Christopher Lochhead, Friend to the Different, Category Design, Author & Pirate, Arrr

In this latest The G&T Sessions episode, Christopher Lochhead discusses the importance of category design and being different in business. He shares insights from his book 'Play Bigger' and emphasises the need for companies to create their own market categories rather than competing in existing ones. Lochhead also highlights the role of courage and originality in building legendary startups and brands. He challenges the notion of emulating successful companies like Apple and emphasises the importance of standing out and creating new paths. The conversation also touches on the epidemic of "samey" brands and the challenges of modeling new categories. This part of the conversation explores various examples of category design and the importance of standing out rather than fitting in. It discusses Google's failed attempts at category design with their products, as well as successful examples like Dude Wipes and Chirp. The conversation emphasises the need for bravery and courage in category design, as well as the desire to create a new and different future. It also highlights the importance of being an evangelist for a category and the criticism that often comes with it. In this episode, Christopher Lochhead discusses his experience writing books and mini books, including the Category Pirates series. He also mentions the possibility of creating category pirate swag and hosting an event. Lochhead emphasises the rise of the creative capitalist and the need to shift from being a knowledge worker to becoming a creator capitalist. He explains that the future belongs to those who can create net new value and capitalise on it. Lochhead concludes by encouraging listeners to think critically and embrace creativity and category design.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Studio Setup

01:26 The Man Cave in Santa Cruz

03:04 The Creation and Success of the Book 'Play Bigger'

06:49 The Courage to Be Different

10:10 Emulating Apple and the Importance of Originality

13:08 The Epidemic of Samey Brands

17:33 The Fear of Defining a New Path

19:03 The Mental Scaffolding of Competing to Win

21:45 The Category Makes the Brand

23:28 The Importance of Niching Down

25:57 Creating a New Market Category

30:00 The Challenges of Modeling a New Category

34:18 The Role of Planning and Finance in Playing It Safe

36:03 The Role of VCs in Betting on Radical Futures

37:01 The Example of Google's Gemini in the AI Market

37:33 Google's MeToo Product and Category Design

39:23 Google's Sunset of Google Podcasts

40:10 Google's Failed Attempts at Category Design

42:11 Dude Wipes: Niche Down and Category Design

46:19 Chirp: Combining Categories for Innovation

49:45 Category Design as a Fracture

53:05 Category Design as Problem Framing

56:00 Category Design as Ownership of a Problem

57:26 Category Designers as Evangelists

01:02:19 Different Wins, Better Loses

01:06:06 Bravery and Courage in Category Design

01:09:31 The Desire to Fit In and the Need to Stand Out

01:15:31 The Marriott Lobby Mentality

01:19:26 The Fear of Being Fired vs. Radical Differentiation

01:22:16 Writing Books and Mini Books

01:24:01 Category Pirate Swag

01:25:35 Hosting an Event

01:26:17 The Rise of the Creative Capitalist

01:30:05 The Future of Work

01:31:14 Becoming a Creative Capitalist

01:34:30 Embracing Creativity and Category Design

01:38:29 Concluding Thoughts

01:49:31 Getting in Touch with Christopher Lochhead