Meet TGP Member #14

[ TGP Super Issue Special Feature! ]

You’re about to hear something special. Michael Rodarte has modified his life in big ways. He used to have a “good” job in the financial services industry; a nice, air conditioned office, talking to people on the phone, making decent money.

But he wasn’t happy there.

He started showing up at a friend’s high-end motorsport fabrication shop before work to help out with grunt work; cleaning cars, cutting tubing, whatever was needed. He knew he wanted to do this sort of stuff for a living. The worst day in the shop beats the best day in the cubicle, right?

The “good” job—that he hated, by the way—shit-canned him for, shall we say, Fight Club-type shenanigans in the office. Chance favors the prepared, though, and when the shop owner told him, “I wish I could bring you on full-time,” Michael’s response was a quick, “Well, it’s funny you say that, because I suddenly have a lot of time on my hands.”

For the record, I have loved every single episode of this podcast to date. That said, they don’t get much more real than this one. It’s a couple gearheads sitting in a garage, drinking beer, watching the biggest monsoon storm of the summer roll into Scottsdale, talking about life, the Universe, and everything.

And there is so much gratitude in this one.

The Stats

• Background: old school DSMer & gearhead, self-employed
• Venture: Empire Pool Company
• Full-time, side hustle, hybrid, other: full-time
• Hours: all of them

Cool off with Michael at Empire Pool Company, on Facebook, and @empirepoolcompany & @boostedinaz on Instagram.