Experience matters, but it does not all look the same. Through open source, I have worked alongside a wide array of developers, some with zero interest in professional software at all, who eclipse even the most senior engineers in capability. By contrast, in my formative years in the software field, I interacted with corporate software developers who couldn’t write a line.
This deep rift in talent has led me to believe that exploratory code and genuine interest develop the craft. Building software without a map, articulating your own designs that you want to build, and keeping a pulse on the industry at large through excitement alone: these are the traits of developers who excel.