Meet Eric Custodio of Gift Legacy in East Phoenix

Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Custodio.

Eric, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I have always been classified as a leader. But before I knew my purpose, I counted these skills (outspoken, communication skills, comedy, singing, dancing, mentor ship, public speaking and presenting) as the causes of many of my problems in life. I loved to talk, and influence. This created big problems with teachers, sports, managers and eventually I ended up behind bars as a teenager and on probation because of my misplaced purpose. Once I left my home town, Colorado Springs, I started to re assess my goals and my purpose. I gave my life to God, and started following this journey of self-discovery. Then, I started mentoring young teens and college kids. I fell in love with the need to share my story for the purpose of helping others discover their gifts, talents and purpose without having to scar their record, reputation and image by making as many mistakes. I noticed immediately that all of these skills were suddenly vital to my efforts in reaching people who were in discovery mode as well. We relocated to Phoenix, AZ to take on a new assignment for ministry. It was here that Gift Legacy LLC became more than just an idea, but an action plan, a vision, a message. We were homeless, and yet people were coming to us about purpose. We lost our car, yet people were coming. We got evicted twice, yet people were STILL coming. SO, we decided to use these unfortunate events to encourage people to fight, no matter what. Our message is simple; to help you discover your gifts so you can share them with the world.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not at all. In fact, there has been conflict and obstacle at every stage. Initially, we had no idea how to turn our ideas into profitable resources for other people. Then, we ran into money issues because we were not in a position to fund our own business. Plus, our credit was completely destroyed by immature choices in our adolescence. Also, we did not know anyone in Phoenix, or have family to support our vision. Once we started gaining traction, my mentality wasn’t ready to receive the workload. I missed every deadline to every project for the first 6-8 months of production. The pressure from the business put so much pressure on my family that I was almost divorced by my wife for lack of balance. I had refund after refund, and eventually I had no money left for the business, and I was draining our personal accounts trying to keep it afloat. I lost contracts left and right because of word of mouth complaints. Finally, we ended up getting evicted twice throughout this process, and had to start from scratch. Lastly, my “fear of success” mindset held me back from being the guy that could take on this business and execute at the proper level to create success, and financial freedom for my family.

Please tell us about Gift Legacy LLC.
Gift Legacy focuses primarily on motivation through difficult situations and developing the habits and tools for executing within your purpose. We provide coaching and mentor ship, counseling services, physical training techniques, as well as guided spiritual coaching and discovery. We provide motivational clothing and sportswear, but I’m most proud of our family that we’ve established by doing what we love. What sets us apart is that we’ve literally experienced firsthand being at the bottom of the barrel and experiencing the level of despair that is unspeakable, and having the grit to get up and keep moving forward to where we are currently; managing the top of the mountain!

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite memory from childhood is hanging with my squad. We had a very tight group of about 15 people that hung out everywhere together. From middle school through high school, we partied together, sang together, fought together, danced together, received whoopings together, but most importantly, that was my family when my blood was acting foolish and selfish. I played sports, and competed in all sorts of different competitions, but had little to no support from parents or family. No one ever sat me down, and said, “Here’s how to succeed”. But This group was custom designed through trials and tribulations, and we formed a bond that has been tested and tried, but has always prevailed. This is a huge part of who I am, and why I am a huge advocate for building a strong team to “run with”.

Pricing:

• Clothing and apparel range from $5-$30
• Book “Overcomer” is on sale for 19.99 on Amazon
• Mentorship, 3 session trial is free to see if we are a good fit for each other
• Public speaking engagements start off at $200/hour session

Contact Info:

• Address: Phoenix, Az
• Website: www.giftlegacy.org
• Phone: 4803743286
• Email: giftlegacyllc@gmail.com
• Instagram: Gift Legacy LLC
• Facebook: Gift Legacy LLC
• Twitter: Gift Legacy LLC
• Yelp: Gift Legacy LLC
• Other: voisey as vocalsminister_

Image Credit:
Eric D. Custodio, self taken

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