Failing is progress.

What??

Failing is progress??

Yep,

And if you did Fail…

At least you Established “Something”…

But,

You can take it too far, too.

Failing isn’t an “excuse” to use Any Of The Following:

If I didn’t…
If I had…
If I did…
If, If, If…

Don’t do “ifs”

“They” (if words),

Just get you to begin the habit of making excuses of why you failed, or worse,

Didn’t even try.

It’s so easy, too…

If I had the money
If I had the help
If I had the time

See???

Do a “try” instead…

Go try something.

I tried this…

I got to There then…

Well,

At least you did “try something.”

And,

If you found…

“That” didn’t work…whatever That was.

Then, you made progress.

And so it goes…

Keep on trying, go at it from different angles.

You keep it up, you’ll get there, somewhere different from where you’re at now.

Might as well give it a “try.”

These days, they ain’t handing it out “free” to you, either.

It’s tough out there, so get your armor on and get out there in the middle of it,

Go see what you can make of yourself.

You never know what “can happen…”

Trust me, on that one…

Over-n-out

Mike

All this fixing and planning we do…

Look out the window

See that?

That World.

Look closer,

See…it’s moving.

And, you are either pushing it,

Or,

Helping to Drag it down.

Now, THAT’S A BIG STATEMENT…

Ponder upon that.

No wonder I can’t rest.

And I have this crazy thinking:

I figure the only time God truly gave me to do nothing…

Is that part of the day I get to sleep.
About 8 hours credit.

So, I either sleep it the full 8 (for a change) or go for 5 or 6, and waste the other 2 or 3.

Even sitting and appearing to be doing nothing…

I am running stuff thru my mind 100 mph, (I Love Doing That…)

Figuring and re-figuring

Until an exciting and challenging

De-sign pops out,

(as “they” stand back, and appear to be laughing at me.)

So, apt to being happy like, I am most happy running stuff thru my mind…

Everything is possible there.

I can write me a check for a cool $100K to “start” if I want.

And then I picture me running, making, driving, or using

What ever it was I done with the money.

Yep, imagine and invent,

Problem-solve, and De-sign…

All in your mind.

But,

Don’t wait too long.

I just about have…

I’ve been building and re-building Amen Motorcycles that have been sold from their original owners and the new owners want me to go thru them.

This is my mainstay work, along with the schools I teach.

But…

Its now time to build a bike.

But not really…

I’ve wrestled with one and have come full circle.

And,

Believe me I was surprised it went this way.

I have a bike design that is needed in our industry…

And I am going to build a running personal prototype.

A bike that Has to Be Changed Later.
(Changed Completely too, as in Brand New),

That the new bike won’t look nothing at all like This Bike I’m beginning in the next couple of days.

So, I’m building a bike…
That won’t look like the future bike…
I’m building later on…
That will go into production.

Sounds normal-like to me, especially around here…

And

This 1st one is:

Not for sale to the general public…

But,

The next one will…

Not a really good business move.

But, there is too much of this 1st one built already and mocked up…

I might as well go on with it.

So,

Now you know,

What’s Going On,

Around here…

Up to the minute.

Presently.

Could change…

Mike

Don’t Let This Be You.

In an Economy like this, people look around and can always find a smart or even smarter ways later to handle life’s challenges.

I find people want to do things for themselves, at least All the people I talk to,

It’s Always Better, too.

The Satisfaction

The Cost Savings

The Opportunity to Get Paid

The banker says “it’s always cheaper to fix what you got.”

You could easily Have You That Business.

Something to think about.

Try our school, I will make sure you have all the info and see all it tasked to begin your specialization.

I look forward to see you here in Rog-Vegas, you guys that’s coming.

Mike

Is…

Maybe.

Just how Bad
Have You Got IT.

“Got the Fever for the Guurl” as Springsteen says in the song…

Well,

Just how Bad YOU got it?

Are you In Love With IT

As bad as it appears to be in that song?

You got the FEVER?

You know…
There are Many ways to describe it..

Sleep deprived, coniving, planning, designing, hatching that plan.

But finding it to be you are putting yourself thru paces so natural,

Searching and reading everything you can find, and looking for more.

Well,

What Ever THAT IS, is what you Made Important to you.

Because You Chose

Man, what a subject…

Choose…

Important IS Important, ya know?

IT really should be taken seriously…

Because you choose this… your path.

Fine, now you can relax,

You’ve made the Choice

And,

You’re prepared to “Pay your way IN”

Well, a BiG part of Payin is

This…

Bet you might not have thought of this…

Here it is…

People Are Going to Get Hurt,

Comma, no… Period.

