Breakthrough Lessons: Learning to Savor Surprises

More from Pattern Breakers All episodes →

1. 

   E90 · 1 Jul 2024 · 40 min

   Maddie Hall: A Different Path to the Future

2. 

   E89 · 24 Jun 2024 · 12 min

   Breakthrough Lessons: Founder-Future Fit

   What are the traits of a great founder, or a great founding team? People tend to answer with general traits like tenacity, adaptability, or attention to users. But Founder-Future Fit can play an equally vital role and it varies from startup to startup. In this Breakthrough Lesson, Mike Maples Jr. of Floodgate describes the concept of Founder-Future Fit. He explains how it propelled Justin Kan's success with Justintv and Twitch; and how its absence made his later journey with Atrium much tougher.

3. 

   E88 · 10 Jun 2024 · 42 min

   Justin Kan: Pattern Breaker Personified

4. 

   E87 · 3 Jun 2024 · 11 min

   Breakthrough Lessons: The Value of a Superbuilder

5. 

   E86 · 27 May 2024 · 39 min

   Kyle Vogt: A Problem Solver With A Purpose

   Kyle Vogt has always been fascinated with designing robots and machines. From his youngest days, he retrofitted his father's car to drive itself along the highways of his home state of Kansas. Later, he dropped out of MIT and became a wildly successful startup founder, playing a crucial role in the development of Justin.tv and Twitch. With Cruise Automation, he returned to his roots, making robotaxis a reality rather than science fiction. In this episode, Mike Maples, Jr. of Floodgate speaks with Vogt about his career and the lessons learned from a lifetime of solving problems.

6. 

   E84 · 13 May 2024 · 39 min

   Emmett Shear: How Twitch Changed Media by Merging it with Gaming

   Emmett Shear was a gamer long before he helped define one of the most important new media companies at the intersection of gaming, media, and the creator economy. What can we learn from his success as a founder? (hint: it has something to do with truly listening to users.)

7. 

   E83 · 29 Apr 2024 · 10 min

   Breakthrough Lessons: The One Thing That Matters Most…

   In the early days of a startup, finding product-market fit is paramount. Once you have it, failure is almost impossible. Without it, you can do everything else right, and still fail. In this Breakthrough Lesson, Mike Maples, Jr of Floodgate discusses three heuristics for maximizing the odds of success: Find the right North Star, offer a Delta 4 experience, and don’t fool yourself.

8. 

   E82 · 29 Apr 2024 · 47 min

   Michael Seibel: “The Godfounder” Discusses Justin.tv, Twitch, and Y Combinator

   Michael Seibel didn’t set out to become a legendary startup founder. As a young man, his sights were set on politics, dreaming of a future on the Supreme Court. But his friendship with fellow Yale classmate Justin Kan led to a fortuitous cross-country trip to California that changed everything. In this episode, Mike Maples, Jr. of Floodgate talks with Seibel about the creation of Justin.tv and Twitch, and the wisdom he shares with aspiring founders as a partner and managing director at Y Combinator.

9. 

   E81 · 29 Apr 2024 · 7 min

   Welcome to Pattern Breakers

   Mike Maples, Jr. of Floodgate is back with a new season of his podcast, once called Starting Greatness, now renamed Pattern Breakers. The focus remains, but with increased ambitions. In this season intro, Mike explains his reasons for expanding the podcast's scope, what listeners can anticipate going forward, and details about a forthcoming book set to release this summer. Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode, and check out the new Pattern Breakers letter on Substack at www.patternbreakers.substack.com to read essays and receive updates about what we can learn from the rare startups…

10. 

    E80 · 12 Jun 2023 · 9 min

    Breakthrough Lessons: Nail Your Niche

    Founders are naturally drawn to the tantalizing potential of their product reaching a vast market, but the route to victory starts with nailing a niche before going for the broader opportunity. In this lesson of greatness, Mike Maples, Jr of Floodgate calls on the lessons of Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek to examine how this is done: Identify a stronghold where you can dominate, deliver a Delta 4 experience, and do everything possible to create unfair advantages in your favor.