Most of the systems we live and work within—education, healthcare, social services, and especially disability supports—were never designed with the individual in mind. They are built for efficiency, predictability, and scale. And while these systems often function well for “the many,” they can leave individuals squeezed, overlooked, or even broken by the very structures meant to support them.
The Egg Carton System
Egg cartons are brilliant inventions. They allow us to carry multiple eggs at once without them knocking together. They are stackable, transportable, and highly efficient. If you buy a dozen eggs at the supermarket, the carton does its job perfectly.
But here’s the catch: the carton is designed for the carton, not the egg. It assumes that eggs will be roughly the same size and shape. If an egg is slightly larger, it feels cramped. If it’s smaller, it rattles around. And if the carton is only holding one egg, it makes no sense at all—over-engineered, wasteful, and ineffective.
Sometimes, the fit is good. Other times, it’s a little tight. And in some cases, the system simply doesn’t protect the egg at all—leaving it vulnerable to cracks, damage, or loss.
That’s exactly how our systems operate. They work beautifully when people fit neatly into their predefined spaces. But when people don’t—when they are bigger, smaller, or simply different—the system struggles to accommodate them.
The Trouble with Fitting In
Think of education. Classrooms are structured to move groups of children through lessons in a standardized way. For some children, this works fine—they learn, they progress, they thrive. But for others, the structure feels like being squeezed into a carton slot that was never meant for them.
Healthcare, disability support, and welfare services all operate in similar ways. They are set up for groups, not individuals. And within them, we are often asked to:
- Adapt ourselves to what’s available, even if it doesn’t fit our real needs.
- Stretch and compromise to make the system work, even when it’s uncomfortable.
- Innovate personally, finding workarounds and creative fixes just to get by.
This constant need to adjust can be exhausting. It sends a message that if we don’t fit, the problem is with us—not with the carton we were placed in.
What If We Bought Eggs Differently?
Now imagine a different world: instead of buying eggs by the dozen, we bought them individually. Each egg could be wrapped in packaging made specifically for its size and shape. Every egg would be held securely and safely, with no need to squeeze or compromise.
In this model, protection and support come from recognizing the uniqueness of each egg, not from forcing them all into identical molds.
Applied to people, this shift would mean systems built not for efficiency first, but for individuality first. Services would be designed around what each person needs to thrive, rather than what works best at scale.
This is the very principle behind service-for-one supports. Instead of fitting into a predesigned carton, families and individuals design their own structure—a custom-made “package” that wraps around them.
The Human Cost of the Carton
When systems prioritize groups over individuals, the cost isn’t just inefficiency—it’s people’s lives.
Take, for example, a young adult with disability who leaves school. Traditional support systems might direct them into “group programs” or “day options” designed to keep people busy in bulk. For some, this works fine. But for many, it feels like being wedged into a carton slot that doesn’t fit—the activities aren’t meaningful, the environment doesn’t suit them, and their goals are sidelined.
Families often describe the frustration of being offered what’s available, not what’s right. The result? People disengage, families burn out, and opportunities are lost.
And just like in the egg carton, sometimes individuals “don’t make it.” Not because they lacked value, but because the system couldn’t flex.
Service-for-One: Packaging Made for the Egg
This is where service-for-one turns the metaphor upside down. Instead of forcing someone into a pre-made carton, supports are designed to wrap around that one person.
- A teenager who loves animals might design supports that include volunteering at a local shelter, supported by a worker chosen by their family.
- A young adult who struggles in noisy environments might create a role for themselves in a small business where they can work at their own pace.
- A family who values inclusion might recruit their own team of support workers, trained to focus on building connections with peers rather than simply “keeping busy.”
Each of these is an example of the “individual packaging” model. The egg isn’t asked to shrink or stretch to fit. The support is molded to the egg.
The Power of Individual Packaging
Service-for-one reflects a mindset shift:
- From efficiency to effectiveness
Instead of asking, “How do we serve the most people in the simplest way?” service-for-one asks, “How do we serve this person in the best way for them?” - From one-size-fits-all to custom-fit
Recognizing that diversity isn’t a problem—it’s a reality. And the response isn’t to push difference aside but to build around it. - From compliance-driven to vision-driven
Traditional systems often prioritize paperwork and tick-boxes. Service-for-one starts with a person’s vision and values, then ensures compliance supports—not controls—that vision. - From surviving to thriving
When the “packaging” fits, people don’t just cope—they flourish. Families have less stress, individuals feel valued, and communities gain the gifts of people being their full selves.
Innovation in Action
We already see families leading this charge. Service-for-one models have allowed families to:
- Build micro-teams of support workers who genuinely understand their child.
- Design community-based supports, like creating roles in local cafés, gyms, or arts groups that align with a person’s strengths.
- Develop sustainable futures, where supports aren’t about “fitting in” but about belonging and thriving.
One parent described it like this: “Instead of being told what’s on the menu, we get to write the recipe.”
That’s the essence of innovation in service-for-one. It’s not about rejecting systems entirely—it’s about reshaping them to serve individuals rather than groups.
Moving Beyond the Carton
The egg carton works well if your only goal is to transport lots of eggs in roughly the same shape. But people are not eggs, and life is not a supermarket shelf.
We need to move beyond structures designed for the many and start imagining supports designed for the one. Service-for-one gives us a glimpse of what this can look like: supports that are flexible, person-shaped, and vision-led.
When we do, something powerful happens: instead of trying to survive in a system that was never meant for us, we thrive in a system that grows with us.
And maybe then, we’ll stop asking people to squeeze, shrink, or stretch to fit into cartons that were never made with them in mind.
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