Paint Your Lips Red and find your limitless bealiefs

In this bold and inspiring episode of WTF (What’s the Fix?), Rico Peña sits down with Dr. Karmetria Burton, Senior Director of Global Supplier Diversity at McDonald’s, transformational leader, international speaker, and founder of the Paint Your Lips Red Foundation, a movement empowering women to lead boldly and unapologetically. 

They dive into the power of voice, breaking limiting beliefs, reading the room, and navigating corporate spaces as a Black woman. Dr. Karmetria Burton shares raw stories of doubt, silence, and resilience, and how she turned them into strength, strategy, and bold leadership. 

Whether you're climbing the leadership ladder, mentoring others, or learning to own your space, you’ll want to hear this. Dr. Karmetria Burton brings unfiltered wisdom and a 360° leadership mindset that challenges you to rethink how you show up in every room Tune in, subscribe, and drop a comment—What limiting belief are you ready to rewrite? 

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 Rico Peña founded Peña Global in 2007 to revolutionize team performance for businesses worldwide. Our award-winning consultancy provides scientific assessments and expert-driven solutions, empowering organizations to exceed their visions and strengthen market positioning. Join us as we transform businesses and elevate success! 

Connect with Karmetria Burton:

https://www.paintyourlipsred.com/

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 Connect with us! Website: https://www.qdotinc.com/ Instagram:   / ricopena_qdot  Linkedin:   / ricopena  Twitter:   / penaglobal  \ Facebook:   / penaglobal  

Transcript

Transcript 

0:00 

little girls should be seen and not heard as a leader I am never going to ask a team member to do something that I 

0:06 

wouldn't do or can't do so that is how I turn that limited belief into a limitless truth that's why I'm so 

0:12 

passionate about training the next generation of women yes there's a difference in being silent and being 

0:19 

silent right be progressive in what you want to do but don't allow society to 

0:24 

tell you when you have to do it and how you do it dr dr kamichra Burton she 

0:30 

turned supply diversity for Delta Airlines into a billiondoll growth strategy she then did it again at 

0:35 

McDonald's rewriting the rules on what inclusion really looks like in global business from corporate boardrooms to 

0:41 

community front lines Dr kitia Burton isn't just talking supplier diversity 

0:47 

she's executing it at scale a John Maxwell certified powerhouse and strategic fire starter she leads with 

0:53 

faith grit and a three-word framework that changes lives pray process paint 

0:59 

get ready to meet the woman who didn't just fix the system she eliminated the limited beliefs of minority women and 

1:06 

executive positions all while wearing red lipstick here we go you 

1:13 

ready dr kamichia Burton so before you were transforming global supply chains 

1:21 

and signing 540 suppliers to a DEI pledge who was Kamitia Burton and what 

1:29 

moment in your early life made you realize you weren't just going to lead 

1:35 

but you were about to change the system whoa thank you for the opportunity to be 

1:42 

here such a great question i've had a lot of moments i would say one of the moments that really kind of defined my 

1:49 

leadership is when I decided to start getting rid of the limited beliefs and 

1:54 

we all have those beliefs and those are those things that people tell us that's not true but even bigger Rico the things 

2:01 

we tell oursel that's not true preach it preach 

2:07 

it behind me bring it yes and so I I would say that's when I really changed 

2:14 

when I got out of my head and I turn those limited beliefs into limitless 

2:19 

truths oh and we all have those and I would I would say that's that's been a 

2:24 

pivotal moment for me realizing those limited beliefs okay i love the limit 

2:29 

limitless truths tell me about that and how did you come up with that yep so limited beliefs are things that just 

2:36 

aren't true things that people told us that maybe aren't true and things that we tell ourselves as untrue it's limited 

2:42 

it limits the way we think right so I said "Let's turn these into limitless truths." Okay so it's a truth that 

2:50 

doesn't have boundaries right so you stop the limited belief and you turn it into a limitless truth and that's how I 

2:58 

look at it because it it is limitless to what the truth can be and the things that you tell yourself so give me an 

3:04 

example of a limited belief that you turn into a limitless I can't even say 

3:10 

that word truth so I will tell you as a little girl I'm from the south and you 

3:15 

know a lot of people may be able to resonate with this story but my grandmother always told me little girls 

3:21 

should be seen and not heard little girls should be seen and not heard and I'm like but wait a minute 

3:28 

you're raising me to realize my voice when to speak up and that confused me as 

3:34 

a nineyear-old girl right because my my family was really teaching me how to use my voice but my grandmother would say 

3:41 

"Little girls should be seen and not heard." And I believed that and so I was 

3:48 

silenced i was I stopped speaking out little girls should be seen and not heard but what she was telling me is 

3:54 

know when to speak up and know when to shut up gotcha okay so as a nineyear-old you don't think about it that way but I 

4:03 

carried that limited belief until I went to college i was always smart i was always the big personality but I dimmed 

4:11 

my light because my grandmother told me little girls should be seen and not heard so in my marketing class in 

4:19 

college at Southern University my teacher asked a question and I went I I 

4:26 

know the answer but nope little girls should be seen and not heard but I know the answer nope little girls should be 

4:32 

seen and not heard and I finally said you know what answer the question Caritra and so I answered it and my 

4:39 

instructor said "You haven't said anything the whole semester i want to hear more from you you have something to 

4:45 

say." And so that stopped that limited belief 

4:51 

i realized then that my grandmother was saying know when to speak up and know when to shut up there's a difference in 

4:57 

being silent and being silenced right and so the limitless truth is know 

5:04 

when to speak up if you have something to say say it even if your voice shakes 

5:10 

use your voice even if you're scared as hell say it anyway because you're never 

5:15 

gonna get that opportunity so that is how I turn that limited belief into a limitless truth and there's so much in 