Yep,

And it ain’t fun, It’ll make you cry.

So, you Pay,

But I don’t care What Ever You Would Have Chosen…

You Would Have Payed Anyway…

You would have made a bunch of people mad, or Lose them straight up.

So,

If you have this One Time Run Thru

Or

Would Like A Good Run at it..this thing called Life…

Then,

Apparently by reasoning it out,

You Might As Well Do What You Want To Do.

Again…

You Might As Well Do What You Want To Do.

Especially,

If we’re going to Have To Pay For It Anyway, this Trip thru our very own One Life.

Then,

I say,

God Bless You All That
ChoseTo Make Your Choice.

To you,

I say:

Run, Baby Run.

Bet there’s a song in there somewhere…If I think hard enough.

Mike

The Next Big Thing,

Well,

What Is IT?

The Next Big Thing:

Is YOU…

You Are The Next Big Thing

That is, Able and Equipped,

To Making Something Happen In your life.

A New Direction…

A decision to Enjoy this thing while here on the earth.

This “making something happen” part,

If controlled by you…

Will be better

Than someone from “the outside” calling “your” shots.

And…

The mistakes of your past has equipped you for the next move in your life.

Just don’t Think It To death.

Let it just happen,

What you dream you would enjoy,

Just might be what you need to do.

After all,

If you enjoy something,

Would you not work a little harder,

Or longer?

Probably be a lot more successful in seeing it thru to the end, too.

What is it that Peter Drucker says?

The best way to predict the future

Is

To Make It Yourself.

That is a good saying

“You”

Are the next big thing.

Totally in Your Control

Sleep is optional too, for Some of Us…

If you like what you’re doing,

There is nothing better than “Getting into that Zone,”

A virtually indescribable place few know of,

Where tools drop in your hand,

Where ideas flow at such speed it makes you anticipate your next set of steps to take,

A place where technological problems become the most enjoyable of all missions to solve.

Maybe even to “See” the future.

The above best describes

The newly Found YOU, or the You that you have “to Develop.”

Or, at least the part of you who has decided to Make a change in your life

The one,

Who is reaching out, reading information like this in hopes of helping you to know how to make the next move.

So, in closing,

You are truly “the only one in charge.”

A mans heart devises his way…

But the Lord himself Will Direct Your steps with help, money, new contacts, education, and more.

Just believe

Just commit

Just go get started.

Call or write, too if you like

Mike
423-272-6000
Precisionguesswork@yahoo.com

I’ve gotten myself in some predicaments here at Amen, like buying a ten thousand dollar engine or something I don’t need like a Nascar Liftgate like Jeff Gordon uses on those flagship Featherlite trailers those guys pull around to the races.

No problem, the above purchases, if I Had The Money, but I went ahead anyway.

I figured with a name like Amen, why worry about money when God’s name is on the building, and on the bikes, and on the wheels, and In God We Trust on every dollar we spend.

So, I guess I don’t pay much attention to worrying about “my needs.”

I just happen to have very large needs sometimes.

Mom, years ago would call, “Mike, you have seventeen thousand in bills, you only brought in eleven. What do you want me to do?”

I would say, “Put your hand in the bag and what ever you pull out…Pay.”

I did that for years,

I never did “run out”

That’s the way I live,”

Gets on people’s nerves, especially the wifes.

“Ain’t had a “real job” since ’82,” I says, in an ole timer dialect, as if I was slightly making fun of those who do have real jobs…but absolutely hate them.

You know, you might be one of them…

Hate the job…
No challenge to it…
Too many bosses who do nothing and know nothing
Bored doing the same thing
Got debt because you bought something you thought would make you happy…
but all it done was make you have to keep working for the company,
to pay off the debt you made,
when you bought that thing you thought would make you happy.

The most common one… They offer health insurance, and I can’t afford to buy it.

Man, tough one that last one.

But please do not let that job of yours stop you from doing what you want.

I played music after I got out of factory life and another musician was talking to the crowd, what he said was these simple words,

There’s life after the Factory.

I was used to that steady paycheck and not having it was a little scary, that was before I got my life straightened out, too.

So when he said that, it stuck.

There is life after the factory job is over and gone.

You have all the time in the world to figure out what to do.

The answer will come, too.

So, remember, you’re never stuck.

You will be paid, and usually you will find yourself doing what you like with your time anyway,

So,

Go do what you like.

Guarantee somebody will like your work and say,

Hey man, can you fix me up with one of those?

