Not a list of technical tips — there's already a post for that. This is more personal. The things I wish someone had told me before I started, and the things I had to figure out myself that would have been useful to know earlier.
The feeling of not knowing what you're doing doesn't go away
Early on I assumed that at some point I'd reach a level where things felt solid and I'd stop feeling uncertain. That's not how it works. The uncertainty shifts — you stop being uncertain about the things you've learned and start being uncertain about the new things you're working on. The feeling doesn't disappear, it just moves. That's fine. It means you're still learning.
What you build matters more than what you know
Time spent building real things compounds faster than time spent studying. The knowledge you get from hitting actual problems on actual projects is stickier and more transferable than knowledge you got in the abstract. Build more, study less, build more again.
Ask for help earlier
I spent a lot of time stuck on things I could have resolved much faster by just asking someone. There's a version of self-sufficiency that tips over into stubbornness, and I was often in that territory. The developer community is generally more helpful than you'd expect. Ask earlier.
Your background doesn't disqualify you
No degree, no bootcamp, didn't go through traditional routes — none of that matters as much as what you can actually do. The work is the credential. the panel I built exists and runs and serves real customers because I built it, not because I have a certificate saying I know how. That's the actual evidence.
Take the breaks
The times I pushed through exhaustion rarely produced good code and often produced bugs I had to fix later. Rest is part of the process. Hyperfocus sessions are great when they happen naturally but forcing them when you're depleted is counterproductive. The code will still be there after the break. Take the break.
Your weird interests are assets
The very specific obsession with self-hosting, infrastructure, Rust backends, game server hosting — these aren't distractions from becoming a developer. They are the developer. Niche knowledge is more valuable than it looks from the outside. Go deep on the things you actually care about.