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Agent skill

Preserving Productive Tensions

by sandgardenhq in sandgardenhq/sgai

Recognize when disagreements reveal valuable context, preserve multiple valid approaches instead of forcing premature resolution.

Custom licenceAuto-check passed

Install Preserving Productive Tensions

skills CLI
$ npx skills add sandgardenhq/sgai --skill preserving-productive-tensions -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install sandgardenhq/sgai preserving-productive-tensions --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/sandgardenhq/sgai.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/cmd/sgai/skel/.sgai/skills/architecture/preserving-productive-tensions .claude/skills/preserving-productive-tensions && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
preserving-productive-tensions
GitHub stars
137
Token cost
~1.3k tokens
SKILL.md length
461 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
53
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
Custom licence

At a glance

Recognize when disagreements reveal valuable context, preserve multiple valid approaches instead of forcing premature resolution.

  • Works in 5 steps: Implementation cost is prohibitive → Fundamental conflict → Clear technical superiority → …
  • SKILL.md covers Overview, Recognizing Productive Tensions, Preservation Patterns and Red Flags - You're Forcing…, plus 4 more sections
  • Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

Preserving Productive Tensions is an agent skill from sandgardenhq/sgai. Recognize when disagreements reveal valuable context, preserve multiple valid approaches instead of forcing premature resolution. When multiple approaches have legitimate trade-offs. When stakeholders have conflicting valid priorities. When context determines which approach is better. During design when you're tempted to ask "which is best?" but both are good. When tensions reveal flexibility needs.

Its SKILL.md is about 1.3k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.

The repository describes itself as: Sandgarden AI Software Factory.

Example prompts

  • “re tempted to ask”
  • “/preserving-productive-tensions”

Requirements

  • Python 3

Workflow steps

5 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.

  1. Implementation cost is prohibitive
  2. Fundamental conflict
  3. Clear technical superiority
  4. One-way door
  5. Simplicity requires choice

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 9efbb7b. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md (its code samples are python and markdown).

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md.

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Preserving Productive Tensions loads about 1.3k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 108 tokens; SKILL.md has 461 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~108
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.3k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

Its licence (Custom licence) doesn't allow us to republish the file, so here is its outline and opening line. It has 461 words (~1,310 tokens).

“Some tensions aren't problems to solve - they're valuable information to preserve. When multiple approaches are genuinely valid in different contexts, forcing a choice destroys flexibility.”

— opening of SKILL.md by sandgardenhq, Custom licence
name
preserving-productive-tensions

Read the full SKILL.md on GitHub

Files

Just SKILL.md in cmd/sgai/skel/.sgai/skills/architecture/preserving-productive-tensions of sandgardenhq/sgai.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 9efbb7b

Compare with similar skills

Preserving Productive Tensions next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Preserving Productive Tensions compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Preserving Productive Tensions this skillsandgardenhq/sgai137—~1.3kAutomated safety check: PassCustom licence
Product Lensaffaan-m/ECC277k2 repos~841Automated safety check: PassMIT
Productthedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist74k—~592Automated safety check: PassMIT
Product Analyticsalirezarezvani/claude-skills28k1 repos~1.4kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Product Strategyphuryn/pm-skills27k—~1.2kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Product Design Framinglobehub/lobehub83k—~2.6kAutomated safety check: PassCustom licence

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Questions about Preserving Productive Tensions

What does Preserving Productive Tensions do?

Recognize when disagreements reveal valuable context, preserve multiple valid approaches instead of forcing premature resolution. Preserving Productive Tensions is an agent skill from sandgardenhq/sgai. Recognize when disagreements reveal valuable context, preserve multiple valid approaches instead of forcing premature resolution.

How do I install Preserving Productive Tensions in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add sandgardenhq/sgai --skill preserving-productive-tensions -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (cmd/sgai/skel/.sgai/skills/architecture/preserving-productive-tensions in sandgardenhq/sgai) into .claude/skills/preserving-productive-tensions in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Preserving Productive Tensions in Codex?

Run `npx skills add sandgardenhq/sgai --skill preserving-productive-tensions -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (cmd/sgai/skel/.sgai/skills/architecture/preserving-productive-tensions in sandgardenhq/sgai) into .agents/skills/preserving-productive-tensions in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Preserving Productive Tensions in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add sandgardenhq/sgai --skill preserving-productive-tensions -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/preserving-productive-tensions, .gemini/skills/preserving-productive-tensions, .github/skills/preserving-productive-tensions and .opencode/skills/preserving-productive-tensions in your project.

What does Preserving Productive Tensions need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Preserving Productive Tensions is instructions for the agent only. Our summary lists: Python 3.

Does Preserving Productive Tensions access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Preserving Productive Tensions safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Preserving Productive Tensions use?

Preserving Productive Tensions has a licence file (the repository's licence) that doesn't match a standard licence. Read it on GitHub before reusing the skill.

How many tokens does Preserving Productive Tensions use?

About 1.3k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 5.2k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Preserving Productive Tensions?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Preserving Productive Tensions: Product Lens (affaan-m/ECC, 277k stars), Product (thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist, 74k stars), Product Analytics (alirezarezvani/claude-skills, 28k stars) and Product Strategy (phuryn/pm-skills, 27k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Preserving Productive Tensions?

sandgardenhq (a GitHub organization) maintains it in sandgardenhq/sgai, which has 137 GitHub stars. The repository holds 53 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 21, 2026.

Source: sandgardenhq/sgai on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.