Yep, he says, and under his breath…says:

There IS life after the factory.

So, try it out for yourself,

Go for it.

Mike

When…

If that thought ran thru your mind…

Then, its probably Time To Start.

And your When is…

…probably now…

You need to begin now.

Starting your new shop…

Or

Your new job…

Or make that commitment to learning your area of expertise…

Or

Use that area of expertise you have that is natural to you.

Fabricate/Build or,

Learn how to build and fabricate thru the schools here.

Change is something you will see and it eventually makes you decide either by choice or by force.

We are changing too, in all our lives and gradually do and begin to think different.

So,

You need to be “ready.”

But,

Dilly dally around and…

Either: Now or Later..,

Often turns into: Now or Never…

Now being the indicator of “When.”

I meant to…

But, I never did…

Sitting in that rocking chair one day will be a lot more rewarding to you,

If you knew you have taken a few chances with your life,

Had a few close calls,

But made it,

To know within yourself: I Had Me an “Adventure,”

Not just sitting there wishing “for a better life.”

When do you start?

I say…

The sooner

The better…

Go to bed Tired.

Go to be Satisfied.

Go to bed Thankful you mustered up the guts to “go for it.”

Super Sessions Week:
November 14,
No reports will come out of here while I’m with the guys who have committed to attend.

Mike
423-272-6000

Yeah, that’s it…

Not…

If you’re going to get anything done in your Fab shop,

Then you’re going to Make a Mess.

And It will be a Big Mess.

I mean Shovels full of mess…

Hard and heavy to pick up with one of those flimsy plastic broom scoops,

If you’re doing any work at all.

I call this type of mess:

Progress…

Forward moving toward completing something only you had the guts to try.

Lots of people want to:

But don’t have the guts to do it.

To start.

So, that mess you have made is a testament to you and just how proud you should be of yourself.

Not many people these days do this type of work.

Building from scratch
Modifying something that already exists
Re-modeling
Repair and update

There’s all kinds of “work” out there for you to do.

Just setting up a shop covers a large variety of abilities you have to know a little something about.

So, I hear a few of you are setting up shop, and when you are getting tired,

Then,

Go sweep and haul off all that mess…

Then,

Go sit down and look…

You did good today.

Now go do what it takes to get ready

So,

You can start it all over again,

Tomorrow.

Mike

I once had a Plating Business.
I loved the plating business, too.
A different job everyday, forever constantly a challenging job.

And a real satisfying feeling of pulling quality parts out of the tank, everytime…hopefully.

And…

I had it down pat.

And,

I made me some money, too.

And…

I was expanding, too.

2 properties
A new house
An apartment built new
A giant metal shop building,
A big 2 story building out front of it with
Plans to Make into a store, a home, a showroom, whatever…

I bought the 2 story because I seen those “towers” at Bristol Dragway

Then build 4″ square tubing all around and “on” the outside of this structure, because of the way they built architectural “visuals” on the buildings at the 1982 Worlds Fair.

All during the construction I had to learn how to:

Level,

Build footers

Pour concrete

Smooth that concrete and babysit it,

Build with steel,

With wood

Handle electrical and plumbing, and make it work…drain, not leak, stuff like that…

Wait, there’s more…

Septic
Water
Permits,
Ditches
Meters and meter poles
3 phase disconnects and negotiating with the power company to “get it brought in.”

Everything…

The only thing that came close to beating me was:

Sheetrock…

Yep,

That Heavy, Brittle, Dusty stuff that once put up and sanded feels like you just got done working the whole Empire State Building… All sanded FLAT like a un-ending body work “job” on a big Giant Car…

All this work,

For pretty much nothing…

Looked like crap.

Started out this way

The big metal building was done.

I was Doing contract industrial metal finishing,

“They” went on a 2 week shutdown…

I brought the 3 employees in instead of laying them off 2 weeks.

Let’s sheet rock this 2 story I Say…

2 1/2 months later. Re-worked a couple of times it finally was acceptable

Lesson here:

Pay the professional for his help

They could have done the job in 4 days
And walked out…done

And done right,

The first time.

The first time.

Had to type that one again

Here it is

You Will. Pay.

4. To. 5. Times.

What it “would” cost

In the long run.

If you try to “learn” it yourself

Thinking you’re going to save money,

5 years can go by with nothing to show for it sometimes.

I’ve seen it

And sadly

I’ve done it.

So come get your training here,

I guarantee it to be worth 4-5 times what you Paid OR More.

Guaranteed,

Mike