I help you grow and scale your business through effectively transferring what you know without thinking about it | Delegate the tough tasks | Be able to pass on your business

You built your business with grit, vision, and a willingness to buck convention. Now, it's time to amplify what makes you unique.

I work exclusively with successful entrepreneurs like you to systematize your unconscious brilliance into a transferable asset. Unconscious brilliance refers to the wealth of expertise, methodologies, and insights you possess but struggle to articulate and systematize.

The result? Your business can run without you, retains institutional knowledge, and becomes a highly valuable entity ready for exit or acquisition.

My proven Brilliance MiningTM system helps you:

- Extract and codify your proprietary knowledge and experiences into an advantage no algorithm can replicate.
- Develop leadership teams that don't just maintain but grow what you've built
- Put succession plans in place to ensure the longevity of your life's work
- Boost company value and marketability for lucrative exit or acquisition
- Reward yourself with more well-deserved time to do the things you’ve always wanted to do.

You've spent decades innovating and disrupting your industry. Now, disrupt how much people rely on you within your business. Leverage your maverick mindset into a scalable, sellable asset.

I don't work with just anyone. My clients are unconventional thinkers and independent operators ready to build an enduring legacy. If this resonates, let's connect.

Reward Yourself - You've Earned It

After years of grinding, you deserve to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labor. My system allows you to step away more and more so you can travel, spend time with family, or unwind. You built this business through dedication and vision - now make it possible for your business to run without you.

Experience:

Founder, The Brilliance Mine - Helping entrepreneurial businesses systematize expertise and prepare for growth/transition since 2005
Author, 365 Brilliance Nuggets, 101 Quick Tips for High-Talent Companies, 101 Quick Tips for ESOP Leaders
Certified Action Coach,
PhD in Chemistry, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Helped entrepreneurs systematize their expertise so they had time for family vacations, hobbies, and other well-deserved indulgences.

Let's connect and discover how the Brilliance Mining™ System can unlock the full potential of your business. Shoot me an email at DrStephie@TheBrillianceMine.com, or connect with me on LinkedIn. 

Check out my website: https://thebrilliancemine.com/
Join me for our Q&A on Knowledge transfer and the smart use of AI: https://go.thebrilliancemine.com/training-page

Stephie Althouse, Ph.D. ("Dr. Stephie")

A Growth and Exit Advisor that Makes Your Business Easier to Sell | Plan Today to Nail Your Exit

Business Strategist Sherpa | Helping Business Owners to Exit on Their Own Terms | Entrepreneur | Leadership Coach

WE SERVE
🔹 Business Owners
🔹 Revenues between $1 - $30 million
🔹 Burning desire to improve business

STOP:
🟥 Believing your business can’t run without you 
🟥 Sacrificing your family to run the business
🟥 Worrying that your business won’t finance your retirement
🟥 Struggling to scale and grow your business 
🟥 Working long hours and not earning true worth 

BY FOCUSING ON THIS:
🔹  Systematizing your business 
🔹  Aligning your growth strategies with clients who value what you do
🔹  Attracting employees that share your values
🔹  Building team engagement and accountability 
🔹  Focusing on what drives the value of the business


TO GET THIS OUTCOME:
✅  A business that thrives without you 
✅  More time for passions and loved ones
✅  Retirement piece of mind
✅ Higher business value 
✅  Employees that think like owners

Do you want to learn more about building your personalized Business Value Growth Blueprint, Contact me at D.Cherry@FocusCFO.com

Darren Cherry, CEPA®

Promoting your accountant to CFO is a costly mistake.

It feels like a smart move—until revenue stalls and chaos creeps in:

You think you're saving money by promoting from within.

But here's what happens next.

Strategic decisions get delayed. Budgets lack insight. Growth slows.  

I've seen it firsthand. A founder once said, “Our controller is now our CFO!”  
Three months later: “I’m not sure what a CFO does…but I know this isn’t it.”

Accounting keeps the books clean.  
CFOs drive the business forward.

They build financial strategy.  
Plan for scale.  
Challenge assumptions.  
Spot risk before it hits.

That’s the difference between reporting the past vs. owning the future.

