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Damon West

Master storyteller Keynote Speaker, 4x Best Selling Author, Philanthropist and College Professor

Damon West’s story is the modern-day Shawshank Redemption. Once a college quarterback turned criminal sentenced to life, he found redemption behind bars through an unlikely lesson about a coffee bean. Today, Damon inspires audiences worldwide with his message of hope, transformation, and the power to change your environment.

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Bio

Damon West, M.S. Criminal Justice, is a college professor, internationally known keynote speaker, 3 x Wall Street Journal bestselling author and former crime boss in Dallas, who was sentenced to Life in prison for Organized Crime.

USA Today calls him the “modern day Shawshank Redemption and the most in-demand speaker in America.”

At 20 years old, he was a Division 1 starting quarterback at the University of North Texas, when he suffered a career ending injury and turned to hardcore drugs to cope with disappointments of life.

After graduation, he worked in the United States Congress and trained to be a stockbroker for United Bank of Switzerland (UBS).

One day at UBS, he was introduced to methamphetamines; he became instantly hooked—and the lives of so many innocent people would forever be changed by the choices he made in order to feed his insatiable meth habit.

After a fateful discussion during his incarceration with a seasoned convict, Damon had a spiritual awakening. He learned that, like a coffee bean changing with the application of heat and pressure, he was capable of changing the environment around him. Armed with a program of recovery, a renewed faith, and a miraculous second chance at life, Damon emerged from over seven years of prison a changed man.

On parole in Texas until 2073, his story is one of hope, redemption, grit and the resilience of the Human spirit.

Damon’s story has been featured both nationally and globally. His second book, The Coffee Bean, co-authored with best-selling author Jon Gordon, became an instant best-seller and a part of Forbes’ “Top Twenty Books You Need to Read to Crush 2020.” Damon is passionate about the Coffee Bean message and loves sharing how it changed his life and how it can change yours, too.

Keynotes

Featured Keynote

  • Overcoming Adversity: The Damon West Story
  • Core Values of Your Team: Inspire to Your Full Potential
  • Convocations

USA Today: A Modern Day Shawshank Redemption

Feature on Damon West's speaking platform and his incredible life of impact after prison.

People Magazine: Former 'Uptown Burglar' Damon West Found Redemption in Prison — and Became a Family Man Helping Others

The author and speaker — a former meth addict who was sentenced to 65 years in a Texas prison — is now determined to help inmates and their families.

A Story of Redemption

The golf channel hightlights Damon.

  • 2025 Six Dimes and a Nickel: Life Lessons to Empower Change
  • 2023 How to be a Coffee Bean: 111 Life-Changing Ways to Create Positive Change
  • 2022 The Locker Room: How Great Teams Heal Hurt, Overcome Adversity, and Build Unity
  • 2020 The Coffee Bean for Kids: A Simple Lesson to Create Positive Change
  • 2019 The Change Agent: How a Former College QB Sentenced to Life in Prison Transformed His World
  • 2019 The Coffee Bean: A Simple Lesson to Create Positive Change
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