Mike Burroughs, founder of Stanceworks, joins Jim Belosic to talk about turning a lifelong love of cars into a career. From building Stanceworks and betting on a Honda swapped Ferrari 308 to taking on his ambitious F40 project, Mike shares the risks, lessons, and unexpected turns that got him here.
In this episode of Just Gonna Send It, Jim Belosic sits down with Mike Burroughs, founder of Stanceworks, to talk about cars, content creation, and turning a passion into a career. From starting Stanceworks as a car culture blog to making the jump to YouTube and building cars like his Honda swapped Ferrari 308, Mike shares the unexpected path that turned Stanceworks into what it is today.
Mike’s love for cars started long before Stanceworks. Growing up with parents who were into cars, that passion was part of his life from an early age. From a Chevy S10 with neon underglow to a $250 BMW E30, Mike’s own obsession with cars quickly took shape. That passion eventually grew into Stanceworks, which started as a place to document and celebrate the automotive community before becoming Mike’s full time career.
Stanceworks existed for years before YouTube became Mike’s primary focus. As long form blogs became harder to sustain, Mike started looking for a way to create content with more staying power. Instead of focusing on short form content, he decided to document ambitious builds on YouTube and make the projects themselves the story.
That shift led to one of Mike’s most recognizable projects: a 1981 Ferrari 308 GTBi with a Honda engine. Buying the Ferrari was a major financial risk, but Mike already knew exactly what he wanted to build. The project became the starting point for taking the Stanceworks YouTube channel seriously and helped establish the type of detailed automotive builds the channel is known for today.
Creating ambitious cars is only part of running Stanceworks. Mike talks about the business behind making YouTube his career, working with sponsors, choosing the right partnerships, and balancing the projects he wants to build with the content needed to keep the business moving. He also explains why learning to say no has become an important part of keeping Stanceworks focused.
Mike’s latest major project takes that ambition even further with his Ferrari F40 build. The project represents another big swing for Stanceworks and a chance to push his fabrication and car building skills into completely new territory. Mike talks about the risks involved, what he hopes to accomplish with the car, and why projects like the F40 continue to drive the direction of the channel.
Mike Burroughs, founder and creator of Stanceworks, joins Jim Belosic to talk about turning a passion for cars into a career built around creating and building. From starting Stanceworks as a car culture blog to making the jump to YouTube with a Honda swapped Ferrari 308, Mike shares the winding path that turned Stanceworks into what it is today.
They discuss what it takes to build ambitious cars while documenting the entire process, how Mike approaches sponsorships and running a business around content, and why taking big risks has been a recurring part of his journey. They talk about his Ferrari F40 project, the evolution of automotive content, and the lessons Mike has learned from spending more than 15 years building Stanceworks.
