Working On It

What if growing your business didn’t mean sacrificing your time, your health, or your freedom? Working On It is the podcast for service-based founders who want to scale without burning out. Each episode brings you honest conversations with experts, operators, and mentors - the same kind of people who’ve helped shape successful businesses from the inside out. We dive into the systems, strategies, and habits that drive performance - and show you how to build a company that works without you always having to be there. It’s about clarity, leadership, and reclaiming control - of your time, your team, and your next chapter. If you're focused on building a business that runs without you - and a life that works because of you - then you're in the right place

Working On It is a business podcast hosted by Brad Staines, with 54 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Brad Staines hosts Working On It, a business show with 54 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Episode #49

  Ditching the 9-to-5: Scaling Startups, Personal Branding, and Playing the Long Game with Aaron Knightley

  Aug 25, 20261h 11m

  In this candid conversation, serial entrepreneur Aaron Knightley shares how becoming a father at 20 and navigating workplace toxicity propelled him to break out of employment and build multi-venture success in logistics, tech, and online education.  Aaron breaks down the mechanics behind his logistics startup HODL and operational platform Exit 9, while revealing why massive content volume and disciplined self-investment are non-negotiable for modern business growth. Emphasising life balance over endless hustle, he offers a no-nonsense look at why knowing your financial "North Star," keeping family first, and moving before the AI shift reshapes the workforce is the ultimate blueprint for long-term freedom. Key Takeaways True freedom comes from defining your precise financial "North Star" and knowing when enough is enough rather than endlessly chasing higher figures. Building a sustainable online brand and securing your business requires relentless consistency, high content volume, and clear positioning. The rapid rise of AI and changing digital landscapes make up-skilling and creating proprietary assets urgent necessities for anyone still relying on a traditional job. Entrepreneurial success is meaningless without prioritising personal health, mental well-being, and irreplaceable time with family. Episode Quotes "What they don't know, they can't destroy." "If you don't know your North Star, and you don't work back from that, how do you know what vehicle you're going to use?" "You're either a creator and you have your head screwed on, otherwise there's this side of it where it's really dangerous: consumption, you validate against other people, you compare yourself." "At some point, these people will go silent because they realise content isn’t optional—it becomes mandatory." VALUABLE RESOURCES Aaron Knightley - https://www.aaronknightley.co.uk/ HOST BIO Brad Staines is a founder in the thick of it - but by design, not by default. As the face of Aquamark Cleaning, he’s built a multi-million-pound operation with 30+ team members, strong systems, and a culture that gives people space to grow. He’s still involved in the business a couple of days a week - but only doing the parts he genuinely enjoys: building relationships, growing the brand, spending time with the team, and spotting new opportunities. The day-to-day grind? That’s been handed over to a structure that runs without constant firefighting. Brad’s also found his rhythm outside of business - with a deep commitment to physical and mental training. Whether it’s strength work, early morning runs, or cold plunges, he’s a believer that how you show up for yourself shapes how you show up as a leader. Working On It is where he brings it all together - growth, grit, and getting better every week.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #47

  Stop Using AI Like Google: Operations, Automation, and Scaling with Matt Harmsworth

  Aug 18, 20261h 5m

  In this episode, Brad sits down with Matt Harmsworth, founder of the ROVAR Group. Matt shares his journey from working as a tree surgeon in Surrey and making grueling motorbike commutes to flying drones over Hollywood film sets like James Bond and Transformers, before ultimately building a multi-million-pound environmental consultancy.  KEY TAKEAWAYS Build an "AI Engine" Underneath the Business: Rather than using public AI models for surface-level tasks like basic web searches or content generation, business owners should break down internal operational bottlenecks and build custom, step-by-step AI workflows. Speed of Implementation Drives Success: The key differentiator between thriving entrepreneurs and stagnant ones is the speed at which they take action on new insights, advice, and operational adjustments. Prepare for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): As consumers increasingly rely on AI agents and voice assistants to search for services, businesses need to ensure their digital footprint is structured for AI crawlers rather than just traditional web browsers. Strategic Hires Unlock New Milestones: Investing in high-leverage expertise such as a fractional CFO or an executive assistant provides the financial clarity and operational freedom required to scale without over-leveraging the business. Fail Fast and Build Proprietary IP: Experimenting with internal automations inevitably leads to tools that don't get used. The goal is to fail fast, abandon what doesn't work, and retain the custom systems (IP) that give your company a distinct competitive edge. BEST MOMENTS "The smart thing here is not interacting with this as if it's a Google search engine... it's getting it to do stuff." "My bedrock thing in AI consultancy is that you should build an AI engine underneath the business. Find where the bottlenecks are, and then sprinkle the AI fairy dust over the top." "Comparison is the thief of joy, and the last thing you should be doing is looking at people that are further on than you and comparing yourself to them." "Build a business to sell, even if you've got no intention of selling it." "The most successful people I see are implementing straight after those masterminds... You're leveraging their experience, so you've got to take action on it." HOST BIO Brad Staines is a founder in the thick of it - but by design, not by default. As the face of Aquamark Cleaning, he’s built a multi-million-pound operation with 30+ team members, strong systems, and a culture that gives people space to grow. He’s still involved in the business a couple of days a week - but only doing the parts he genuinely enjoys: building relationships, growing the brand, spending time with the team, and spotting new opportunities. The day-to-day grind? That’s been handed over to a structure that runs without constant firefighting. Brad’s also found his rhythm outside of business - with a deep commitment to physical and mental training. Whether it’s strength work, early morning runs, or cold plunges, he’s a believer that how you show up for yourself shapes how you show up as a leader. Working On It is where he brings it all together - growth, grit, and getting better every week.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #46

