Ariel Margolis, CEO of eLearningSolved, started out wanting to be a doctor before finding his mission in education. He built his eLearning business on authentic client relationships and a simple framework: define the learning goal, identify your audience, then build the course. He says happiness comes from loving the work you do.
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Welcome to the Business Blast podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Wagner. This episode is brought to you by Authors Unite. Authors Unite provides you with all the resources you need to become a successful author. You can learn more about Authors Unite and join the free community at authorsunite.com. Now let's jump into the episode.
Alright everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host Tyler Wagner. Today I have Ariel Margolis with us. He's an award-winning LMS administrator and instructional designer, former principal and middle school teacher, and is now the CEO of his brand new company eLearningSolve. So welcome to the show, man.
Thank you, Tyler. Good to be here.
Of course. Great to have you on. We'll dive into the first one. The first question I have for you is, what is the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message?
Great question. So I think it has to do with when I was a little kid and I always thought I wanted to become a doctor. And I followed Star Trek, like, with Dr. McCoy, and I wanted to be a doctor. I volunteered in hospitals, was pre-med all the way through college, applied to 30 medical schools and was rejected by all of them. Started to reapply after college as I was working at a school, special ed school. And I went to visit a friend who had gotten in and I was sitting in class with him and going to labs and I realized this shit really isn't for me. Cool. And right then and there on the plane ride back home, I realized that what I really wanted to do, that my true mission was to just help people. So if it meant that I couldn't become a doctor, then maybe it was going to be in a classroom. So I pursued a master's in special ed. I became a teacher, then a principal, and then working for higher ed, and the rest is history.
Dude, that is awesome. And now, yeah, now you're doing this new company. And the next one I have for you is, what is the most valuable piece of information we should know that is within your expertise or industry?
Sure. So as the CEO of a new startup called eLearningSolved, where we focus on online course development, instructional design, that education and training, whether you're dealing with kids or adults, you're always asking two essential questions: what's the goal and who are your learners? And from there you can create the roadmap with tools or content or skills. So you don't have to stick with one method of teaching or one method of delivery of content because you always want to figure out what is the best approach and who's your audience.
And what's your best piece of overall business advice? So not necessarily industry-specific.
I would say that it's all about the relationship. It's not about the product, it's not about the service. It's about building the relationship between you and the client. Whether your client is a student, whether your client is corporate, you know, VP of HR. It's about being authentic, being transparent, and creating value. And that's all done by building relationships.
And if you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
That would be don't be so serious.
And in your opinion, what is the key to happiness?
So I'll quote my, my old physician who said that if you can say you love your work, then you've got it made. And that may— your work may change over time. It certainly has for me. But if you can say you love it, then that's all that matters.
And what is the best book that you've read and what was the number one thing you learned from that?
So the best book I ever read was called Peace Pilgrim: Her Life and Work in Her Own Words. And it was about this woman in her 50s and 60s who gave up all material belongings and just started walking, similar to Forrest Gump when he was running across country. But she was doing it to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons. And what I really learned best from her is that You don't really need all the material things. It's all about connecting with people and that most people are good people. And I read the book once a year and I always glean something new from it.
And what is your favorite quote and why?
So I have two and they're related. It's the original was George Bernard Shaw, but it was quoted by President, by Senator Robert Kennedy. "Some men see things as they are and say, 'Why?' I dream things that never were and say, 'Why not?'" And the— that's a very high-level quotation. And the one that brings me down to earth, which is similar, is what a good friend of mine says to someone who questions him and says, "Who asks you?" You know, if someone challenges you or says it can't be done, nobody asked you. Try for yourself first. See what can happen.
Thank you so much for coming on, man. The last question I have for you before we let you go is, where's the best place for people to find you online?
So right now it would be LinkedIn. Uh, just type in Ariel Margolis or eLearningSolved and you'll find me there.
Perfect, man. Thank you again for joining us. We appreciate it.
Thank you, Tyler. Glad to be here.
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