5:22 

what you're saying there that prevents whether as a person an employee a leader 

5:28 

a human being because either adults who are working with kids or or have 

5:34 

grandchild or or son daughters whatever it may be they don't clarify their intent of what they're saying so as a 

5:40 

child to you was like keep quiet versus know when to say certain things right 

5:47 

how did that affect you before you came to that realization your relationships 

5:53 

uh who you were as a person and what was the difference at college when you finally raised that hand you finally got 

6:01 

to say something and an individual told you I want to hear more 

6:06 

what was the difference in you after that you know so remember she told me this at a very young age so I I believed 

6:13 

her you know obviously your grandmother would never do anything to hurt you right but I think that belief is 

6:19 

generational i think those women Rico before me and before my mother that's 

6:26 

what they believe right right seen and not heard you raise your children you keep a clean house you know you support 

6:33 

your husband you don't say a lot right and so I believe that so as a little girl but as I began to become a teenager 

6:40 

and I started forming opinions about certain things I was quiet i was silenced 

6:46 

because I didn't think one my voice mattered i didn't think what I said you know people would listen or that it had 

6:52 

any validity to it and so when I went to college I started seeing all these 

6:58 

teachers and speakers around me women that were using their voice and I said 

7:03 

"That's me." But little girls should be seen and not heard and so I I struggle with that and that's why that moment in 

7:10 

my marketing class was pivotal i was like forget it i am shedding this i want 

7:16 

to be heard and I'm so glad that I did that you know I I was listening to another podcast you had done and now I 

7:22 

understand when you talked about that your family used to pay you to keep quiet right 

7:30 

is that why your grandmother said that probably i was a talker i didn't meet any stranger Rico i was that little girl 

7:37 

that had this big personality i read a lot i was a people person i was having 

7:42 

adult conversations at a young age i believe it and that's a great point that is probably why she told me that because 

7:49 

I was a talker and wasn't afraid to use my voice but now now that you see that's 

7:54 

your superpower and I want to go to the listeners who are probably going through the same thing right what would you tell 

8:01 

that person that says "That's me i love to talk i love to be around people but I 

8:06 

keep being told "No that's too much." What would you tell that person what how 

8:12 

can that person get out of their shell and be themselves from your experience yeah be your authentic self but how how 

8:19 

do I do that so be true to yourself and a lot of it is reading the room right so 

8:26 

you may be this person with this big personality know when to speak up and know when to shut up but you got to know you know if you're reading the room and 

8:32 

maybe it is not the time for your big bright personality to to bubble to the top so I think you got to know when to 

8:40 

use that superpower of speaking up and if you are a person that feels like 

8:45 

you've been silenced you really haven't been it's a limited belief you have 

8:50 

something to say and if you're nervous about it again maybe read the room to 

8:55 

see who's in the room and determine if this is the right time for you to speak up you'll know when it is but I say be 

9:03 

your authentic self you've been silenced you've been silent but not silenced 

9:10 

so think about that yes i like that so we tend to overlook the small little 

9:16 

things when you said read the room someone who may not have the experience 

9:21 

that you have on you know we learned those experiences through trial and 

9:27 

error so in your experience someone who's just getting started maybe a little bit shy what should they be 

9:34 

observing in that room to identify this is my time to stay quiet this is the 

9:40 

time unapologetically I need to speak yeah so I would say if you are ready to 

9:46 

use your voice I would encourage you to do two things first get a mentor and maybe a coach to help you fine-tune this 

9:54 

superpower and get ready to step into your authentic self because you just don't do it right it has to kind of be a 

9:59 

strategy to it right and so I would say find you a mentor or coach or somebody that you admire that does this really 

10:06 

well that storytell or that speaks up well on their behalf so there are three things that you can do that so if you're 

10:13 

in a meeting and you have something to say the way you read the room is what's 

10:18 

the energy of the meeting is your comment appropriate for what is being 

10:24 

said and is the time right to say it okay sometime timing is everything 

10:30 

sometimes how you say it can also be a big factor okay so I would say what is 

10:36 

the context of the conversation is this the right time to say it and if you don't feel comfortable saying it in 

10:42 

public maybe after the meeting you send an email hey you guys great meeting but 

10:48 

here are my thoughts you're still getting your point across it's not live 

10:53 

right but you're still letting people know that you have a voice and you have an opinion okay so that could be a way 

10:59 

if you're nervous to speak up and out send an email after the meeting or send an email to the person that you'd like 

11:05 

to get your point to so what sticks with me is when you said little girls must be 

11:10 

seen not heard right it's a phrase that stays in your head and it shapes your character so I want to give our audience 

11:17 

a different phrase that helps them to fix that so I want you to finish this 

11:22 

phrase around this context okay listen if you're worried about X just remember 

11:29 

why what would you put into X and Y if you're worried about your limited beliefs remember that there are 

11:36 

limitless truths to everything the one thing that somebody has told you or that 

11:41 

you've told yourself may not be true and if you find that it's not true 

11:46 

find out what your limitless truth is so for me when the little girl should be seen or not heard enters my mind I would 

11:54 

say affirmations like you have something to say you are smart you are valued your 

12:01 

opinion matters so when those limited beliefs happen shout those limitless 

12:06 

truths to yourself and those are just affirmations i want to stay with this topic of limitous beliefs i got a 

12:13 

different question for you can you help us or walk us through a moment in your life when you faced not significant 

12:21 

adversity and how did you overcome it you know being a black woman I have been 

12:28 

the only yes many occasions particularly in the 

12:33 

business world when it comes to leadership levels and being in the room to make decisions and I 

