A New Wave of Category Designers: Meet the 2024 Category Design Academy Graduates

Bold minds, creating new categories.

Oct 21, 2024

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Dear Friend, Subscriber, and Category Pirate,

One year ago, a group of brave, bold, and brilliant pirates embarked on a journey to master one of the most powerful business skills in the world:

Category design.

Today, we’re celebrating the first cohort of Academy graduates! These pirates have not only spent the last year honing their category design skills — they’ve already started making waves in their industries. And this is just the beginning.

We created the Category Design Academy for those who care deeply about designing a new and different future.

The goal of the Academy is to train and equip 100,000 Category Designers.

Our first cohort set a HIGH standard. They’ve proven that anyone can design and dominate a category with the right mindset, tools, and community (whether you're new to category design or already leading your own). Their achievements show what’s possible when you fully embrace a different way of thinking.

But it’s been a year of learning, both for us and for our Academy members.

When we launched the Academy, we weren’t sure what would happen.

We knew we were onto something big. However, the impact these graduates have made, both on their businesses and within the Academy community, has been incredible. They poured their hearts into their work, took big risks, asked for feedback, and got vulnerable — all in service of creating a radically different future for themselves and their clients.

So, this celebration isn’t just about one cohort of graduates.

This moment is special because it represents the growing power of category design as a movement.

These graduates are now part of a larger community of leaders committed to creating exponentially different futures. We couldn’t be more excited for what lies ahead — not only for them but for anyone inspired by the work of designing categories that change the game. So, if you’ve ever wondered what category design can really do for you, we invite you to get to know our graduates. These pirates have mastered the art of creating and claiming new categories, and their stories are full of insights that can inspire us all.

Without further ado, here are a few of the Category Design Academy graduates:

Meet "IRON" Mike Steadman

Mike’s Category: Branding and Design for Underdogs and Misfits

Mike entered the Category Design Academy while running Ironbound Media, a podcast production and brand strategy firm. Mike was podcasting his heart out when his client work started circling the drain. Most folks would've curled up in the fetal position. Not our man Mike.

This dedicated pirate dug deep into what makes him different.

Mike joined the Academy, pivoted his focus, and launched The Misfits, a branding and design studio for underdogs and misfits.

He recognized his Superconsumers were business owners who didn’t fit the typical entrepreneurial mold (much like himself). They want to build different brands, not boring ones. However, they need help from someone experienced in business and category design to help them avoid the “Better” Trap.

They need “IRON” Mike.

Mike’s Academy Wins

Solidified his unique category Point of View (POV) and identified his Superconsumers (Veterans, Black Women, and anyone else who is used to being one of one in a room)
Successfully launched The Misfits, a new business focused on branding and design for underdogs and misfits
Closed his two biggest contracts ($25,000+) back-to-back just 3 months into the Academy

"I just feel validated. I feel like I've been walking in the woods forever. Now I've got margin. I know how to create value. I know how to be paid a premium. And so I don't feel like that's something I have to worry about anymore."

The MisFits Method: Steadman's Secret Sauce

Mike's not just slapping cool logos on t-shirts.

Mike helps business owners understand what makes them different, like his work transforming a fourth-generation family-owned cigar brand. He turns new ventures into one-of-a-kind categories. And his secret is finding where category design meets street smarts.

You can learn more about Mike and his work here.

Meet Pablo Gonzalez

Pablo’s Category: Digital Word-of-Mouth for AI-powered SaaS startups bridging the Native Digital-Analog divide

Ten years ago, Pablo faced a profound loss — the passing of his brother.

In that moment of deep reflection, he gained a powerful insight into the true value of community. Most would have simply processed their grief. But Pablo? He transformed that realization into a mission: to prove that community creation is the most potent form of business development.

Fast forward a decade, and Pablo's walking the walk.

By leveraging digital word of mouth, he shows the business world that community isn't just a buzzword — it's the backbone of sustainable growth.

Pablo’s Academy Wins

Evolved from pitching "community building" to commanding a pipeline bursting with clients hungry for his “digital word-of-mouth” expertise
Skyrocketed his initial engagement fee from $15K to $25K (a $10K leap!)
Defied economic gravity by closing more deals while simultaneously hiking his prices
Leveled up from cash-only to equity stakes in clients' businesses. Because why stop at the fee when you can own a slice of the future?
Increased the benefits for his Philippines-based team and turned them into category design evangelists.

