Creativity needs tension. But without safety, tension becomes a threat.

Long before I became a neurosomatic coach, I attended a strategic planning workshop early in my advertising career. I learned something that still shapes how I approach the creative process today:

Tension isn’t the enemy, it’s the birthplace of innovation.

In advertising, teams come together to solve a problem for a client. There’s a clear goal—more awareness, more sales, more impact. And then there’s the uncomfortable, in-between space: how we get there.

This gap between where we are and where we want to be is where tension lives.
It’s also where creativity begins.

Tension Is the Spark of Creativity

Tension exists in every act of creation. It’s the space between reality and vision, the unresolved stretch between what is and what could be. That discomfort isn’t a sign that something’s wrong. It’s a sign that something new is possible.

In systems thinking (looking at the whole system rather than just individual parts or isolated symptoms), forward momentum is born from this structural tension.
But here’s the key: only regulated systems can transform tension into insight.

Welcoming Tension Starts with Safety

We don’t need to eliminate tension, we need to feel safe enough to welcome it.
When the body feels safe, tension becomes something we can explore, not escape. It becomes creative energy, not a perceived threat.

But without safety, tension activates survival responses. Here’s how that can show up in teams:

Fawning / People-Pleasing (Parasympathetic dorsal + social strategy)
What it looks like:

• Quick agreement with dominant voices to avoid conflict

• Taking on more work just to “keep the peace”

• Smiling or nodding even when they disagree

• Avoiding honest feedback or differing opinions

This person may seem agreeable or “easy to work with,” but their nervous system is simply trying to avoid threat.

Shutdown / Disengagement (Dorsal vagal freeze response)
What it looks like:

• Quiet withdrawal from conversations or meetings

• Closed body language, avoiding eye contact

• Flat affect or “checked out” energy (“I don’t know,” “Whatever works”)

• Turning cameras off and staying silent on Zoom

This isn’t laziness or apathy—it’s a collapse response. Engagement feels unsafe or overwhelming.

Frustration / Control (Sympathetic fight response)
What it looks like:

• Talking over others or dominating meetings

• Micromanaging, interrupting, or over-correcting

• Urgency, blaming, or becoming hyper-critical

• Difficulty tolerating ambiguity or slower pacing

This isn’t just being “driven”—it’s the nervous system equating control with safety.

Withdrawal / Avoidance (Sympathetic flight response)
What it looks like:

• Skipping meetings or staying “too busy” to collaborate

• Avoiding emails, feedback, or shared decisions

• Procrastinating or disengaging under pressure

• Appearing distant or emotionally unavailable

This person isn’t uncommitted—they’re instinctively trying to flee perceived threat.

These responses aren’t personal flaws. They’re protective outputs from the nervous system, shaped by past experiences.

Instead of asking, “What’s wrong with this person?”
Try asking with curiosity, “What might be happening in this person’s nervous system that’s creating this output?”

Structure Creates Freedom

Just as water follows the path of least resistance, human behavior follows the structure we create.

If we want innovation, collaboration, and creative flow, we must build regulatory structures into our work culture.

Nervous system practices and brief regulation resets can be woven into meetings, ideation sessions, and hard conversations. These simple tools help restore internal safety so both individual and collective nervous systems can stay engaged with tension instead of collapsing under it.

When people feel safe, they stop protecting themselves and start contributing.
Safety allows tension to become the source of creative possibility it was meant to be.

A Takeaway for Leaders and Creators

If you want your team to generate bold ideas,
If you want to collaborate without shutdown or posturing,
If you want to become a creative force in your own life...

You need both: tension and safety through regulation.

Tension sparks the fire.
Safety keeps it burning.

Want to bring nervous system-informed creativity into your team culture? I offer training and coaching that helps teams regulate, relate, and generate meaningful work—together.

Book a free discovery call to learn more about workshops, 1:1 coaching, and team coaching.