“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man”
George Bernard Shaw
Mike Maples Jr., the famed seed investor and founder of Floodgate Ventures, presents a compelling vision of entrepreneurship in his book “Pattern Breakers.” He starts with the importance of being unreasonable and going against the grain with his example of the Wright brothers, who disregarded the ‘experts’, lacked any formal physics or aeronautics training, but owned a bicycle shop and had a strong urge for invention and experimentation, despite the risk.
In the book, Mike shares a wide range of examples and practical insights, from companies that failed and those that succeeded. As the seed backer of X/Twitter, Space X, Lyft, Nest, TaskRabbit, Chegg and others, he’s been repeatedly able to spot the pattern breakers, even whet their ideas seemed impossible or impractical.
As a seed investor myself, I picked up the book if there’s anything I can learn from Mike. As I covered in my previous post on Non-consensus investing, the best returns are often captured in the opportunities that seemed unreasonable at first. This short post doesn’t replace the need to read the book, but I thought I’d share the key lessons that every founder and investor should consider.
Key Lessons from Pattern Breakers for Startup Founders
- Embrace Non-Consensus Thinking
The most transformative ideas often sound crazy at first. Airbnb’s concept of strangers sleeping in other people’s homes seemed absurd until it revolutionised travel. Similarly, when Lemonade Insurance introduced behavioural economics and AI to transform insurance, they weren’t just improving the existing system – they were fundamentally reimagining it. - Master Strategic Timing
Timing isn’t just about being early or late – it’s about recognising when enabling conditions align. Uber’s success wasn’t just about the idea of ride-sharing; it was about launching when smartphone adoption hit critical mass. Minute Media similarly capitalised on the perfect convergence of social media maturity and the democratisation of content creation. - Ask Catalytic Questions
Pattern breakers don’t start with solutions; they start with transformative questions. SpaceX didn’t begin by improving rockets; they asked, “Why can’t rockets be reusable?” Healthy.io transformed medical testing by asking, “What if every smartphone could be a medical device?” These questions don’t just solve problems – they reframe entire industries. - Begin with Unscalable Efforts
Counterintuitively, many breakthrough companies start with decidedly unscalable approaches. Dropbox’s founders personally pitched on college campuses. Wix initially helped users build websites one at a time. These “inefficient” starts provided invaluable insights that shaped their eventual scalable solutions.
The Pattern Breaker’s Mindset
Maples argues that successful pattern breakers share several distinctive characteristics, each contributing to their ability to create transformative change:
1. Combining Audacity with Rigorous Execution
Pattern breakers don’t just dream big – they execute with precision. They balance moonshot thinking with methodical implementation:
- Vision: They envision seemingly impossible outcomes
- Methodology: They break down grand visions into actionable steps
- Discipline: They maintain high standards in day-to-day execution
- Iteration: They rapidly test and refine their approaches Example: Elon Musk’s approach at SpaceX combined the audacious goal of making humanity multi-planetary with rigorous engineering processes and iterative testing.
2. Thinking Globally from Day One
True pattern breakers don’t limit themselves to local or incremental improvements:
- Market Scope: They design for global markets from the beginning
- Universal Problems: They target fundamental human needs and desires
- Scalable Solutions: They build infrastructure that can serve millions
- Cultural Adaptability: They create solutions that transcend cultural boundaries Example: Stripe didn’t just aim to improve payments for Silicon Valley startups; they envisioned and built a global financial infrastructure that works across continents.
3. Blending Insights Across Disciplines
Innovation often happens at the intersection of different fields:
- Cross-pollination: They import successful patterns from one industry to another
- Diverse Expertise: They build teams with varied backgrounds
- Synthesis: They combine seemingly unrelated concepts
- Novel Applications: They apply existing technologies in unexpected ways Example: Netflix combined data science with entertainment, using algorithmic recommendations to transform how we consume content.
4. Being Contrarian with Conviction
Pattern breakers don’t just oppose conventional wisdom – they develop well-reasoned alternative viewpoints:
- Independent Thinking: They form their own conclusions rather than following the crowd
- Data-Backed Decisions: They support contrarian views with thorough research
- Long-term Vision: They maintain conviction despite short-term skepticism
- Calculated Risks: They take bold steps based on deep understanding Example: Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia of Airbnb persisted with their “crazy” idea of strangers staying in homes, backed by their conviction in the sharing economy’s potential.
5. Reimagining Systems, Not Just Solving Problems
Pattern breakers think in terms of systems and platforms rather than point solutions:
- Root Cause Analysis: They dig deeper to understand underlying systems
- Platform Thinking: They build foundations that enable broader change
- Network Effects: They design for compounding benefits
- Ecosystem Creation: They develop environments where others can innovate Example: Amazon didn’t just create an online bookstore; they built a global infrastructure for digital commerce that transformed retail, cloud computing, and beyond.
Implications for Founders and Investors
For Founders:
- Don’t just look for market opportunities; create new markets
- Start with transformative questions rather than immediate solutions
- Be willing to do things that don’t scale to gain deep customer insights
- Think beyond your immediate industry for inspiration
For Investors:
- Look for founders who aren’t just following playbooks
- Value teams that can articulate why now is the perfect time
- Recognise that the most promising opportunities might initially sound crazy
- Consider how cross-disciplinary approaches might create new categories
What I took away from the book
I enjoyed reading “Pattern Breakers”. As an investor, it was a good reminder that 90% of seed investments will fail, but to reach outsized returns, it’s imperative to take risk. As a founder, it’s like a word of encouragement to keep going and disregard the critics. In a world where everyone’s following playbooks, the real opportunities lie in writing new ones. Whether you’re a founder or investor, the message is clear: true innovation comes not from following patterns, but from having the courage and vision to break them.
I'm a former general partner at google ventures, head of Google for Entrepreneurs in Europe and founding head of Campus London, Google's first physical hub for startups.
I'm also the founder of Techbikers, a non-profit bringing together the startup ecosystem on cycling challenges in support of Room to Read. Since inception in 2012 we've built 11 schools and 50 libraries in the developing world.
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