[austincheney]

Yes, absolutely, but not for the reasons you might think.

Take any other industry and compare the difference in requirements. Any other industry starts from a license/certification and works outward toward professional experience. Software doesn’t have that. There are many insecure and incompetent people employed writing software and it’s hard to tell them apart.

If you want to write software and be employable you have to temper your expectations. On one hand you need to separate yourself from the crowd by really diving in and making software a passion. Become that master craftsman that loves to build high quality products with least effort by knowing where to find the polish and all the fine details. It is easier to compete for employment when you strive for excellence more than everyone else. If you can find employment easily, because you strive for excellence more than everyone else, you also have options and flexibility most people don’t have.

On the other hand realize most of your peers in the workplace are doing the minimal necessary to achieve employment. The insecurity is high and they aren’t looking to rock the boat. They barely got their current job and realize if they lose this current job it will be quite some time before they find the next job at the same rate unless they abandon software for management. This means there is also some defensiveness and desperation baked into the insecurity that you don’t have with all your flexibility and employment options. These people are not looking for innovation or disruption, they are looking to keep their salary and healthcare.

Just know that difference will be there regardless of which side you find yourself. More than anything else the difference is driven by personality.

For the moment, starting out, just start building things. Write software for yourself. It doesn’t matter if it’s crappy, as you are learning. Practice makes perfect.