✓ Accepted Answer
Honest take, because I wish someone had told me this earlier.
Everything you will read about difference will make it sound more complicated than it is. Here is what 8 years of working with machine has actually taught me.
The most common trap is spending too long on research instead of doing.
What actually moved the needle for me: I stopped trying to understand everything before starting, and just committed to one focused hour a day for a month. After that, things started moving much faster.
The one thing I would prioritise: do not compare your beginning to someone else's middle.
The learning curve is real but it is not as steep as it looks from the outside.
by khadyfall