  Hitting the £1M Mark: Overcoming Burnout and Scaling a Service Business

  Aug 11, 20261h 15m

  In this episode, Brad sits down with Ben King, founder of King's Window Cleaning and Verpa, to unpack his incredible entrepreneurial journey. From starting with a single squeegee and a free set of Vista business cards to scaling a business on track for a £1 million turnover with 10 vans, Ben shares the raw, unfiltered truth of what it takes to build a successful service business.  KEY TAKEAWAYS Systems and Processes are Vital for Scaling: Inspired by The E-Myth and the McDonald's founding story, Ben realized that to grow beyond a few vans, he needed strict "copy and paste" processes.  Embrace Pain as a Catalyst for Growth: Ben’s lowest point—a disorganized business partnership that pushed his mental health to the brink—forced him to rethink everything.  Don't Let the VAT Threshold Stunt Your Growth: Many small business owners intentionally stop growing just to avoid registering for VAT. Ben’s advice is to push through the threshold by knowing your numbers, raising your standards, and confidently adjusting your pricing to compensate. Delegate with Clarity, Not by Abdication: Hiring an office manager or a PA too soon is a mistake if you haven't built the backend processes first.  Speed of Implementation is a Superpower: Action is everything. Whether it's returning emails, fixing a broken system, or setting up a new business idea, successful entrepreneurs make fast decisions and act immediately rather than sitting on ideas for months. BEST MOMENTS "I think there's a difference between a business owner and an entrepreneur. An entrepreneur will constantly look for opportunity, where a business owner will just want to scale that one business." "I watched the McDonald's film, The Founder, and when they sketch out the kitchen... I was like, okay, so now I need to do copy and paste. I need to make that van identical to the next one." "I think a lot of businesses hire a PA or an office manager far too soon, because they don't build processes and systems on the back end... They just go, 'Hey, here's my business, go look after it.'" "Pain evolves you as a business owner. You have to go through pain. Going through that, you become more resilient in business." "Every time we talk about it... we still laugh. It's like, oh, that business killed us. Like literally killed us. But I needed that to get to where I'm going. I think every business owner needs that." VALUABLE RESOURCES LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/willpolston/⁠ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/willpolston/ HOST BIO Brad Staines is a founder in the thick of it - but by design, not by default. As the face of Aquamark Cleaning, he’s built a multi-million-pound operation with 30+ team members, strong systems, and a culture that gives people space to grow. He’s still involved in the business a couple of days a week - but only doing the parts he genuinely enjoys: building relationships, growing the brand, spending time with the team, and spotting new opportunities. The day-to-day grind? That’s been handed over to a structure that runs without constant firefighting. Brad’s also found his rhythm outside of business - with a deep commitment to physical and mental training. Whether it’s strength work, early morning runs, or cold plunges, he’s a believer that how you show up for yourself shapes how you show up as a leader. Working On It is where he brings it all together - growth, grit, and getting better every week.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #45