12:39 

always shied away from that but in this time that is a plus because so many 

12:46 

corporations are leaning into inclusion correct and they want to hear from women 

12:51 

and minorities what are your thoughts what's your experience and so that is 

12:57 

one thing that I have overcome being the only in the room sometimes and that's been hard but it's also has pushed me 

13:06 

right because I feel like if I'm the only if I'm the only woman Kermitra you got to represent other women in this 

13:11 

meeting right yes you got to make sure your voice is heard if I'm the only 

13:16 

black you have to make sure that you're representing the African-American culture and bring up that perspective in 

13:22 

the room so I would say being the one and the only has not been easy for me and the way I overcome that is just to 

13:29 

show up my authentic self i'm prepared and I add value by giving my opinion or 

13:35 

experience even if I'm not asked you always have something to say and 

13:41 

don't let that cultural element don't let that pressure deter from your who you are what you bring to the table 

13:48 

because that one thing you say or do could have a positive impact across the 

13:55 

entire organization that's right so with that that was interesting what 

14:00 

professional risk you regret not taking and what would have happened if you had 

14:07 

oh my goodness i the professional risk that I did not take is I felt like I was 

14:13 

unqualified for a position and I didn't take the job and I wish I had do you know how many people have 

14:20 

jobs that are less qualified than you are but we don't go for it because we're 

14:26 

afraid and we're scared and I stayed in a position too long i feel like I wore 

14:32 

out my welcome and that stifled me i was scared i hadn't written a resume in 

14:38 

years i hadn't done an interview in years so I stayed in that position out 

14:43 

of comfort i was about I wrote that down comfort yeah why Why do we feel 

14:48 

comfortable i mean you're not the only person I've heard this from we all do right it's the devil you know so now 

14:57 

that you are in a complete different position in a different part of your life what causes the fear but more 

15:03 

importantly why do we feel comfortable lack of confidence of moving forward 

15:09 

complacent hey I'm in this job i can do this job with my eyes closed right yeah ready to be challenged yet i'm not 

15:16 

qualified for the job yet lack of confidence and complacency period and I overstayed my welcome in 

15:23 

one of my positions way too long and I feel like if I hadn't my career would probably be further along than it is but 

15:31 

that's okay because everything in time yeah you said 

15:36 

that your career would have been different how so i I feel like I would have been maybe at higher levels at this 

15:43 

point in my career because I would have gotten more experience but like I said I overstayed my welcome in one position so 

15:49 

I feel like if I had moved on I would have gotten more experience maybe in more industries i think I would have 

15:54 

been at different leadership levels at this point right yeah i want to give our audience some context of your background 

16:02 

and your experience so imagine that you were at a meeting and someone handed uh someone you've for the first time you've 

16:08 

met a CV of you what would it say 

16:13 

caritria Burton is a passionate leader that believes in serving others building 

16:20 

high-erforming teams giving back real passionate about 

16:25 

helping women get to the next level i've started a nonprofit i believe that as leaders your leadership approach should 

16:32 

be 360 you shouldn't just be providing benefits to your corporation you need to be doing things in the community and so 

16:39 

I started a nonprofit called Paint Your Lips Red um where I have given back and have passed the playbook on to minority 

16:47 

women leaders and entrepreneurs based on my experience and things that I could have done differently and that I am just 

16:53 

passionate about helping people reach their goals yeah and we're going to definitely go into Paint Your Lips Red 

16:58 

because it's in a very incredible organization that everyone should know about so you got to stay tuned to the 

17:04 

end to understand how that works so we I've had the privilege of working with you and and watching you with different 

17:10 

groups and as a leader who is going through all the challenges that you have been through what are the two the top 

17:17 

three things you would tell someone where you were 10 years ago that if they 

17:23 

start to apply these three things they're going to do way better than what you did 

17:30 

and I talk about this in my book you have to find you an advocate 

17:36 

okay and that's if you're in corporate or an entrepreneur because this person 

17:41 

will have seats at the table will have access to other things that you may not have access to and they are singing your 

17:48 

praises when you aren't in the room so finding a advocate or coach but also a 

17:54 

mentor because an advocate coach and mentor are different yeah explain all three of those yeah three explain the 

18:01 

difference because everyone con convolutes that yep so I would say a mentor is someone that talks with you a 

18:09 

coach is some one that talks to you and an advocate talks about you three 

18:16 

different things okay and I think you need all three when do you know when you 

18:22 

need whom yep so let's talk about a mentor everybody needs a mentor i don't 

18:27 

care how where you are in your career in your business these are people that will give you advice share their experience 

18:34 

with you introduce you to people help you network help you promote your leadership skills or your business okay 

18:41 

an advocate is somebody that has that is co-signing you right okay got it you can 

18:47 

deliver i know Caritria i know Rico in this space they are talking about you 

18:52 

for that next promotion they're talking about you to that next client they're inviting you to speak at certain things 

18:59 

right they are advocating for you because they know your work they are co-signing for you mentor and we talked 

19:05 

about a mentor a coach somebody that you know shares with you shares their life experience and just helps you with 

19:11 

skills as you move you know in corporate or in in entrepreneurship so in what space would you say you have 

19:18 

built your career on of those three no no just in general you're in supplier 

19:24 

diversity right but it's been the most of your career uh why did you choose 

19:29 

supplier diversity and how has that changed since you started yeah so I tell 

19:35 

people all the time this work chose me i did not choose this how so so I I'll 

19:41 

make it quick i told this story on my podcast and when I talked to the CEO of McDonald's right out of college I wasn't 

