Why cultivating agency matters more than cultivating skills in the AI era | Max Schoening (Head of Product, Notion)

Lenny's Newsletter··4 min read
ProductAI/MLStrategy
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AI Summary

Lenny's Newsletter features a podcast conversation with Max Schoening, Head of Product at Notion, covering how agency—not skills—is the key differentiator in the AI era. Schoening discusses why vibe coding produced more software but not better software, Notion's 'tiny core' theory of great products, and how Notion ships with a 'drive it like it's stolen' mentality. He also argues the SaaSpocalypse is overstated and that the gap between software quantity and quality creates opportunity.

Key Facts

✓Max Schoening (Head of Product, Notion) argues that cultivating agency—not skills—is what separates thriving professionals from those who fall behind in the AI era.
✓Vibe coding has caused an explosion in the quantity of software but not quality, and Schoening says this gap is a major opportunity for builders who can ship both fast and well.
✓Schoening's 'tiny core' theory holds that great products are built around a single defining mechanic—citing iPhone multitouch, the GitHub pull request, Notion blocks, and Dropbox's menu bar icon as examples.

Author Takes

BearishLenny's Newsletter

SaaSpocalypse

The predicted collapse of SaaS due to AI (SaaSpocalypse) is overstated and the threat to existing SaaS businesses is being exaggerated.

SkepticalLenny's Newsletter

Vibe coding and software quality

Vibe coding has caused an explosion in the volume of software being created, but has not improved software quality, and that gap represents a significant opportunity.

BullishLenny's Newsletter

Agency vs. skills in AI era

Agency—the drive to take initiative and ship—matters more than any specific skill set as AI tools commoditize execution.

Contrarian Angle

Agency Over Skills in the AI Era

Max Schoening argues that cultivating agency—the drive to take initiative and get things done—matters more than cultivating specific technical skills as AI commoditizes execution.

Conventional wisdom says to keep learning new AI skills, but Schoening says the mindset of agency is the actual differentiator, not skill acquisition.

The First 10% of Every Project Is Now Free

With AI tools, the initial exploration and scaffolding of any project costs essentially nothing in time or effort, fundamentally changing how product development should be structured.

Reframes AI's value not as automation but as eliminating the startup cost of new projects, enabling more experimentation.

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