I wasn't sure if I was going to share this because I don't want to come off like I'm bragging. However, it's kind of cool and I was honored and flattered so I am going to take a moment and share about my experience last week after being interviewed by Banks Products.
Earlier last week I was contacted by the Branding/Marketing editor from Banks Power asking if I would be interested if they interviewed me for their newsletter. For those of you who don't know about Banks, they are a performance company started by Gale Banks back in the late 1950's. They are devoted heavily to R&D geared towards internal combustion engines with an emphasis on light duty diesel for the past couple of decades. I have used a lot of their products over the course of my career and when I had my speed shop from the early 90's and still use them to this day. I think they are one of the better companies when it comes to fully researching a product before releasing it and although their products are priced at a premium, what you get is a high quality product that performs as advertised as well as their customer service and the fact that they stand solidly behind their products.
Back when we had our speed shop we installed probably 15-18 of their Powerpack kits on the Ford F-53 motorhome chassis, the GM P-32 chassis and the Workhorse W-20 and W-22 chassis for clients who wanted a bit more power and driveability out of their Class A motorhomes, usually because we had them loaded to the gills with sand and race toys in large trailer. I have also installed a couple of their kits on the Cummins ISC powered diesel pusher coaches and probably close to a dozen Monster Exhausts on the Duramax powered GM trucks over the years.
Anyways, I was contacted earlier last week through one of my YouTube videos. They asked to get in touch with me and after exchanging email and phone numbers they requested to see if I would be willing to give them about 10-15 minutes for a phone interview. To say I was flattered and honored would be a huge understatement. When I asked why me? The response was because my detailed presentation, high quality of workmanship and passion for my work was something seldom seen these days in the automotive industry and they would like to interview me to see what makes me tick sort of speak. Again, I was flattered beyond belief and couldn't figure out what made me stand out to the point that it deemed an interview.
So in case anyone subscribes to Banks Power's newsletter, it was released on Friday and I was very pleased with the way the short interview read. At first I thought it would be more of a sales pitch and the questions in which they would ask would be geared directly at their products, however, that was not the case. The questions they asked were much more specific about me, my family, how I got started and what drives me to the level of workmanship that I demonstrate. The gentleman interviewing me never once asked about what I thought about Banks' products or anything related to their company.
If I can ever figure out how to get the article from the email newsletter into a pdf format I will post it here.
Sorry if I sound as though I'm bragging as that is not my intention and do not want to come across as boastful. I know how tight this group is and at times I feel unworthy to be amongst the highly skilled and talented people on this forum.
Some may recall that multiple times in my thread I have mentioned that I had gotten off to a rocky start in my career because it was not what my mother wanted for me, although I think my father was for the most part indifferent. For my entire career I have taken what I do personally and have tried to change the stereotypical mindset that most people envision when they think of a mechanic and this opportunity I was given kind of feels like validation from all my years of work. I have searched for perfection in everything I've put my hands on and although I've never reached that level of work in my own mind it was rewarding to see that someone in the industry spotted it and it made an impression.
One thing I have tried to communicate to our newer mechanics in the industry is that you have to take an active roll in your learning and development as you progress through your career, it requires more than just showing up for work and going through the motions. If you want an exceptional life, you have to work at it and do more than mediocre work and if you are only willing to do mediocre work, don't be surprised when you only achieve a mediocre life.
Thank you for letting me share my experience with the forum.