"I went from a guy who wholeheartedly believed in category design and loved it... to now people who legitimately come to me for the service of category design. That is something that I find fascinating. And as I'm doing it, it's my favorite fu*king work that I'm doing."

The Digital Word of Mouth Formula

Pablo doesn’t just slap "community" labels on LinkedIn — he designed a whole new category of marketing magic.

He realized many new AI-powered SaaS startups are selling new solutions into Native Analog verticals, like property management. These verticals typically find out about new solutions through trade shows. But Native Digital B2B SaaS marketers always pull toward podcast and social media content plays.

In steps, Pablo.

By helping AI SaaS startups develop a POV, execute trade show booth podcast engagements around it, and repurpose content for social media, Pablo created a new category of marketing called:

“Digital Word of Mouth.”

Digital WOM (word of mouth) combines Native Analog touchpoints with Native Digital marketing plays. The Category Design Academy helped Pablo lean into that niche to identify the Superconsumer — new AI solutions in the Native Analog vertical. He then learned how to use the No-Sell Sell to go from chasing clients for the opportunity to “build a community for them” to a full pipeline of clients offering him retainers (plus equity!) to build Digital Word of Mouth.

The result: Digital Word-of-Mouth marketing that speaks fluently to both tech innovators and old-school executives.

“The most powerful business insights often come from our deepest personal experiences. Don't shy away from them. Harness their power to create meaningful change.”

You can learn more about Pablo and his work here.

Meet Holley Miller

Holley’s Category: Revenue Reliability for Life Sciences startups focused on Transformative Patient Outcomes

Holley’s category design journey began far from the operating room.

Initially, she set her sights on law school. But her passion and creativity led her to pivot into marketing. A chance encounter with the world's first surgical robotics company — Computer Motion — ignited her fascination with the intersection of healthcare and innovation. This moment would later become the foundation for her expertise in category design, particularly in the highly regulated and complex life sciences industry.

Holley founded Grey Matter Marketing to help life sciences prosecute the Magic Triangle.

Holley’s Academy Wins

Co-authored the “2024 Life Sciences C-Suite Report”, highlighting the pressing issue of revenue reliability and offering solutions
Continued her work with some of the most innovative medical device companies, helping them 4x revenue and drive market leadership without traditional sales teams
Developed a unique framework for Revenue Reliability, helping life sciences companies improve patient outcomes while achieving market leadership

"It's not about the product — it's about transforming behavior. The companies that win are the ones that can get people to reject the current standard of care and embrace something different."

The Grey Matter Method: Driving Transformation Through Revenue Reliability

Holley’s secret to success is understanding that healthcare innovation isn't just about launching products. It’s about shifting behaviors. Her category design superpower centers on:

Identifying Core Problems: Instead of focusing on product features, she helps companies target the core issues that cause unreliable revenue.
Changing the Standard of Care: By positioning their solutions as a radical improvement over existing care standards, her clients drive both market leadership and patient outcomes.
Educating for Behavioral Change: Holley’s team empowers companies to educate their market, turning them from reactive problem solvers into proactive category creators.

The result: A blueprint for revenue reliability that ensures both financial success and long-term patient impact.

“Don't chase features, chase behavioral change. In life sciences, the fastest way to grow a company is by changing how people think, not by adding more sales reps.”

You can learn more about Holley and her work here.

Meet Adam Frankl

Adam’s Category: Developer-Facing Startups

Adam focuses on helping engineers and technical founders create groundbreaking software tools for their peers.

During his time in the Category Design Academy, he not only launched a training program and community for developer-facing startup founders — he also published The Developer-Facing Startup, a book that has quickly become an essential read for startup founders in the tech space.

Adam’s mission is simple:

To improve the tools available to software developers by guiding brilliant minds to build world-class developer-focused startups.

He firmly believes that while the world is full of smart developers, many of them lack the strategic insights necessary to bring their products to market successfully. Adam’s advising, training program, and book are designed to fill this gap. So, he focuses on helping technical founders take their ideas from concept to market dominance.

