In a previous post, we talked about the importance of paying attention to little details (“Leadership is in Noticing the Little Personal Details“) .The hard rock band Van Halen had a unique requirement in their concert contract with each venue. In the section “Munchies,” they listed the snacks that needed to be available backstage. One item was a large amount of M&Ms, and the contract stipulated that ABSOLUTELY NO BROWN M&Ms were allowed backstage. If a brown M&M was found, the contract allowed the band to cancel the performance at full pay.

There are some contract clauses which we don’t think much about because they seem like boilerplate or irrelevant. The “munchies” section was not one of those.  The band did actually check for brown M&Ms ahead of each performance. When they found them, there were instances when the band caused a furious rampage, threw furniture in outrage, damaged the set, and even canceled the performance—all because of brown M&Ms.

At the time, this was widely seen as excessive and arrogant behavior by this group of highly successful artists. It was ridiculed, frowned upon, and barely tolerated. But there was far more to it, and the band only revealed the reason much later.

What you also need to know is that, at the time, their show was the most technical performance to date. They required the most sophisticated equipment, and it was incredibly difficult for the technicians to set up their shows. Just to give you a sense, they had 850 very heavy light projectors right above the stage—and above the band’s heads.

The M&Ms were a tool for the band to assess how diligent and reliable the venue’s staff was in their preparation. Wrong wiring could be fatal to an electric guitarist (which happened to one of their colleagues at the time), and not paying attention to the distribution of the equipment could lead to structural problems (in one instance, the stage collapsed ahead of one of their performances because the venue didn’t check if their own set-up could take the weight).

So, when they found a brown M&M, it triggered an intensive system check, where the band would have a trusted person (sometimes, they did it themselves) go through the entire wiring and set-up. It also often led to one of their rampages, because—as they said—why not create a good rumor?

Want to hear the full story from their lead guitarist, David Lee Roth? He tells it in this 6-min video with a bit more Van Halen style.

Take the next step

What indicators do you have that tell you if things are being done the right way? When you manage an important project, what checkpoints are there that alert you that everything is the way it should be? Do you completely rely on what your team tells you, or are there brown M&Ms somewhere?

Come up with your own version of brown M&Ms, and use it—minus the rampage.

PS: The Van Halen approach has actually found its way into the Gig economy and online service platform. If you are looking for a provider on platforms like Upwork or similar, you will find this helpful. Here’s how it works: on these service platforms, the potential buyer posts an RFP, and vendors can then submit a bid. Savvy buyers often add a little—and seemingly meaningless—request somewhere in the middle of the RFP. Something like, “Bidder has to write the word ‘pudding’ as the first word of their bid.” This shows you right away who actually read your RFP and who just gives you a boilerplate bid.