One NASCAR Driver’s Key to Success? Kindness

Greg Crumpton lives by a simple mantra: Relationships drive business. Each week on Straight Outta Crumpton, Crumpton dives into the lost art of networking and speaks with the biggest influencers in business services to learn how they build, nurture and value their professional relationships.

 

On this episode of Straight Outta Crumpton, Host Tyler Kern and Greg Crumpton talked with former NASCAR driver Ward Burton, who won the 2002 Daytona 500. He now operates the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation, whose mission is to conserve America’s Land and Wildlife through wise stewardship. They talk about his foundation, NASCAR, and how kindness benefits everyone.

Greg grew up watching Ward, just as Ward was also growing up, as they are near the same age. As Ward progressed through his NASCAR career, or Phase One of his life, according to Crumpton, he noted that he always admired how Burton handled his sponsorships. While growing up in Atlanta, Greg attended some of Ward’s races. But, Crumpton noted that professional athlete aside, he always admired how Burton carried himself and how he was a nice guy.

“It is really easy to be kind and available if they want a story about you, versus being the other way, so I was never aloof on any of that.” – Ward Burton

“In business and in personal life, that goes so far,” Crumpton said. “How you treat your people: your interviewers and your co-competitors. You set a good bar for that.”

Back in the days of print reporters in pit row and TV network reporters, Burton noted that those folks had a job to do, too.

“It is really easy to be kind and available if they want a story about you versus being the other way, so I was never aloof on any of that,” Burton said. He always took time to be available for requests because not only would you get a good message out about your team or partners, but it was about working together.

Make Sure to Follow Along for More Episodes of Straight Outta Crumpton!

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

data center
The Next Data Center Bottleneck Isn’t Power or Cooling, It’s People
February 8, 2026

With the rapid rise of AI workloads, data centers are being built with higher power density, stricter reliability expectations, and cooling technologies that are evolving faster than most teams can adapt. As a result, these facilities aren’t just getting bigger—they’re becoming harder to operate, harder to staff, and far less forgiving when something goes…

Read More
Precision With Purpose: The Geospatial Advantage in Telecom Network Planning
February 7, 2026

Telecom networks are no longer planned or evaluated in isolation. As 5G, private LTE, fixed wireless, and mission-critical communications expand, operators are expected to deliver stronger coverage, higher reliability, and demonstrable performance—often while managing complex technologies and constrained resources. Regulators, customers, and public agencies are increasingly focused on outcomes that can be measured and validated,…

Read More
Leadership
Leading Change from Within: The Power of Transformational Leadership
February 7, 2026

Leadership is being tested in real time. As organizations navigate AI adoption, remote work, and constant structural change, many leaders are discovering that strategy alone isn’t enough. People are asking deeper questions about purpose, trust, and what it really means to show up for teams when uncertainty is the norm. In a world where burnout…

Read More
future of public safety
Clarity Under Pressure: Technology, Trust, and the Future of Public Safety
February 7, 2026

When something goes wrong in a community—a major storm, a large-scale accident, a violent incident—there’s often a narrow window where clarity matters most. Leaders must make fast decisions, responders need to trust the information in front of them, and the systems supporting those choices have to work as intended. Public safety agencies now rely…

Read More