Introduction

In an NDIS business, problems show up daily — client dissatisfaction, team tension, referral breakdowns, operational mess, leadership fatigue.
Most providers don’t struggle because they’re careless. They struggle because they solve problems based on assumptions instead of clarity.

Over the last five years working with providers, we’ve found three questions that consistently cut through confusion — with clients, families, teams, and even yourself.

The 3 Questions

1. What’s not working?

This question identifies pain in the person’s language.
That matters because providers often assume the issue based on their own experience, policy, or past patterns.

Examples:

• a participant who has moved between providers

• a family feeling unheard

• a team member becoming frustrated or disengaged

• a process that keeps breaking down

The key here is active listening.
Ask. Pause. Listen without interrupting.
Then reflect back what you heard to confirm accuracy.

This alone can reveal the root cause faster than weeks of back-and-forth.

2. What should it be like?

Once pain is clear, this question defines the success target.
It moves the conversation from “what’s wrong” to “what good looks like.”

This helps you:

• measure whether progress is real

• prevent solving the wrong thing

• stop copying generic solutions

• tailor the plan to the client or team member’s actual goal

When success is named in their words, you gain a practical standard to work toward.

3. How would that make you feel?

This question goes deeper than tasks and outcomes.
It reveals the emotional success measure:
relief, safety, trust, confidence, feeling valued, feeling heard.

Why it matters:

• it clarifies why the problem is painful

• it tells you whether the outcome is deliverable

• it helps you identify good-fit vs not-fit clients

• it reduces future conflict and misalignment

If you can’t deliver the outcome they describe, that clarity protects both sides.

Why these questions change everything

Business is problem-solving — but it’s also understanding what the real problem is.
When providers decide the problem before asking these questions, they risk:

• fixing symptoms instead of causes

• creating solutions nobody wanted

• missing their ideal client’s actual needs

• burning energy on avoidable friction

These three questions form the heart of effective triage and sustainable leadership.

Try this in your business today

Take five minutes and apply them:

1. What’s not working right now?

2. What should it be like instead?

3. How would that make you feel?

You’ll notice the difference in clarity almost immediately.

If you want to walk these questions through for your business, you can connect with me on LinkedIn or email [email protected].
There’s real power in getting the right questions on the table early.