This reminds me of TDD arguments.

If I'm working within a system I like to code the minimum golden path, add a tests that passes, then add more checks or a new test and go back to the code, etc. Usually the constraints of the system point the way to an obvious skeletal implementation and you can learn as you go along.

On a greenfield project it is especially valuable to have discussions beforehand if people have done something similar before but talking about code at a high level tends to become nebulous rather quickly.