"Developers are driven by one fear—the fear that their skills will become obsolete. That's why every developer has a technology discovery loop, and as a startup founder, your job is to become part of that loop."

Adam’s Academy Wins

Developed and coined the term “developer-facing startups,” giving a name to a category that was previously undefined and underrepresented
Built and launched The Developer Facing Startup Founders Academy, where technical founders share insights and learn how to build successful, scalable startups
Published The Developer-Facing Startup, empowering a new generation of founders to understand the unique challenges of marketing and distributing tools for engineers

"I learned to name my niche at the Category Design Academy. I went from just describing startups with these characteristics to naming them developer-facing startups, which made everything clearer — for me and for my audience."

How Adam Approaches Developer-Facing Startups

Adam’s work has redefined how developer-focused startups approach their markets.

He helps founders put the problem (not the product) at the center of their strategy. By creating a framework that helps technical founders connect their innovations to real-world solutions, Adam makes sure they create powerful tools and also reach the developers who need them most. (You can dive into Adam’s approach in this episode of Pirate Christopher’s Follow Your Different podcast.)

"Founders don’t grab problems. Problems grab founders. Especially in the developer world, the problem is what hooks you, not the product."

You can learn more about Adam and his work here.

Meet Carylyne Chan

Carylyne’s Category: Mission Control advising

Carylyne has been building and scaling startups since her teens.

With two successful exits — one in tech and one in Web3 — she’s been involved in early-stage innovation for years. However, she realized founders and their teams often struggle to find the right strategy for dominating their category. They lack integrated operational guidance across product, tech, and go-to-market execution.

Carylyne joined the Category Design Academy to deepen her knowledge of category design, initially to help her startups.

However, the Academy helped her create a new and different future.

Just months in, she co-founded an advisory business and quickly signed on superstar clients. Her ability to frame, name, and claim her clients' category problems has helped her make a tangible difference and guide them toward impactful outcomes. (She credits many of the Academy's frameworks for helping navigate these new client relationships!)

Carylyne now applies her category design skills to help first-in-category Southeast Asian startups dominate their markets.

"The step-by-step exercises and personal stories from the Pirates and other crew members were incredibly valuable. These insights don't just come from the books but from lived experiences."

Carylyne’s Academy Wins

Economic Outcomes: The Academy helped her quickly land new advisory clients and guide them to category dominance. The real-world application of the principles made the Academy a solid investment in her career and business.
Swagger & Confidence: The Academy gave Carylyne the tools to communicate her wins, boosting her confidence in delivering high-impact advice. She now uses her category design skills to lead clients through key business challenges.
Words that Matter: Carylyne sharpened her ability to frame, name, and claim ideas that stick. She learned how to make sure clients understand the strategic value of their category, and she's always looking for ways to get even better at crafting powerful language.

"One of the best parts of the Academy is the power of words—understanding how to frame, name, and claim something effectively is a game-changer in creating clarity and progress for any business."

You can learn more about Carylyne and her work here.

Meet Jill Taylor

Jill’s Category: Executive Design for Conscious Leadership

Jill is on a mission to transform the way executives lead in a world of rapid change.

Her groundbreaking work in Executive Design introduces a new way of thinking — one that moves beyond traditional strategies and embraces deep, transrational awareness. As a co-founder of the HuPerson Project and leadership training, Jill helps leaders cultivate a state of awake, aware design. She invites them to step into a future that demands not only strategic acumen but a profound shift in consciousness.

Jill's work equips leaders to thrive amid uncertainty in a business landscape where 50% of future revenues are expected to come from yet-unimagined products and services.

Jill’s Academy Wins

Narrowed and focused her niche — Executive Design, a future-oriented approach that helps leaders envision 80 years into the future and work backward to design actionable steps in the present
Collaborated with the crew to reimagine her category, including long-term planning and imaginal awareness to spark transformative insights
Developed swagger when educating others on her category and launched Executive Design: Awake, Aware Leadership, a two-day immersive experience that equips leaders to orient their thinking for exponential change

How Jill Leads with Conscious Awareness

Jill’s approach to leadership transcends conventional planning. Her Executive Design framework combines inquiry-based discovery with skill practices that recalibrate leadership from within. She encourages leaders to ask the big questions:

Why are you here?
What does that call you to do?
Who does that call you to become?