19:47 

finding a job so I went and worked for my dad small business i didn't want to 

19:52 

do that i didn't go to college for four years to work for a small business right exactly i wanted to be a corporate 

19:58 

executive right for whatever reason nobody was hiring me maybe I wasn't interviewing well my dad said you know I 

20:05 

could really use your help and your energy and I'm like no I don't want to work for a small business and he said I 

20:12 

could use your help i could use your aptitude and he said unfortunately I can't pay you but you can come live back 

20:19 

home it was like all my friends were getting these sexy apartments and here I was back at my parents house in the 

20:25 

basement and so I dug deep i started the business i created a business plan i started 

20:33 

doing leads and networking and going to events and there was one client that we 

20:38 

needed and I was able to get a meeting so we had a meeting with this Fortune 

20:44 

100 company they loved the presentation we got the 

20:49 

contract but after the presentation the lead decision maker came over to me and 

20:54 

said "We really like your style and your energy come work for us." And I said 

21:01 

"I'm on a sales call i got a job on a sales call." That's when you know you're really good 

21:08 

i I think you're right Rico so I went home i told my dad i said "Dad hey I got good news and bad news the good news is we got the contract." And I said "The 

21:14 

bad news is they offered me a job." And he said "Really?" He said "Well what do you want to do?" I said "Well dad you 

21:21 

know I've always wanted to get this corporate experience i want to go and learn and get trained." And he said "You know what you've done well by me go and 

21:28 

do it." So after two years of running a small business with my dad I was able to 

21:33 

get my foot in the door so that is how this work chose me right so I was working for a corporation in supply 

21:40 

chain and this is when supply chain started looking for those businesses that were womenowned minority owned 

21:46 

veteranowned and so now I am on the other side of the table creating opportunities for those businesses 

21:54 

and so that's why I say this work called me and I love it i feel like I can make 

22:00 

a difference in entrepreneurs lives making a difference in corporations and just serving just serving just serving 

22:07 

my stakeholders with so much excitement and enthusiasm but there's so much in what you just explained right there that 

22:14 

both entrepreneurs employees and leaders miss would you say that you would have gotten that job if you hadn't been 

22:20 

working for your father probably not okay were there any skills that you look 

22:26 

back at that you had learned and and polished working with your father that 

22:32 

when you got that opportunity to present executive that executive team is the reason why they loved what you did 

22:39 

compared to when you were trying to interview right out of college executive presence Rico I I gotta tell 

22:45 

you executive presence is something that will go a long way and you may not be 

22:51 

the most skilled But if you have that presence people skills the ability to 

22:58 

communicate what needs to get done that's all you need sometimes so I would 

23:03 

say executive presence because when you're a business owner you're always talking to people everybody you meet is 

23:10 

a potential client that's right everybody you should never miss that and so if you're in that mode you're always 

23:16 

on you're always networking you're always talking to people you're always talking about your value proposition and 

23:21 

so I would say executive presence is something that I learned and even today when I have my performance reviews all 

23:29 

my leaders have said Caritra your executive presence is great and and that's what I want all the employees and 

23:34 

and and young entrepreneurs to realize those small opportunities are the things 

23:40 

that polish you that improve you that prepare you for that opportunity that 

23:45 

bigger opportunity i think too often we get out of college or we think we should 

23:50 

be a lot better and a lot higher than where we should be but we don't have the reps we don't have developed that skill 

23:57 

yet so don't shun those small opportunities because you think you're 

24:02 

better than that's right because that could be the one thing that prepares you 

24:08 

for the big thing that's right right and that's and that's where mentorship comes in exactly yes yeah yeah and the other 

24:16 

thing I loved is what you father did that I don't think too many leaders do they want to either hold on to the 

24:23 

talent because it makes their life easier or they're using it as a stepping stone versus saying yes you are ready 

24:31 

you should take that opportunity great leaders are preparing the next legacy of 

24:38 

leadership that's right that's right right you shouldn't be afraid of they're going to take my job well that if then you're not doing your own job right and 

24:45 

that's why mentorship is so important wouldn't always be here right so that's why I'm so passionate about training the 

24:52 

next generation of women yes yes but that's a great point you make you're right yeah we have to let good leaders 

25:00 

flourish and believe it or not when you do that I get not a lot but I have 

25:06 

people come back to me and say "Thank you." Yes it's the best feeling in the world when they say "Carmetria that one 

25:13 

piece of advice you gave me got here." Or "Carmetria you remember that time when you said and that just makes my 

25:18 

heart flutter because you made a difference." Yes that's that's what it should be like i remember when I got out of the military my father had a parking 

25:25 

lot striping pressure washing and interior plant design business he had retired from IBM and he needed help i 

25:32 

didn't want to do this job it's 3:00 in the morning it is a hard you know I got done out of the military i wanted to 

25:38 

relax but I helped them in three years we built that from a small mom and pop 

25:44 

through all of Georgia Texas uh Florida businesses and the three things that I 

25:50 

learned that I still use to this day from my father is show up do more than what's expected and always always do the 

25:59 

job as in a way that they never expect and what I mean by that he used to pressurize the car washes he had found a 

26:06 

way to combine two things that took the wax off immediately now he could have charged more he could have made it 

26:13 

proprietary but he said "No this is the quality of work that we do." He he was the only one that showed up he did more 

26:19 

than was expected and he always did quality work when the general manager saw that that's why immediately we grew 

26:25 

he said "I want you to do my entire region." So I learned that very quickly it's that work ethic is that quality and 

26:32 

I would have never learned it if I hadn't spent those two to three years working for my father now so if you're 

26:39 

listening right now and you're right out of college or you're entrepreneur or you're looking at your nineto-5 as a 

