemption in an American Prison, and Letters to the Sons of Society, A Father's Invitation to Love, Honesty, and Freedom.

How do you see this latest book as different from your first two?

And why did you decide to structure it as a blueprint?

I don't think I'm going to do another one because the first one was so hard.

For you to write three inside of 10 years is pretty impressive.