  The Price of "More": Why Winning Doesn't Always Satisfy

  Aug 4, 20261h 13m

  In this thought-provoking episode, Brad explores the delicate balance between ambition and contentment following a profound conversation with entrepreneur Gary Ashworth. Reflecting on the common cycle of sacrificing health and relationships for financial success, the host digs into why winning often fails to satisfy us and instead merely raises the stakes.  KEY TAKEAWAYS The Shifting Goalpost Trap: Success often raises the stakes rather than bringing satisfaction, as hedonic adaptation transforms yesterday's extraordinary achievements into today's baseline expectations. Health vs. Wealth: Sacrificing health and personal relationships to build wealth often results in spending that very wealth later in life just to regain what was lost. The Evolution of Money: While money is vital for security, choice, and buying back time, its ultimate value lies in granting peace of mind rather than enabling endless comparison. Redefining Failure: Trying and losing isn't real failure—it's experimentation. True failure is letting the fear of loss stop you from taking action or blindly chasing targets without purpose. "Enough" Fuels Conscious Ambition: Defining "enough" doesn't mean killing your ambition; it provides your drive with direction, turning mindless accumulation into deliberate choice. BEST MOMENTS "What if the greatest risk of becoming successful isn't losing everything? What if it's actually losing the ability to recognize when you already have enough?" "He described spending half of his life sacrificing his health to build wealth, only to reach a point where he was prepared to sacrifice some of that wealth to recover his health." "There'll always be someone with a bigger boat, and there'll always be someone with a bigger cock... If our sense of success depends on comparison, there will literally never be a finish line." "Yesterday's luxury becomes today's necessity. Yesterday's success becomes today's minimum requirement. And yesterday's dreams become something we barely even notice anymore." "Enough isn't the enemy of ambition; enough is what gives ambition direction of where to go. It allows us to pursue more consciously instead of more compulsively." VALUABLE RESOURCES LinkedIn - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/penny-ford HOST BIO Brad Staines is a founder in the thick of it - but by design, not by default. As the face of Aquamark Cleaning, he’s built a multi-million-pound operation with 30+ team members, strong systems, and a culture that gives people space to grow. He’s still involved in the business a couple of days a week - but only doing the parts he genuinely enjoys: building relationships, growing the brand, spending time with the team, and spotting new opportunities. The day-to-day grind? That’s been handed over to a structure that runs without constant firefighting. Brad’s also found his rhythm outside of business - with a deep commitment to physical and mental training. Whether it’s strength work, early morning runs, or cold plunges, he’s a believer that how you show up for yourself shapes how you show up as a leader. Working On It is where he brings it all together - growth, grit, and getting better every week.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #44

  The Power of Consistency & Personal Branding in Niche Markets

  Jul 28, 202659 min

  In this episode, Brad sits down with Harry Harvey, the entrepreneur behind Garage Style and Proven Content Club. Harry shares his remarkable journey from selling crafting knives on eBay during a Mercedes apprenticeship to building a premier garage makeover empire servicing over 200 high-profile clients, including Jake Paul, Matt Armstrong, and Justin Bieber.  KEY TAKEAWAYS Consistency Trumps Perfection: Posting daily, even raw, 10-second clips taken straight from a phone, consistently outperforms sporadic, highly polished production over time. Adaptability in Content Marketing: Social media algorithms evolve rapidly; successful brands must constantly test new formats, shifting from transition reels to photo carousels and keyword-optimized descriptions. Mitigate Risk by Diversifying: Avoid relying on a single supplier, employee, or major client. Spreading risk insulates your business against catastrophic unexpected disruptions. Protect the Customer Experience: Going the extra mile even when fixing an issue costs more than the profit on a job builds long-term reputation and invaluable organic word-of-mouth recommendations. Start Building Your Brand Early: Establishing a strong digital presence before you strictly "need" it ensures you aren't starting from scratch when market disruption occurs. BEST MOMENTS "I was always on the lookout for how can I get out of here and do my own thing." "I think consistency is the number one thing when it comes to growing on socials." "Smooth seas don't make skilled sailors... when you're in those moments, I kind of say it to myself: we'll get through it and then we'll be stronger afterwards." "There's no better time to start than now, because one day you will need to use social media, and you're then starting from zero." "We've always been ones for putting stuff right... even if it costs us more than we made on the job, just to not let the customer down." VALUABLE RESOURCES LinkedIn - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/penny-ford HOST BIO Brad Staines is a founder in the thick of it - but by design, not by default. As the face of Aquamark Cleaning, he’s built a multi-million-pound operation with 30+ team members, strong systems, and a culture that gives people space to grow. He’s still involved in the business a couple of days a week - but only doing the parts he genuinely enjoys: building relationships, growing the brand, spending time with the team, and spotting new opportunities. The day-to-day grind? That’s been handed over to a structure that runs without constant firefighting. Brad’s also found his rhythm outside of business - with a deep commitment to physical and mental training. Whether it’s strength work, early morning runs, or cold plunges, he’s a believer that how you show up for yourself shapes how you show up as a leader. Working On It is where he brings it all together - growth, grit, and getting better every week.

  ListenShow Notes

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