Episode #13
Curiosity, Control & the Courage to Ask Dumb Questions
This episode of The Noble Agents features a wide-ranging conversation with Garrett from The Phia Group about what separates great consultants, brokers, and benefit professionals from everyone else. Garrett shares his unconventional path into the healthcare benefits industry, beginning as a claims analyst working on subrogation and eventually moving into business development. His story becomes a broader discussion about curiosity, initiative, incentives, consultative selling, and the willingness to admit what you don’t know . A central theme is that great selling is not about pushing a product. It starts with understanding the client’s actual problem, defining what a successful outcome looks like, and then determining whether your solution can realistically get them there. Sometimes the most credible thing an advisor can say is, “We’re not the right solution for you.” The conversation also explores why organizations need cultures where people can ask “dumb questions,” challenge assumptions, and contribute ideas from every level. That same mindset applies to brokers working with employers: clients often don’t know what they don’t know, so the advisor’s job is to create an environment where uncomfortable questions can be asked and real problems can be uncovered. Tom and Garrett dig into one of the biggest mistakes in healthcare consulting: starting with a solution—or a conclusion—before proving there is actually a problem. They discuss claims audits, plan documents, stop-loss contracts, vendor arrangements, and the danger of chasing sophisticated cost-containment strategies while ignoring the basic infrastructure of a self-funded health plan. The episode ultimately identifies the trait Garrett sees in the best benefits consultants: high agency combined with curiosity. The strongest advisors aren’t married to a carrier, vendor, program, or ideology. They continually investigate new ideas, understand the technical details, remain skeptical when appropriate, and choose the solution that best serves the client. The conversation closes with a deceptively simple question: What is insurance? Traditional insurance protects against catastrophic risk, yet modern health insurance has evolved into something much broader—often functioning as a mechanism for paying nearly every healthcare expense rather than simply protecting against catastrophe. That distinction raises important questions about what employers are actually buying and what risks they should be managing themselves. The takeaway: Great advisors stay curious, define the problem before prescribing the solution, master the fundamentals, retain control where they carry the risk, and keep iterating until they find a better answer.
