No. Working on a team does that and has nothing to do with agile. Prior to agile ever existing I wouldn't go off on my own doing whatever I wanted for more than

No. Working on a team does that and has nothing to do with agile. Prior to agile ever existing I wouldn't go off on my own doing whatever I wanted for more than a day or so unless I checked in with my team. It's not about asking or granting permission, it's about being a good team member and communicating. "Hey commandlinefan, I know you've been waiting a week for X, but I decided to go do Y. Oh, you needed X to finish something important, and could have gotten someone else to do it if I let you know? Yeah, I don't like to ask for permission."