I think about it like this. Software Engineering is still a damn hard industry to break into AND be successful in, but that barrier is masked by the democratization of tools and resources.
I've had many friends ask he how they can get into SWE, they see me, a 20 something, making more than their parents make. I used to give the advice "anyone can do it, you just have to practice". I've since stopped giving that exact advice.
My advice now is "you can do it, but it's going to take at least 2-4 years of almost complete dedication". The disconnect for all my friends is I think, is none of them see what I do on a daily basis. Coding, coding, more coding, reading articles about coding, and more coding.
I realized the only reason it was so "easy" for me is that I really liked it, so spending hours in front of a screen learning all this wasn't a drain on me like it would be on other people. Looking back it was by no means easy, and you have to keep working on it. I don't put in the insane hours i used to in my early 20's, but my Github history still has commits every single day except for maybe Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Well, it's not just about excelling. But presumably winning the startup lottery or hitting the fast-track at a handful of companies in specific locations. (Or becoming an exec at a variety of companies but that's presumably not a path that's being contemplated here.) Most competent engineers make respectable salaries relative to the US population as a whole but they're not retiring at 40.