26:46 

paycheck wondering I should be doing better than this take a step back find a mentor find a coach find an advocate but 

26:53 

look for those little opportunities that helps you improve the skill set you're going to need when you reach that level 

27:00 

right so I think that that is a very good point right there if you had to lead a team without using your title 

27:07 

your resume or your voice how would you do it leading a team you have the best 

27:14 

questions you just so thoughtprovoking leading a team without 

27:19 

a title without your without your title they don't know your resume and without 

27:25 

using your voice how would you lead them i can't physically talk they can I can communicate by email right so I think 

27:32 

the one thing as a leader I am never going to ask a team member to do something that I wouldn't do or can't do 

27:38 

right right so as a leader I think it's important you lead by example you do the 

27:44 

work don't be afraid to get your hands dirty if you if you are a timely leader and you want your your team to turn 

27:51 

certain things in on time you need to show that as well exactly so I would lead by example mhm the other thing is 

27:59 

as a leader it's important that your values shine through what's important to you what do you really care about right 

28:06 

your team should know that they should know that so I think that's how I would lead by example okay and so I want to go 

28:13 

down a little bit more that path what are the top three myths you know whatever myths that most people have around leadership that you can dispel 

28:20 

right now because you've been there that's a great question yep all leaders 

28:25 

are not qualified number one sorry to say that so sorry to say that leadership 

28:31 

starts within i think if how you lead yourself speaks a lot to how you lead 

28:38 

people get go deeper on that one what how do I how do you lead yourself to lead other 

28:44 

people i think leadership starts within so number one um do I have a lot of is my emotional intelligence high do I have 

28:52 

empathy right how do I how do how does Carmetria treat herself i think leadership starts with you and 

28:58 

it starts within yes am I empathetic am I timely am I sensitive do I care am I a 

29:04 

great communicator and so the other leadership dismantle is everybody's not 

29:09 

meant to be a leader you know I look at people because they do well at the job 

29:15 

they get promoted to lead teams and that's not always a good strategy because just because you can do 

29:22 

the job well doesn't mean you can lead people correct and I think that is a 

29:28 

misconception that so many people have and leaders they need training that's right it gets back to coaching and 

29:34 

mentoring right so just because you may have the technical expertise don't mean you can lead people 

29:41 

that's a different skill set now you and I met because there were some challenges that you were having with your team and 

29:47 

one of the things that we did is that we use behavior analytics to give you some data some insight because I think and 

29:54 

I've been in the same situation you have a an emotional reaction or an emotional 

30:00 

bias to both the person in the situation how did that science help you to make 

30:06 

better decisions oh my goodness the data led me big time and you can't dispute 

30:12 

the data you can but why would you right so that science it was really helpful as 

30:17 

you helped me kind of navigate through some of those personality changes with my team the data was lead with data 

30:24 

leaders i'm one of those people that use data to lead with and it was really really helpful and as data and 

30:31 

technology starts to advance how is you know you've worked with you're worked with the web previous and now another 

30:37 

large organization how is those analytics helping you navigate both the culture and the talent that you have to 

30:45 

lead yeah the data doesn't lie right so when you look at the culture of of any 

30:51 

corporation I would tell anybody if you're looking to go work for a company make sure you understand their culture 

30:56 

and see if it fits your values that is so important i always say people don't leave companies people leave leaders m 

31:05 

I'm I believe that people quit because they're leaders but but the data is so important and I and I think the way you 

31:11 

can use the data is you look at retention you know people are going how long are they staying you look at the 

31:16 

data of women you look at the data of minorities so I think the data is 

31:21 

available for you to use it to your advantage for a different outcome so you work with two large organizations that 

31:28 

everyone would recognize all around the world and you've experienced and either thrived or been challenged in either one 

31:34 

of those cultures how do you navigate those cultures and make sure that you 

31:39 

can thrive in that culture let me be clear i have never been shy about this 

31:45 

faith and business intersects i am a Christian i show up at my corporate job 

31:52 

in prayer i am a firm believer when I bring my beliefs to me in the workplace that helps positive outcomes or can help 

32:00 

keep you centered right so I believe in showing up as a faith-led leader that 

32:07 

has helped me thrive when I have to make hard decisions when I have important meetings that maybe I'm not confident 

32:14 

with my message I pray about it i turn it over to a higher power i always make 

32:19 

sure I pray about it and I prepare and that's it that's all you can do right so 

32:24 

that is that is really has what made me thrive it's not a secret science to it 

32:29 

yeah exactly it is my faith that has really sustained me through all these 

32:36 

years in corporate America so I want to shift a little bit more now to where your passion lies not just 

32:44 

women in business but you have been passionate about the minority and the small business owner and as the things 

32:51 

that are really changing in today's economy what advice do you have for that 

32:56 

small business owner that entrepreneur that minority business owner on what 

33:02 

they should be doing right now that you're seeing corporations doing that is going to help them to thrive in 2025 

33:10 

yeah first of all if you're a small business owner stay the course uh entrepreneurship is economic freedom it 

33:17 

creates legacy so I am so proud of all entrepreneurs stay the course if you can 

33:23 

um because I because I know it's hard um I always tell business owners provide 

33:29 

solutions know what your customers pain points are and because sometimes they 

33:35 

don't even know what their pain points are but if you provide solutions you've done your research you know what they 

33:40 

need be solutionsoriented tell them something that they need that they don't know they 

33:45 

need it yet right exactly i just spoke to the research 

33:50 

yeah you go you you you're forward thinking you look at trends and analysis tell them what they need and 

33:57 

they don't even know they need it yet so be a solutionsoriented entrepreneur that is so so clear but what I find is that 

