Article · ~12 min read

How Inflections Let Startups Change The Rules

Mike Maples Jr. · Pattern Breakers (Substack) Free Intermediate

A free, focused essay version of the inflection idea if you do not want the whole book yet. It explains why timing and a genuine shift matter more than raw market size, which speaks directly to the small-but-growing-fast half of your question. Short and concrete.

  • An inflection creates the opening a startup exploits.
  • Without a real shift, a big market is just a crowded one.
  • Rules that held yesterday can break the moment the inflection arrives.

The question it answers

  1. How do I know if a trend is big enough to build a company on, or just a small niche?

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