If your “CFO” only closes your books…you don’t have a CFO.

Here’s what to do:
Write down the three biggest financial decisions you’ll face in the next year.  
Now ask: is your current setup ready to lead those?

Hiring the right CFO isn’t a luxury.  
It’s the move that helps your business grow faster—and safer.

No alternative text description for this image

“If I leave town, the business breaks.”

That’s what a $12M business owner told me last year.

Here’s how we fixed it—and gave him real freedom:

He hadn’t documented a single process.

Every decision, every approval, every minor detail ran through him.

No wonder he couldn’t take a long weekend.

We started small:
- Mapped out key systems
- Assigned clear owners
- Built dashboards to flag issues early
- Wrote down the playbooks

Six months later, he took a two-week trip. Zero calls. Zero fires.

Because now the business doesn’t depend on him.

Freedom doesn’t come from walking away.

It comes from building a business that runs without you.

Start with one process this week.

Change the game long-term.

Most founders wait too long to plan their exit.

That mistake costs them millions—and years of freedom.

Here’s how to prep for a smooth exit in less than an hour a week:

Too many owners think exit planning starts when it’s time to sell.

I used to think that too.

Until I watched a client get half the value he expected—because his business relied too much on him.

Now I start planning 3–5 years out. Even for clients not sure they want to sell.

Why?

Because real exit planning isn’t about leaving.

It’s about building a business that runs without you.

When you plan early, you:

- Strengthen your leadership team  
- Build systems that scale  
- Start delegating real responsibility  
- Reduce red flags that scare buyers  
- Make your business easier to own—and more valuable

You protect your equity and your time. Whether you sell or not.

Want to keep your business but work 20 fewer hours?

Want to sell in 5 years and get top dollar?

Same strategy.

Start exit planning now—before you “need” to.

Here’s one step to begin:  
List every decision only you can make.  
Then choose one to delegate this month.

Buy back your time while growing your value.

That’s smart strategy—not an end game.

One of the biggest risks in your company?  
Only one person knowing how things work.

You don’t need a fancy consultant to fix this.  
You need 30 focused minutes a week and a shared folder:

Most teams run on “tribal knowledge.”  
The same three people who know the work inside and out.

But the moment one of them gets sick or takes PTO?  
Everything stalls.

I saw it firsthand.  
One client had a cost-tracking process no one else understood.  
When that person went on vacation, the whole department froze.

We fixed it with one unsexy habit: documenting.

Every week, each team member wrote out how they did a key task.  
Processes went from “in someone’s head” to “on paper and accessible.”

Now?  
New hires onboard faster.  
Leaders sleep better.  
No more single points of failure.

Try this next week:

- Pick one recurring task  
- Write out the steps  
- Save it in a shared folder

Small habit.  
Big impact.

Don’t wait for a vacation to expose your blind spots.

“We’re profitable... but we’re broke.”

You’ve heard it. Maybe even said it.

Here’s how to fix it fast—without cutting headcount or chasing more sales:

Track these 3 numbers weekly.

I worked with a founder whose P&L showed profit every month. But their bank account kept shrinking.

The issue?

- Accounts Receivable was aging past 60 days
- Accounts Payable was due in 30
- Inventory kept piling up and wasn’t moving

They were funding growth with cash they hadn’t collected.

We made one change: weekly cash flow checks with AR/AP/inventory reports.

Within 60 days, they uncovered over $500K in locked-up cash.

Cash is the heartbeat. Profit is paperwork.

Watch these numbers like a hawk:
- Days Sales Outstanding (DSO)
- Days Payables Outstanding (DPO)
- Inventory Turnover

Run the math. Tighten the cycle.

Start with one question tomorrow:
“How fast are we turning cash back into cash?”

Most “profit problems” are really timing problems. Fix that, and your bank balance follows.

taplio

The Battle

Stephie Althouse, Ph.D. ("Dr. Stephie")

Darren Cherry, CEPA®

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreDarren Cherry, CEPA®'s LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Stephie Althouse, Ph.D. ("Dr. Stephie")

Darren Cherry, CEPA®

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Darren Cherry, CEPA®'s LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreDarren Cherry, CEPA®'s LinkedIn Performance