I thought the path was obvious.

I thought the path was obvious. Give developers Claude Code Max subscriptions, show them how I work, remove every obstacle. Then watch the transformation happen.

I was wrong.

I saw the same pattern over and over: many were using AI like a better autocomplete. Staying in the driver's seat. Writing code, letting AI fill in the gaps.

When it needs to be the opposite: tell the agent what to build, evaluate what comes back, iterate. Be curious, observe.

For me that switch was instant. I didn't need convincing. I spent my vacation last summer and weekends (still) building crazy stuff. Try, fail, new approach, despair, celebrate. Marvel like a child.

My colleagues didn't feel the same. And it took me a long time to understand why.

I can't transfer experience by demonstrating it. Watching someone ride a bike doesn't teach balance.

We're trying something different now in our team. Instead of me showing how I work, everyone gets dedicated time to build their own greenfield project from scratch, entirely with AI agents. No connection to our production codebase, no pressure, no grading. Just space to find their own way in.

I don't know yet if this will work. But I know the old approach definitively didn't.