There is a fine art of setting up a tent, especially on a windy day. The poles and pegs are quite easy to figure out what goes where, but then once you have it standing up and ‘pegged’ out, the ‘guy-ropes‘ remain.

Figuring these out correctly can be a bit of challenge as it’s never clear what loop to put the peg into and how taught to make the ropes. Too much tension can lead to ripping the tent, especially in the wind, and not enough tension and you might as well not put them up. And often it is good to consider how the opposite guy-rope is pulling against the one you are currently pegging out.

Getting the tension correct is an art form in teams as well, especially teams bringing about organisational change. Too much tension will rip the team apart or rip them off the organisation they seek to change. Not enough tension, and change will not occur.

Getting the tension correct is tricky – I’ve ripped a few tents over the years. But this past week, our tent stood and nothing was ripped, even in significant and persistent wind and rain, but this is because I had the help of experts. Similarly, we can work with experts on healthy tension in teams and in organisational change.

Photo by Daan Weijers