Alumni Profile | Eric Boelts '96
Eric Boelts is the current principal and owner of Brain Bolts and the past principal and co-founder of Boelts Bros. He has a BFA in graphic design and an MBA in entrepreneurship and marketing - both from the University of Arizona. Eric’s passion for teaching blended with his interest in the intersection of art and business in the world of design has led him to lecture at universities and colleges around the country. Eric has garnered hundreds of awards in numerous design competitions throughout the world including the Czech Republic, Bolivia, Mexico, England, Canada, Russia, Poland and the USA. Eric is a member of many design and marketing organizations, serves as a board member for agencies and companies and has judged design competitions internationally and domestically. Eric currently resides in Boulder, Colorado and is married with two children and the world's smallest dogs. He runs long distances, paints with watercolor, is addicted to basketball and can both draw with a pencil and use a spreadsheet.
5 Questions with Eric Boelts, MBA '96
Principal and Owner, Brain Bolts
Q. What is most surprising about being an entrepreneur?
A. The fact that every day is different. And that keeps me eager to go to work each day. I interact with different industries, businesses and people on a daily basis and those new experiences are creatively challenging which makes my job amazingly enjoyable.
Q. What was the most important lesson you learned in the entrepreneurship program?
A. That everything matters and that a business is a symbiotic thing. All the parts have to work together - Ops, Marketing, Finance, Culture. They have to be in sync or the company won't function at an optimum level.
Q. What impact has the Entrepreneurship Program had on your career of life?
A. It gave me the depth of understanding of all aspects of business to be able to broaden my consultancy to include far more than graphic design. It also gave me a point of connection with the people who run the companies I work for and that made them engage far more deeply with my creative presentations than they ever did before my time in the Entrepreneurship program.
Q. What do you consider your biggest entrepreneurial success?
A. I believe my biggest success is that I haven't worked for a company that I didn't own since my junior year of college. I have enjoyed coming to work nearly every day of my career and I still do. The problem solving aspect combined with the creative aspect of my business is an amazing gift.
Q. What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
A. Find something you are passionate about and follow it. The money will come if you're doing the "right" thing. And you'll know. The universe has a great way of course correcting us to get us where we are supposed to be if we just pay attention.
For more information, visit the McGuire New Venture Development Program.