The Crisp Guy Blog – Leadership, Resilience & Culture
The Stripped Back Journal
This is where I lay it bare. Silence, betrayal, survival, and rebuilding — told as it happened. Not theory. Not Polish. Just real stories stripped back to the truth over the last 37 years as a small business owner.
My Door Was Always Open… But Nobody Knocked
I used to say, “My door is always open.”
But the truth was, nobody knocked.
They thought I was too busy — and I ended up being the last to know about problems, issues, even good news.
It wasn’t until I plastered “Be Present” stickers around my desk and made myself a promise — to stop whatever I was doing when someone came in — that the culture began to change.
Because culture isn’t built in strategy sessions.
It’s built in the knock on the door.
Who do I think I am?
Mark Matthews reflects on imposter syndrome in leadership — why it never goes away, and why being real matters more than being special.