34:06 

people are trying to provide solutions they assume their market needs i just 

34:11 

spoke to one of the top advertisers in the nation and what he told me was go 

34:18 

out and understand your target market's pain what are they saying what are they 

34:24 

researching because you they may not know they need your solution but if you can't resonate with them they never see 

34:31 

the problem or the solution so don't speak in what you assume 

34:37 

go to them so you can speak in a manner that resonates with them that's right that's right remember what we talked 

34:44 

about knowing the audience yes reading the Yeah exactly it's okay to interview a potential client or interview them or 

34:50 

do their research you're right yes but but you definitely need to get their voice as you provide the solution okay 

34:58 

now you are working with McDonald's right now and helping small businesses and diverse and inclusion and uh that's 

35:05 

when I opened up with that you had 540 suppliers signed to a DEI pledge tell me 

35:12 

a little bit about that and why was that important for the organization 

35:18 

so that was work that I started when I first came on to McDonald's and we talked about this whole value system and 

35:26 

so when I started about four years ago you know De and I we had just come off of George Floyd we were looking to to 

35:33 

rebrand Dei and we wanted not only those small businesses that were diverse owned 

35:39 

but we wanted all suppliers to commit to a DEN and strategy okay and so my plan 

35:46 

was okay supplier I want to see your de andi plan and that was called mutual 

35:52 

commitment to diversity equity and inclusion mcdonald's we wanted to use our brand and scale for good 30 million 

36:01 

customers um so many restaurants we're a global brand so we could use major 

36:08 

influence by using our scale right exactly we said "Okay suppliers diversity equity inclusion is important 

36:14 

to us we need to make sure it's important to you if it is we want you to sign this pledge and if it's not 

36:21 

important to you yet we can help you get there." So when a supplier signs the pledge it opened them up to get 

36:27 

resources and learning from not only McDonald's but other subject matter experts because we wanted to bring our 

36:33 

supplier community along in this journey no one would be left behind in de and I 

36:39 

got and so that was our mutual commitment to diversity equity and inclusion and actually that increased 

36:44 

Rico we had over 650 suppliers wow and so what lessons can minority business 

36:50 

and small businesses take from some of the practices like a McDonald's that 

36:56 

they can start implementing into their culture to help them to be successful 

37:01 

yeah so I think you said it make sure your workforce is diverse women minorities do you have 

37:09 

mentoring program to help with that minority talent make sure your values in 

37:16 

a small business is loud and clear you'd be surprised i've talked to several small businesses they don't have a 

37:21 

mission vision or values right why not and and and they say to me "I'm a small business but you're a business i don't 

37:28 

care how small you are you're a business." So when you have your mission vision and values that's the personality 

37:35 

of your business that needs to be defined so make sure as a small business you have that in place mission vision 

37:41 

and values that is so important and then strategies right to de andi or whatever 

37:48 

it is make sure you have you know you know who your stakeholders are and that you have comm's plans as you think about 

37:55 

socializing your business with corporations and other stakeholders so those are some of the things that those are ways I would advise small businesses 

38:01 

in this market in 2025 what you're saying is so critical because we run into this a lot 

38:09 

tell our audience the difference between a mission a vision and a value well let's talk about values so the values 

38:15 

are who you are and what you believe in what drives you right what's important to you what speaks to you and what's 

38:24 

important so your mission is what do you want to get accomplished and then your 

38:29 

vision is what's long-term what's long term for the company so that's mission 

38:35 

vision and values and you can study large corporations to see how they set theirs to help you as a business owner 

38:42 

set yours and that's important right now even large organizations when we're 

38:48 

working with them they are struggling to hire the right people because they're hiring for scale which is transactional 

38:54 

versus aligning to their values why they haven't not the values that you see in 

38:59 

the wall but what are the behaviors that reflect those values because now you can hire for people who are aligned to those 

39:07 

values and that's really important don't just say you know our values are A B C 

39:12 

and D how are you living them how do they manifest themselves in the business 

39:18 

because that is who you are the character the integrity and how are the people are going to relate with you and 

39:25 

so that's really critical on there so I have another Rico question for you yes 

39:30 

here we go you ready mhm what is one lesson the corporate world still hasn't 

39:36 

learned from women minority or black women in 

39:42 

business hey I'm a black woman black women deserve more i feel like there there are 

39:48 

still maybe stereotypes i've been in situations where you know we've had two 

39:55 

good candidates one black and one white and a difference was made and I just could not sit there and let that 

40:01 

decision be made without saying anything and not and and not that I was taken up for the black person but as a leader you 

40:08 

got to do the right thing be ethical right i would say black women deserve more in 2020 Rico I don't have the 

40:15 

number but black women left corporate America by leaps and bounds to go and start their own business yep the fastest 

40:21 

growing segment in small businesses there's a term I know you've heard of it quiet quitting yep so many black people 

40:27 

have been not promoted overlooked underserved and I think they just said 

40:34 

"You know what i'm out of here i'm going to go start my own business because if I can give this corporation 80 hours a 

40:40 

week I can give myself 80 hours a week." Right exactly so I would say black women deserve more black women are qualified 

40:47 

and capable but I don't think we are given that access to be shown that you 

40:53 

asked me a very good question earlier would I have known about that job if I wasn't in a sales call probably not 

40:59 

that's access correct that's access and if you have access like that my goodness 

41:06 

you know you would find out about opportunities not only from an access standpoint but you're you're qualified 

41:11 

so I think black women deserve more and we should be given more opportunities 

41:17 

and and I want to say this as well is that something what you said earlier from understanding the difference 

