Story & Lesson Highlights with Mike Casten

We recently had the chance to connect with Mike Casten and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Mike, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
Without a doubt, I value integrity over intelligence or energy. For me personally, it is a sign of self-respect and an alignment of values. What you believe, what you say, and what you do should all match. How can you trust someone who is inconsistent or whose actions don’t match their words? I’m a firm believer in honesty, transparency, and doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Mike Casten, and I own Poodini Pet Waste Removal. Founded in 2017, Poodini is Arizona’s most trusted pet waste removal service, offering reliable, professional dog poop cleanup to residential and commercial clients in Ahwatukee, Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa, Tempe, and Queen Creek. Beyond the scooping, Poodini is proud to be a community-first business, committed to supporting local rescues and making a difference, one pile at a time. Through our Poodini Pals Toy Drive and the Poodini Gives Back campaign, we are able to provide our local dog rescues with much needed supplies and funding to help them save dogs’ lives.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
That’s a tough question to answer, but the honest answer is the relationship with myself. I have done a lot of self-reflection in my lifetime, evaluating who I was and what my place in the world was supposed to be. I didn’t always like what I saw, but I always knew I could change. Sometimes I look back on my younger self and wonder, “What the hell were you thinking?” But it’s an amazing thing to know that you have the power to evolve and become a better person. Life isn’t about being perfect, it’s about taking strides to become the best possible version of yourself that you can be.

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
Self-doubt. Listening to the external noise telling me what I should do or who I should be. There is a lot of pressure in society to live up to a certain standard. We’re supposed to do this or do that because it’s what other people do and the odds are stacked against you if you deviate from that plan. But I’ve always been one to walk to the beat of my own drum. I never wanted to fit into that box and have had many hard times where I questioned if maybe I should have walked the comfortable path. But the truth is that I like it when the odds are stacked against me. It brings out the best in me and gives me a chip on my shoulder to prove the doubters wrong. I mean, why else would I have given up the comfort of a 9-5 with health benefits to start a business picking up dog poop?

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely! I strongly believe in staying true to myself. Sure there are times when you have to read the room so as not to offend everyone’s sensibilities, but I just don’t have it in me to be fake. There is no point in pretending to be something or someone that you are not, because eventually the real you will always show through. What you see is what you get with me, and people can love me or hate me for it. I am who I am, and I think I’m pretty damn awesome.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I would hope that people remember me as a man of my word. Someone who was caring, compassionate, and stood by his convictions in the face of adversity. Someone who forged his own path and had a positive impact on everyone he encountered. Someone who made the world a better place, even if it was just one pile at a time.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://poodini.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/poodiniaz
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/poodiniaz
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/poodiniaz
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/poodini-pet-waste-removal-gilbert