Dr. Maurita Sutton-Brown

I attribute my success to the women in my life - the grooming, training, and spoiling I received from my grandmother, my mom, and my aunts as the only girl growing up. They taught me how to be a proper woman, from crossing my legs to serving pound cake and tea every Sunday after church, which became a five-generation tradition I've passed down to my own children. My grandmother gave me my first diamond at a young age and took me to the hair salon early on, catering to me and shaping me into the woman I am today. Being a single mom to two daughters while in college changed everything - I had both girls during my degree program, one in February so I could return after spring break and one in July so I could return in the fall. That experience of building my interior design business, 'My Two Reasons for Design,' with two children and then going on to get my master's degree taught me resilience. The number $10,000 has followed me throughout my life - I was given $10,000 for a semester of school when I was six months pregnant, my first contract was $10,000, and now I give $10,000 away through my scholarship fund. My life works in threes, and what led me was the grooming, the training, and what my aunt, grandmother, and mom taught me - it's instilled in me. Now it's my daughters and my aunt who helped raise them pouring back into my life, and I'm giving back what was given to me through being raised as a proper woman.

Do it quick, make it quick, all you have is now. Be strong in your integrity and live in the moment of now, fulfilling your desires because that's all we have every day. Don't wait with good intentions - actually take action and do it. I believe in dealing with what you have in front of you right now, not putting things off. As my pastor would say, do it quick, make it quick, say it quick - however it is, do it now. People understanding that all you have is now is so important. Before you even move forward, just be strong in your integrity and lead with action, not just intentions. Living in the moment of now and fulfilling your desires is what matters, because sometimes intention becomes a cop-out - I've never heard anyone successfully say my intentions led me to this, but I have seen people succeed by actually doing it in the moment.

The biggest challenges in my field include ensuring that scholarship recipients remain accountable to program policies while also managing how my work and impact are perceived beyond curated social media impressions. At the same time, there are strong opportunities to expand targeted scholarship cohorts, develop trade- and art-focused programs for young women, and grow the reach of my boutique handcrafted product line. I’m also exploring the creation of a podcast as a way to re-engage in public speaking on my own terms and share stories in a more authentic, controlled format.

Integrity is at the top of my list, along with being open to the truth of any situation. I believe in 'it is what it is' - I even have it on my Alex and Ani bracelet along with 'life is good.' I'm always on that front where you can tell me the worst thing going on with you and I'm still going to tell you life is good, and I'm still going to tell you it is what it is. Speaking up for yourself is critical because that's all you got - every day we're out there for everybody else and we forget who we are. To hold the peace and keep the integrity, I have to speak up even when it's difficult. I don't deal with situations that could cause me to end up being out of order or out of integrity. I believe in dealing with what you have in front of you - you gotta deal with it. Living in the moment of now and being strong in your integrity is essential, and I will not let my children be disrespectful to their elders out of fear, so I step up and handle difficult conversations myself.