41:23 

between what your grandmother said and what that marketing person in college don't be afraid to speak up develop your 

41:29 

skills when you have that confidence you know you deserve more so go out and get 

41:35 

it right don't be afraid because I I do speak with a lot of minority especially women in business they have every 

41:41 

qualification the ability they're the very best but whether it's the stigma or fear or whatever may be they don't have 

41:49 

the confidence to step out and and and grab what should be theirs right so that 

41:55 

is one thing I hope that whoever is listening to this is that if you've done the work if you've put on the skills you 

42:02 

know you deserve more don't be afraid to go out there and speak up and get in 

42:08 

front of the people that should be out there because you can't argue with results that's right and and but and you 

42:14 

make a great point here's another limited belief though Rico there you go as women I was I can't speak for all and 

42:20 

and maybe you know I can get a high five from some women that are listening as women we are trained you work hard and 

42:27 

you keep your head down you don't go out and advocate for 

42:32 

yourself that's how we're trained and so when I started kind of dismissing those 

42:38 

limited beliefs one in in one job I did that i dusted up my resume cleaned it off and I 

42:45 

went on a road show because I felt like I was ready for a promotion i wanted people to know this is Kermit i'm 

42:52 

Caritra and this is what I've done so don't be afraid to speak up and speak out but do it the right way because I 

42:59 

didn't do that the right way m that is when an advocate is important see 

43:05 

Caritrius shouldn't have to go around and advocate for herself my advocate would do that correct and back to 

43:12 

cultures in some cultures that doesn't fly you advocating for yourself so you 

43:18 

got to read the room there you go you got to understand the culture in which you're working in and have you a very 

43:24 

good advocate and and the other things you said be have a strategy right understand the room what works have a 

43:31 

strategy but do so when you're ready i can't tell you how many people try to do 

43:36 

that too quickly and they fall and you now ruin the reputation of your advocate 

43:42 

right so make sure you're doing your homework that you can validate I am ready I have the results because one of 

43:49 

the things you did have in your resume is look what I've accomplished is that you were being overlooked for that 

43:54 

that's right all right final question what does your 70year-old self hope you finally let go 

44:02 

of 70 i hope I can get rid of it before 70 get rid of 

44:09 

timelines you know again that's another limited belief i had I wanted to be 

44:15 

married by 30 three kids by 35 house with a fence by 40 this income by 43 it doesn't happen 

44:23 

that way m and if you keep those timelines you will drive yourself crazy 

44:28 

because you will feel like you're not achieving anything because you haven't hit certain milestones so be gentle with 

44:35 

yourself get rid of the timelines be progressive in what you want to do but don't allow society to 

44:43 

tell you when you have to do it and how you do it that that for me is what I would like to 

44:51 

at 70 years old you know what forget about it it's my way or the highway on my terms and you know what we shouldn't 

44:58 

wait till 70 for that right you know right you only have one life to live 

45:03 

live it to its fullest don't assigned things that you feel you should 

45:09 

accomplish and I see that with so much with younger generation right now i should already be here by now because of 

45:14 

something that's on social media or an assumption and there's a higher level of stress a higher level of concern for 

45:21 

what right so I really love that one get rid of timelines so speaking of 

45:27 

timelines can you share with us the story of the inception of paint your lips red what is that yes so PR 

45:35 

affectionately is a leadership movement for women redefining the way they live 

45:40 

and lead okay and so red lipstick ladies if you love red lipstick you'll know 

45:46 

it's no longer a fashion statement but a call to action and I came up with this 

45:51 

concept i was my grandmother's caregiver and she was on dialysis she had 

45:57 

congestive heart failure but when she would get ready in the morning Rico after she would take her medicine say 

46:03 

her prayer she would say "Give me my red lipstick." Oh wow i never 

46:10 

knew maybe she was trying to be cute for the day but when I sat with it that was 

46:15 

her cape for the day she was tired she was scared but my red lip is gonna get 

46:21 

me through i got I have four doctor's appointments today but my red lipstick 

46:26 

is going to get me through so ladies red lipstick now it's a call to action to be 

46:32 

fierce fearless and also feminine because as women uh you know climb the 

46:38 

corporate ladder or increase their business they're losing the femininity ladies your feminine power is so 

46:45 

important and believe it or not men still appreciate women leaders that are feminine yes absolutely and so my red 

46:52 

lipstick is my femininity i'm a woman i'm a leader but I'm still feminine i 

46:58 

want to be a a feminine leader so ladies that's the whole premise for Py LR paint 

47:03 

your lips red it's not a fashion statement it's a call to action to be more fierce fearless and feminine and 

47:10 

I'm getting ready for my annual lunchon on uh May 18th it's this year it's Hats 

47:16 

Off to Women it's a day of sisterhood empowerment promoting your business and 

47:21 

networking i had your website up and I'll make sure we'll share all the links to that so if we're attending uh give us 

47:27 

a little bit of a snapshot as to what are they going to receive and why should they be there yep so if you are looking 

47:34 

to the other thing um May is mental um mental health awareness month women 

47:41 

particularly black women are suffering from that by leaps and bounds for several reasons one we need to kill the 

47:46 

stigma of counseling in the black community going to see a counselor has a stigma attached to it and so because 

47:53 

it's mental health awareness month as women we will wear so many hats but I want to make sure women know how to 

48:00 

check in on their mental health okay so I have a mental health speaker coming we 

48:05 

also have an entrepreneurship panel if you're looking to start a business scale a business grow a business I have expert 

48:12 

entrepreneurs that will be to help you with that and then we have a panel on sisterhood i'm a big believer that women 

