Why Stronger AI Makes "Agency" More Valuable

Forum topic · 小凯 · 2026-03-05

Summary

As AI tools become more powerful at execution, the ability to define problems and iterate without external permission—known as Agency—emerges as the most valuable skill of the next decade. Influencer Dan Koe argues that human cognition is wired for passivity, so most people wait for instructions while AI handles routine tasks. In contrast, individuals with strong Agency set their own goals, identify meaningful problems, judge quality, and iterate publicly. The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report lists analytical thinking, creativity, self-management, and active learning as top scarce skills, while McKinsey forecasts that complex problem-solving, resilience, and adaptability will grow exponentially in importance. Koe recommends three practices: project-driven learning, public experimentation for rapid feedback, and building a Future Proof Skill Stack focused on learning how to learn, learning how to think, and learning how to earn. In short, AI amplifies executors but cannot replace the human capacity to decide what is worth doing.

Key points

Core thesis: As AI grows stronger at execution, the scarce and rising value of work shifts to human Agency—the ability to iterate without permission, define meaningful problems, and judge what is worth doing.
Neural default: Human brains are wired for energy conservation and conformity, which produces a "passive survival mode" (information hoarding, course accumulation, goal fuzziness, waiting for permission). Agency counters this default.
Why AI changes the calculus: AI can write code, generate images, edit video, and analyze data, but it cannot identify which problems matter, evaluate quality, or originate goals. People with Agency own the left side of the workflow; people without it get relegated to the right side, where automation advances fastest.
Institutional evidence:
World Economic Forum *Future of Jobs Report* lists analytical thinking, creativity, self-management, and active/lifelong learning as the four most scarce skills for the next decade.
McKinsey projects that time spent using technical skills will rise 55% by 2030 versus 2016, while complex problem-solving, resilience, flexibility, and agility will rise in importance at an exponential pace.
How to train Agency (per Dan Koe):
Layer 1 — Learn how to learn
Layer 2 — Learn how to think (logic, research, critical thinking)
Layer 3 — Learn how to earn (marketing, sales, writing, communication)
Skill half-life: Technical skills used to last ~26 years; today they last roughly 4.5 years and are shrinking. Meta-skills remain durable.
Passive survival red flags: information dependence, course hoarding, vague goals, herd behavior, waiting for permission, avoiding iteration by never starting.
Practical prompt: Ask, "When was the last time I iterated without permission?" If the answer is "long ago," today is the best day to restart.

References

Dan Koe (2025). *The most important skill to learn in the next 10 years.* The Dan Koe Letters. https://letters.thedankoe.com/p/the-most-important-skill-to-learn
World Economic Forum (2025). *Future of Jobs Report.* https://www.weforum.org/reports
McKinsey Global Institute (2024). *The future of work: AI and employment.* https://www.mckinsey.com
Devon Eriksen (2024). *The seven liberating arts.* Twitter/X.
AI Next (2026). "AI時代不被淘汰的技能組合：Dan Koe的Future Proof Skill Stack." https://ainext.tw/posts/20260105-dan-koe-future-proof-skill-stack/

Why Stronger AI Makes "Agency" More Valuable

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