Kurt Cobain was on a mission to write the perfect pop song. A song that would positively inspire a revolution among the current generation.
I’m not sure Smells Like Teen Spirit is a pop song, but it damn sure was an inspirational one. The sone defined an entire genre of music and is possibly one of the greatest of all time. As immensely popular as the song is, there is one thing you may not know.
Despite the title, Cobain didn’t know Teen Spirit was a deodorant until months after the release of the song.
This is actually what’s most inspiring to me as an entrepreneur. While Kurt didn’t have everything figured out, he did have two key things: vision and a collaborative team.
Motivated by his desire to inspire the current generation to wake up, Cobain wrote the initial version of the song to present to his band. At first, the band wasn’t a fan. So they tweaked it with a slower cadence to give room for Dave Grohl’s now iconic drum beat. Soon, they had the face melting, head banging anthem we all know and love.
As entrepreneurs & leaders we can learn from this. Too often we focus on the end before we ever begin. Instead of trying to figure out all the details, you really just need a clear vision & a team to help execute it. Then just get started. You can tweak along the way to discover your own face melting riff or drum solo.
Achieving your vision is much more significant than how you got there. But when you get there, stop and take a whiff.
It will be something that smells like success.
