Path dependency describes the process through which action patterns become locked in over time under the driving force of self-reinforcing mechanisms. Whilst past research has explored the process through which paths are created and sustained, it is unclear how paths dissolve and break free the shackles of lock-in. This paper theorizes the process of path dissolution through the lens of both a dissipative and inertial systems viewpoint. Drawing on these different lenses, a number of propositions are developed in relation to the dissolution of paths. It is argued that in dissipative systems, patterns are created and sustained through the injection of energy through self-reinforcing mechanisms. When that energy source is removed or altered, then patterns change, and with this, the interconnectedness of actors. In inertial systems on the other hand, patterns persist as a result of the accumulation of self-reinforcing mechanisms over time, and as such, cannot be undone without the application of decreasing returns over a sustained period of time. This cumulative balance of ‘forces’ can however be facilitated by changing the interconnectedness of actors. History matters in path dependence. But how history matters changes depending on the lens one uses to conceptualize the phenomenon.