I recently went to an AC/DC concert and left convinced: rock n’ roll continues to be one of the greatest business lessons there is.
I learned a lot about business listening to music, and living it too. Before I became a businessman, I had a band (Las Ticas Tienen Fuego), I toured, played at festivals and, even without realizing it at the time, I already had a lot of lessons that I carry with me to this day in life and in entrepreneurship.
The first is simple: anyone who tries to please everyone doesn’t create an identity. The bands that go down in history are not the most “straight” ones, but those that support a sound, a speech, an attitude, even though they divide opinions. In the business world, it’s the same. Brand without positioning becomes generic, and these are always the most replaceable.
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Another thing that music teaches is about improvisation – anyone who has ever been on stage knows: improvising requires foundation, training and listening. In business it is no different. Planning is important, but knowing how to change route is essential: the market changes, the consumer changes a lot, the context changes quickly and the entrepreneur who only knows how to follow a script will not survive for long. How many cool brands were left along the way….
Music also teaches about teamwork – no band lives on eternal soloism. When the ego goes beyond its limit, the sound disappears, the chemistry disappears. How many companies fail due to internal conflicts, excessive vanity or leadership that doesn’t listen?
At Chilli Beans, the spirit has always been rock n’ roll, in the way of testing quickly, launching a lot, making mistakes, correcting and moving on. We found a way to speak to the public without creating a distant image, generating connection: mixing fashion, music, art and behavior without asking permission.
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Rock n’ roll is not empty rebellion, it is attitude with purpose. And I bring this to the company in the strategy, at each event, in every new collection.
And, at the end of the day, a business is like that too: courage to be who you are, even when it doesn’t please everyone. The brands that remain are not the quietest, but those that have their own voice.
