What One Thing?
One business. One story. One lesson that actually matters.
What One Thing is a podcast for business owners who want to grow thoughtfully, not noisily.
Hosted by Hayley Baxter (Corbar Accounting) and Phil Davenport (Affirm IT Services), each episode explores the real journeys behind growing businesses — the decisions that worked, the ones that didn’t, and the one thing that made the biggest difference.
These aren’t polished success stories or surface-level tips. They’re honest conversations…
Recent Episodes
June 30, 2026
The Business Plan You Should Never Stop Updating - Laura Holland
Running a business isn't just about writing a business plan... it's about continually evolving it. In this episode of What One Thing ? , Hayley Baxter and Phil Davenport are joined by structural engineer and business owner Laura Holland to explore why business planning should be a living document, not something you complete once and forget. Laura shares the honest reality of growing an engineering consultancy from scratch, the confidence challenges that come with leadership, when to hire (and wh
June 17, 2026
Talk To People - Daisy Ferns
The Most Underrated Business Growth Strategy with Daisy Ferns In a world obsessed with algorithms, followers, and going viral, what if the real secret to growing your business was much simpler? In this episode of What One Thing ? , Hayley Baxte r and Phil Davenport sit down with lead generation specialist Daisy Ferns , whose one thing is refreshingly straightforward: talk to people . Daisy shares how building genuine relationships has helped her create multiple successful businesses, including a
June 3, 2026
Stop Buying AI Tools: Solve the Problem First - Richard Geary & Scott Evans
What One Thing AI Podcast Everyone is talking about AI. But what if most businesses are approaching it completely the wrong way? In this episode of What One Thing AI, Phil Davenport and Hayley Baxter are joined by Richard Geary and Scott Evans from the AI Foundry to discuss one of the biggest mistakes business owners make when implementing AI. Instead of starting with ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini or the latest AI tool, Richard argues that businesses should first identify the problem they are trying
May 20, 2026
We Tried a 30-Day Business Challenge… did we win or learn?
Phil Davenport and Hayley Baxter reflect on their attempt to implement a 30-day relationship-building challenge inspired by their own podcast advice. What started with good intentions — outreach messages, networking coffees, introductions, and accountability — slowly became overwhelming as real business life got in the way. In this honest conversation, they unpack: why consistency is harder than motivation the pressure business owners put on themselves relationship-building in growing businesses
May 6, 2026
Be Real - Why Pretending Everything's Fine Is Hurting Your Business - Marc Johnson
Marc’s What One Thing is: Be real. In this episode, we explore the pressure many business owners feel to look successful, polished, and “together” — even when reality feels very different behind the scenes. Marc shares his experience growing up in a family business, the pressure to prove himself, and how networking changed once he stopped trying to project perfection and started having more honest conversations. We also discuss: vulnerability in leadership authentic networking managing teams as
April 22, 2026
Why Your Ideal Client Isn’t Who You Think - Diyar Abdullah
Why do some deals close instantly… while others drag on forever and go nowhere? In this episode of What One Thing , we sit down with Diyar to break down a different way of thinking about sales, marketing, and lead generation. Instead of focusing on your product or service, this conversation explores how understanding data, timing, and buyer intent can completely change how you win business. We talk about: Why “ideal client” might not mean what you think The difference between a good fit and a de
Recent Blog Posts
July 2, 2026
Why Should Someone Buy from You? The Business Question Most Owners Can't Answer
If someone asked you one simple question..."Why should I buy from you instead of your competitor?"Could you answer it confidently in ten seconds?It's a surprisingly difficult question. One that catches a lot of people out. In this episode of…
June 24, 2026
From Engineer to Business Owner: Why Business Planning Matters More Than You Think
You start with a skill. You're a great engineer, a good accountant, a brilliant IT consultant. Then, somewhere along the way, you turn into a business owner, and suddenly, the skill you started with is about 10% of what your week looks like. The res…
June 9, 2026
How to find your next client without losing your soul
Lead generation gets a bad name, and most of the time it deserves it. The scripts, the cold sequences, the "Hey Phil, hope you're well" openers. The majority of business owners would rather do almost anything else, but that still leaves us with the …