Funny...aham23 and I were talking about exactly that last night. Not really knowing Mike all that well but having been his customer on components in the past I can tell you there are a couple of distinct differences - I consider myself to be more of a business person and I had a kid before i started the business. He had one in the middle of trying to run it.

Also as an aside - I found that he tended to try to push the weight weenie style of build and IMHO - I think that may have really started to bite him in the butt. My philosophy is different. Can't explain it other than I like to build what I think is the right wheel for the rider and application. I tend to find it is heavier spoked and more rigid than what many other builders go for.

Aside +2 - most builders tend to be in 2 camps - 1. Traditional (If you're not riding 36 spoked 3X on Shimano hubs then don't talk to me) kind of guys or 2. Weight Weenies (Sure I can get you a 1 off rim made of un-obtanium and pair it up with spokes made of unicorn farts and hubs which self-lubricate with the tears of angels)

I don't really fit in either of those two categories.