Pernell Bush
No Limit Health and Education
Chicago, IL USA
"People are going to be looking for you to bend, to break. But are you going to give them what they want? Or are you going to continue to fight forward?"
Career Roadmap
Pernell's work combines: Government, Non-Profit Organizations, and Teaching / Mentoring
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
Growing up I had a really bad anger problem and found that it was easy to blame my issues on the bad things in my life that I couldn't control. It's taken years - and I'm still working on it - to overcome this. It takes learning how to talk about it and channel that anger into more constructive behavior.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Social Work
Valencia College
Graduate Degree
Social Work
University of Central Florida
Life & Career Milestones
I've taken a lot of twists and turns
1.
His mother went to prison when he was in the third grade; he spent some of his childhood in a house without electricity or water.
2.
By the time he was a senior in high school, he had been to jail three times, a cycle he calls "riding in circles".
3.
Finally, he knew he had to break the routine; he drove to the nearest military recruiting station and signed up for the Marine Corps.
4.
Because they knew he had an anger problem, his superiors would constantly get in his face and dare Pernell to hit them.
5.
Eventually, he broke down in tears; his senior officer pulled him aside and said, "They're trying to break you. Are you going to give them what they want?"
6.
From that day forward, he made a conscious decision to continue to fight forward; graduated as one of the top four recruits in his class.
7.
After two tours of Iraq, he finished his service; had a series of failures, failed out of college, ran two businesses into the ground.
8.
Hearing that three men he'd served with had died inspired him to go back to college; now he's in graduate school and working with The Mission Continues.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Society in general:
Why are you so emotional? You act like you are angry at the world.
How I responded:
Growing up I had a really bad anger problem and found that it was easy to blame my issues on the bad things in my life that I couldn't control. It's taken years - and I'm still working on it - to overcome this. It takes learning how to talk about it and channel that anger into more constructive behavior.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
My early years were very tough. We lived in a house with no lights or water for two years.
Fast forward to high school and I had already been to jail three times. I got caught for drug possession and stealing cars. I got caught in a repetitive circle.
My mother went to prison when I was going into third grade.
After getting out of the military, I had a series of failures. I failed out of college and ran two businesses into the ground.