Eric Dalius

Three words: take action now! Talk to people, bounce the ideas off of people.

 

Eric Dalius is a philanthropist and entrepreneur. His boldness in business and enthusiasm towards life has paved his way to success with each business that he created. It has also provided a wonderful life for his wife Kim, and children, Brad and Jackie, for over 25 years.

Eric graduated with his bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Penn State in 1992. His first job was with MCI Telecom. Within the first three months he rose to become the # 1 sales rep nationwide for this fortune 500 corporation. Within a year and a half, Eric felt as though his progress was being impeded by the corporate structure, so, he decided to work independently.

In 1994, Eric Dalius resigned his position in the corporate world to become an entrepreneur. He started his business as a Telecommunications Consultant and sold prepaid phone cards, long distance services, local services, wireless services, and anything related. By 2002, he restructured his business to bundle services under a membership platform. He created a win-win situation for the companies he represented as there was no inventory to purchase and no margins on a membership platform. Subsequently, he launched Gas Up U.S.A., another membership company similar to his other businesses. He launched the company in July and by December he grew the membership to 78 thousand members strong. By 2003, he was able to retire from his marketing businesses to pursue his real estate business. This was his real passion. He was then able to purchase seven properties in cash.

Eric Dalius believes in continuing your education and to never stop learning what you love. When he wanted to take his business to another level, he attended a seminar that would change his life in the real estate business. In 2004, Eric flew to San Francisco to attend a seminar that taught you how to leverage money and create a positive cash flow. He applied the concepts of refinancing and was able to purchase forty-two properties within the next year. In 2005, he attended another seminar provided by the same speaker. He told her of his experience and how he was able to adopt her information and create enormous success. The speaker shared his story with the individuals in attendance.
During a break, the other seminar participants approached him to inquire about his success. In a flash of brilliant clarity, he created CORE, the company that would become his new business based upon investor membership. The membership would provide investors with access to his entire team of realtors, contractors and property managers. Before the completion of this seminar, several of the investors who attended the seminar had already purchased their memberships. CORE, or Cash-out Real Estate, was launched in a moment of genuine brilliance.

Cash-out Real Estate was incorporated into the Learning Annex. For the next two years, Eric joined with Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad Poor Dad and Donald Trump. They traveled to major real estate markets to spread the CORE concepts to new investors. CORE was an extremely successful business until the market crash of 2008.

As a philanthropist, he has created the Eric J. Dalius Foundation. His strongest belief is that individuals should invest in their education. The focus is on providing donations to enable individuals to attain an education at an accredited university. He would also like to mentor the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Where did the idea for your company come from?

I have been blessed and I wanted to give back. I worked hard and I honed my skills throughout my career, and I had a lot of luck. I believe there was definitely guidance from above; I am a very spiritual person. There were a lot of hardships when I didn’t win, but it really made me appreciate the wins. I would really like to pass those blessings along and inspire others. I knew I wanted to do this when I stepped foot on the Penn State campus. It has been a lifelong inspiration.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

When I was running my business, I worked from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. But, in semi-retirement, it is all about balance. Taking care of my mind and body, reading books and having a deeper understanding of life and family, which is easier said than done. Cell phones don’t help. You have to stay disciplined and focus on one thing at a time. No more multitasking. I’ve been working on focus, focus, focus and balance, balance, balance.

How do you bring ideas to life?

Three words: take action now! Talk to people, bounce the ideas off of people. They might think you’re crazy but that’s okay. Don’t ever be embarrassed, get over that fast. Think of it as an art; I am an artist. It might not be a painting, but I am developing an idea. And they are not all perfect, but the best ones are on display. Those are the home-runs in business.

What’s one trend that excites you?

The cryptocurrency trend. I was fortunate enough to see that before it became mainstream. I think the cryptocurrency will do well over the next few years. I think it will double or triple or quadruple in the market.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

Act now and never give up. If it doesn’t work, I go back and tweak it. If it doesn’t work tweak it again then put it out there again. Never give up.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Keep the faith, stay the course, it’s all going to work out. Don’t let self-doubt win. Stay committed. It is easy to say now, but it wasn’t then. Mentors were harder to come by back then.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.

Because I’ve had a lot of success there are not too many people that don’t agree with me. I don’t hang out with a lot of ‘yes’ people. Perhaps people don’t think that the millennials need an education. People think that the jobs won’t be out there and they start out with a hundred-thousand-dollar bill. I think you need it to give you confidence and that you need the foundation of learning. It’s like an insurance policy.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

Stay in the game and keep fighting. You have to be flexible, listen and understand what the market is asking and adjust to what it wants. Adjust your strategy. Adjust, respond, and listen.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

I am just getting started with my foundation right now. I am trying to inspire others who believe in creating endowments to donate.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

I was spending too much money. I got caught in a volume discount plan. I was hoping to make a higher profit, but I got in over my head. It doesn’t always go in the right direction and its ok to pay a higher amount. Just remember to keep your money flow.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

Figure out how to add value to the cryptocurrency market on a global basis. That is how I do business. Test and modify to add value then take action.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

It was either on my trainer who I hired to get me back in shape or to the guy who was holding up the sign that said “I want to feed my family.”

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive? How do you use it?

I am an iPhone kind of guy. Keep it simple. I do everything on my phone.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

If you need to get your head on straight read The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peal. If you need to learn how to interact with people read How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. If you need the inspiration to grow a business read Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

What is your favorite quote?

“Never, never never, never give up” -Winston Churchhill

Key learnings:

• You can have failed in life and business and still get back up and be a success
• Fall many times and get up and you will be a success and inspire others around you.
• Inspire others to start out and take their first steps

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