48:19 

need to stop competing and collaborate ladies we need to stop it because 

48:24 

there's strength in numbers and so it is a day of sisterhood empowerment workshops you'll get served lunch and of 

48:31 

it's just a day of celebration so we'd love to see you on May 18th here in Atlanta from 12 until 4 p.m and we'll 

48:38 

have all the registration links and links to the website for you guys to uh review it and look at that and you next 

48:45 

year you have something special that's about to happen right Kamitra yes yes 

48:52 

next year I have just turned in a book to my publisher and I have written a book called Never Wear Red Lipstick: 

49:00 

Eight Lies That Stop Black Women from Succeeding in Life and Business wow and what I talked about earlier this book is 

49:07 

on limited beliefs i'm killing eight limited beliefs that I've experienced 

49:12 

and that other women experience and I'm giving you the limitless truth on how you can pull from those limited beliefs 

49:19 

okay so give our audience a teaser what are the eight limited beliefs in the book oh you would ask me that um uh I 

49:26 

can only give you a few of them okay go ahead self-care okay it doesn't cost people People equate self-care with 

49:33 

going to an expensive spa no self-care is finding your happy place being 

49:38 

mindful so get rid of thinking that self-care is expensive ladies because it's not your favorite book in your 

49:45 

closet your favorite chair that's taking care of yourself and being mindful women 

49:50 

should collaborate and not compete let's stop competing with each other what woman do you want to collaborate with 

49:56 

what woman can you learn from call her let her know you admire her and you want 

50:02 

to work better together there is strength in numbers the other one is be optimistic about your life sometimes we 

50:09 

come to the table with so much baggage so much baggage and pain be optimistic 

50:15 

about what's next for you and then one of the other beliefs is there is a place for faith and business i tell women all 

50:22 

the time there's a place for faith and business your faith should not be separate from your business they are 

50:28 

aligned very nice i can't wait to read that book thank you i'm excited so as we 

50:36 

close and all the great amazing convers again thank you for your wisdom and insight you know I know it's going to 

50:41 

inspire so many of our listeners i love that raw passion that you have and yet 

50:47 

you leave everything out there so I really really appreciate that thank you for someone who comes across this 

50:54 

podcast sees the title and maybe we have five seconds to get their attention 

51:02 

what would you tell that person who who's now looking at you why they should stay and listen to this podcast what are 

51:09 

they going to get out of it stay and listen to this podcast we are talking about limited beliefs and so many other 

51:15 

things that can help you grow as a leader and an entrepreneur um there are so many resources out there push past 

51:23 

the things that are just not true push past the things that you've told yourself that are not true push past the 

51:31 

things that maybe you grew up with that are holding you back they're not true and if you feel like you need to seek 

51:37 

help get counseling kill the stigma go talk to somebody to get you those tools 

51:43 

because those limited beliefs can really stop you from meeting your fullest potential and as women leaders we need 

51:50 

all hands on deck and all women to be prepared to show up as good leaders you know you're the perfect person for this 

51:56 

because I want to start a new tradition to end the show okay so this is we know 

52:01 

we have WTF what's the fix so here's the what's the fix phrase i want you to complete it all right a lot of people 

52:08 

don't know this but around limited beliefs whatever it may be a lot of 

52:13 

people don't know this but limited beliefs exist in you you may be calling 

52:18 

them something else but what is that thing that you have told yourself for 

52:24 

years that's just not true or what has somebody else told you that's not true 

52:31 

make sure you're calling it the right thing and turn it into a limitless truth excellent all right so we end this show 

52:40 

with a question that our previous guest left for you to answer okay what belief 

52:46 

do you have today that you did not have 10 years ago i need to think about them but I'm just going to say this one i 

52:53 

think um women are better leaders okay 

53:00 

we're intuitive right empathetic i I think women I'm not taking anything from 

53:05 

men but I do think let me say it like this women lead differently there we go 

53:10 

okay women lead differently not saying it's better or worse but they lead differently and you need to embrace that 

53:17 

right don't try to lead like other people adopt your own style and run with 

53:23 

it so when you say that li women lead differently how do they lead differently 

53:29 

i think women are more empathetic i I I mean men are too i think women tend to 

53:37 

be better storytellers that's just my opinion so those are some things that I've 

53:42 

observed with women leaders it's been my experience that women leaders are also more intuitive 

53:48 

in in the group yeah okay great point so now it's your turn what question would 

53:54 

you like to leave for our next guest to answer what is your leadership legacy 

53:59 

what do you want to be known for that is I like that kamitra as always it is such 

54:05 

a joy to not only speak with you but see you and and hear your thoughts i always leave energized after a conversation 

54:11 

with you so thank you so much for sharing your wisdom your insight your passion please everyone take a look at 

54:19 

bottom and look at all the links to connect any other way that people can connect with you Kamitria i'm on 

54:24 

Instagram at Dr caritria B i'm on Facebook at Carmetria Burton i'm on LinkedIn at Carmetria Burton um my 

54:32 

website is www.paintyou lips.com you can follow me all there and 

54:38 

I will be uh letting you know when my next book is launched or other events that I may be having and I'm going to 

54:45 

also add a link there for anyone who wants to pre-register for your book as 

54:50 

before it comes out so that way when your book comes out we can have you back and everyone who's on that list you know 

54:58 

I'm She's going to kill me for this we'll probably get an autographed book if you're on that list i like that 

55:05 

perfect so we'll have a pre-sale or pre-registration if you want book for it 

55:10 

comes out and only those in our list during our interview when it comes out will get an autographed copy 

55:17 

i love that i look forward to that dr k thank you so much enjoy your day thank you for being here and for everybody 

55:23 

else we'll see you next time see you soon bye-bye