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Pattern Matching
Your brain is wired to seek shortcuts by trying to match patterns.
Similar psychology:
Last updated: 03/11/2026
How to utilise this in your designs
If a shortcut breaks the pattern people know from elsewhere, you could show a tooltip when they use it the familiar way, e.g., pressing CMD+K on highlighted text.
Example from
Slack
Try putting familiar brand logos inside filter buttons, so people can pattern match by sight rather than reading every label.
Example from
Lego
When several tasks share the same topic, consider cycling different emojis for each one, so the list doesn't look identical and items stay easy to tell apart.
Example from
Lil Planner
One option is to spot familiar workarounds and convert them, e.g., turning a page named "-----" into the real separator line someone was trying to make.
Example from
Figma
It may help to change the CTA label on templates someone has already used, so a familiar-looking item isn't mistaken for something new.
Example from
Notion
Possible impacts
Keeping components consistent lets users pattern match instantly, which could help them complete tasks faster with fewer wrong clicks.
Deliberately breaking a familiar pattern with a new colour, layout or interaction might draw attention to an important change users would otherwise skim past.
Familiar logos, shapes and icons let users recognise options instead of reading them, which may reduce the effort needed to find what they're after.
Written by Peter Ramsey
Published: