In this concise "6 questions in 7 minutes" interview, Professor Pete Alexander talks with Cheryl Stauffer, a first‑generation entrepreneur who founded Crimson Design Group, an interior‑design firm. Cheryl shares her background growing up in Paraguay and moving to the United States, her light‑hearted philosophy toward design (e.g., “beige is not a color”), and her core business belief that companies should prioritize profit‑first – focusing on top‑line profit rather than the bottom line. She emphasizes the value of hiring a coach to uncover self‑limiting beliefs and shift from a scarcity to an abundance mindset, describing how that mental change transformed her approach to money and growth. Cheryl recommends fellow entrepreneur Lisa Kahn of Finding Sanctuary as a guest, highlighting the importance of creating peaceful, centered spaces in homes and offices. She recounts her first job at age 13 making salads in a restaurant, a formative experience that cemented her drive to become an entrepreneur. The episode closes with Cheryl’s contact information: crimsondesigngroup.com and the Instagram handle @CrimsonDesignGroup.
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This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast, where business leaders share their insights. It is 6 questions in 7 minutes because successful business leaders are busy and rarely have more time to spare. So let's get to it. Question number 1: In a few sentences, please tell me who you are and what you do.
I am a first-generation entrepreneur, woman entrepreneur, started life in the jungles of Paraguay, South America. My name's Cheryl, by the way. And now, after many years, I came back to the United States and I create beauty in people's lives and in interiors, focusing on interior design.
Well, Cheryl, it's great to have you on the show. Question number 2, what is something that makes you smile and/or laugh about working in your industry?
It's every day. I cannot take this job too seriously. I always, you know, when the stress mounts up, mounts up, I tell my team, look, we're not doing brain surgery. This is someone's house or someone's office. If they don't like the paint color, we pick a new one. There's a lot of different colors in the world to choose from.
Oh, I love that. There's a lot of different colors to choose from. Kind of like I heard somebody say, what's your favorite flavor of ice cream? Because it's your favorite and somebody else might not like it, but it's, hey, it's yours.
That's right. And beige is not a color, by the way.
Okay, I'll keep that in mind. Question number 3. I have a fictitious book with all the answers for business. What chapter would you think most companies should read?
It should be all the mistakes that I made, I think. Actually, I am a big proponent on profit first. It should be the top line, not the bottom line. And everything, all the decisions that you make should be on what's your, what's the, What's your profit on your company? Why are you choosing to grow? What's, you know, what is the driving factor? And, you know, the top number, the bottom number has to grow just as big as the top number. Otherwise, all your time and energy is, I think, not well spent. So, profit first for me.
Absolutely. And I like the point that you make also, it's the top line profit. A lot of people think, okay, we got to go with the bottom line. And so that's also insightful. So thank you very much. Number 4, other than the generic work harder, have a great attitude, and care for customers, what advice would you give to other business leaders?
I believe we're not created to do business alone. And so I think hiring a coach personally and professionally has been just one of the number one factors that has made just our company successful. And, you know, I think it's, it's realizing your self-limiting beliefs Most of the time we're in our own way. And so when you work with someone, you have to be willing to listen to what they have to say. You have to be willing to look in the mirror and accept change. And that's when I think you can make just major breakthroughs from your mindset first.
It's very insightful there. And it's true. I mean, as entrepreneurs, it's really hard for us to think, oh, you know, I've got this, I've got this. But when you listen to somebody who has a specific expertise that can help coach you, you really can open up some new avenues for yourself personally that can lead to your success. Am I right?
Absolutely. I mean, one of my big ones that I learned from was just the fact that I looked at a lens that I looked through like from a scarcity mindset versus an abundance mindset. And once I realized that and I kind of flipped it, you know, I just became self-aware of how I was thinking or processing about money. And it just really made a big, just, it was a big life change for me.
Yeah, I love that. I mean, it's, it's, it's that positivity. You're sending that positive energy out there and you're attracting it back, just like you would if you did the negative energy. You're going to attract back that, right? So it's like, we're like-minded, definitely.
Yes.
Question number 5: What other business leader like yourself would you like to acknowledge and invite to be on my podcast?
I would love, uh, for you to meet Lisa Kahn. She has a company called Finding Sanctuary. And she is working on creating, teaching people how to create sanctuaries within their own home, within their offices. And you know, I think now is more important than ever as we, you know, have a world that is, you know, so disruptive and people just need to be centered and have peace of mind. She's great at teaching people how to create that.
I love that. It sounds like a perfect person for my show. So I'm looking forward to interviewing her. So thank you for that referral. Referral. And our final, final question is question number 6: Tell me about your first job.
Well, my first job, I was 13. I was looking in the newspaper for a job, and, uh, my mother said, you're not old enough to work, they're not going to hire you. I said, well, I called and I have an interview, so you need to drive me to the interview. And it was for a restaurant. I made salads. And that was really kind of the start to knowing I am not going to work for somebody the rest of my life. I am going to be driven as an entrepreneur and go having my own business. So after they hired me, I said, see, I told you this is what God intended for my life to be. I had a job.
Oh, I love it. It's a great story there. And I have to, for our younger viewers, when you say newspaper, that's a website that you print out, right?
That's right. Yes. It's, you know, it's something from 30 years ago. Do you remember that? You actually have to read more than one page or one sentence.
My goodness, exactly.
Oh my goodness. That's great.
Cheryl, it's been great to have you on the show. How can people find you?
Uh, go to crimsondesigngroup.com or find us on Instagram, Crimson Design Group, and would love to hear from you.
Perfect. This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast. Thanks for listening.