By guiding leaders through these deep inquiries, Jill empowers them to embrace complexity, unlock their imagination, and navigate the unknown with clarity and confidence.

“The future belongs to those who dare to think beyond the known. Leadership isn’t just about strategy. It’s about aligning with deeper, conscious awareness and designing from that space.”

You can learn more about Jill and her work here.

Meet Danny Bauer

Danny’s Category: Ruckus Makers Who Do School Different

Education today is stuck in an old system, run by administrators who cling to outdated methods.

But Danny Bauer, the Chief Ruckus Maker at Better Leaders Better Schools, is leading a movement to disrupt that status quo. His mission? To help school leaders break free from the binders of bureaucracy and create innovative, transformative experiences for students.

Ruckus Makers aren’t just leaders — they’re change-makers.

Danny’s work empowers principals and school leaders to embrace new ways of thinking and radically improve education.

Danny’s Academy Wins

By refining his category POV and No-Sell Sell pitch, Danny connected more deeply with superintendents and school leaders to build lasting business relationships
Hosted a live event in Nashville, which attracted existing clients and new Superconsumers eager to become Ruckus Makers.
Expanded his work from one-on-one coaching with principals to advising school districts, aiming for system-level change in education
Began advising education tech companies on category design, positioning himself as a thought leader in the education space

The Ruckus Maker Method: Doing School Different

Danny’s Category Superpower lies in transforming how school leaders think and operate, from old and broken systems to innovative, student-centered learning environments. His approach focuses on:

Embrace Different as Growth: Danny encourages school leaders to shake things up. He believes real growth comes when educators and students step outside their comfort zones. His Ruckus Maker 8-Step Goal-Setting Tool helps school leaders identify areas for improvement and foster a culture that welcomes change as a catalyst for progress.
Cultivate a Culture of Innovation: Danny challenges school leaders to inspire their teams to think outside the box. By asking provocative questions like, “What’s the worst way we can achieve this goal?” he encourages creativity without the pressure of perfection. Often, bad ideas spark legendary solutions, leading to real transformation in how schools operate.
Prioritize Student-Centered Decision Making: Every decision should enhance the student experience. Danny insists on keeping students at the heart of every change, urging leaders to go beyond theory by engaging directly with students to understand their needs and insights.
Foster Resilience and Adaptability: Danny teaches school leaders and their teams how to build resilience, including practical techniques like breathwork to help manage stress and stay flexible in the face of challenges.
Innovative Practices for Engaging Students: Danny believes that true engagement comes from embracing new, creative ways of teaching. He champions approaches like Project-Based Learning, gamification, student-led learning, and flexible classroom environments to capture students' curiosity and boost their success.

"If education ain’t a little bit disruptive, are your students really learning anything?"

You can learn more about Danny and his work here.

As our first cohort of Category Design Academy graduates moves on to owning their categories, we want to thank these daring Pirates and everyone who embarked on this journey with us.

Your courage, creativity, and commitment to designing new and different futures have inspired us all, and we couldn’t be more grateful.

But this is just the beginning. We’ll continue sharing more stories and insights from Academy graduates and members, so you can see how category design unfolds in real time. These profiles will showcase the incredible work being done by pirates just like you — those who are transforming industries and designing different futures.

Speaking of which, the second Category Design Academy cohort kicks off next week, on October 28th.

We couldn’t be more excited! We can’t wait to get to know these new members, follow their category design journeys, and share their work, stories, and insights with you all.

To everyone who’s been with us so far, thank you for believing in the power of category design.

There are so many new and different futures yet to come.

Arrrrrrr,

Category Pirates

Eddie Yoon

Christopher Lochhead

Katrina Kirsch

P.S. - Curious about the Category Design Academy?

Applications for our Fall 2024 cohort are closed, but you can join the waitlist for the 2025 cohort. Learn more and apply here! If you 1000% believe NOW is the right time for you to join the Academy, reply to this email.