Understanding Creative Tension

What causes people to make decisions rather than put them off? What motivates people to take action rather than settle for what they currently have? The answers to these questions can be found in the principle of creative tension.

Creative tension is a term popularized by leading thinkers in the subject of change management to explain what motivates people to change.Creative tension describes the feeling people have when they recognize the difference (the gap) between where they are (their current scenario) and where they want to be (their preferred scenario). The ‘gap’ is the distance between what we have and what we want. This gap creates a natural and healthy tension that seeks to resolve itself. This tension is the reason choices are made and actions are taken. It’s the source of energy for change.

Creative tension is a natural force. Have you ever seen how lightning works? As the poles become charged ionized particles between the poles begin to ‘line up.’ When the forces at the poles are strong enough – zap – a powerful spark bridges the gap.

Now, let’s see how this applies to decision-making and selling.

Decision-Making & Creative Tension. When people see something they want, there is a natural tendency to move toward it. This power (creative tension) pulls us toward our vision. It’s a very powerful motivator.

What is motivation? Motivation is a ‘need.’ It is an internal drive that requires action. Motivation is like the volume on the radio. It describes the level of intensity dedicated to resolving an issue. The stronger the tension, the greater the motivation, and the more likely that change will result.

Once you know what you want in relation to what you have, you begin to organize your thoughts and actions, consciously and unconsciously, to cause the desired change to happen. Creative tension is an innate pull that seeks resolution; and the most natural resolution of this tension is for our reality to move closer to what we want.

Selling & Creative Tension. Sales efforts that don’t recognize and address the natural forces at work typically collapse into ‘pushing’ the prospect towards the salesperson’s vision of what the client wants. Sales efforts that utilize creative tension ‘pull’ prospects and clients towards the vision that they themselves have created.

How do you use the concept of creative tension in a sales situation?

• Provide a clear picture of where they stand today
• Develop a shared vision of what they want

If you do a good job on these two points, the natural impact of creative tension will introduce a ‘productive discomfort’ that will cause the client to seek resolution. As a result, they will buy rather than having to be sold.

An excerpt from ScenarioSelling: Technology and the Future of Professional Selling, by Patrick J. Sullivan and Dr. David L. Lazenby.