It's also at the base of TDD: if you don't understand a problem, write exploratory code, then throw it away, write the specification (i.e. tests) for the parts

It's also at the base of TDD: if you don't understand a problem, write exploratory code, then throw it away, write the specification (i.e. tests) for the parts you understand, then write the minimal code that satisfies the tests, iterate until you hit the next bit you don't understand, repeat. And the entire "build one to throw away, then build the real thing" (i.e. prototype first) ideology is also tooting the same horn. Except that one is much harder to explain to non-programmers because they think "if it works, why throw it away?".