I was reflecting on what makes the difference between a professional software developer like me and the many wannabees lured by the promise of "lots of money for sitting on your ass all day" (I actually got my job described like this by someone, loved it 
It's not intelligence, although that's a prerequisite. As they say in mathematics, that's a necessary but not sufficient condition.
Recently saw in a Hacker News thread a description of another two conditions: curiosity and discipline. I had the first ever since I can remember, trying to make gunpowder out of piss or in the lack of a physical computer (bat$hit expensive at the time), buying a book and trying learn how computers work from said book (worked fine for mathematics, physics, chemistry so why wouldn't it work for informatics?).
On the latter, after failing admission at the national Technical Military Academy (albeit getting almost an 100% on the SAT exam), I pulled my shit in order, devised a ruthlessly disciplined training program and stuck to it weather sun, rain, drinking party or nothing in sight. And got admitted the first at the non-military Technical Academy in a region of 5-million or so population.
Shall I add that I'm a peasant? I did this for a living for a while:
You know what makes the difference from stupid peasant to software developer to billionaire in addition to smarts, curiosity and discipline?
I'll tell you when I get there, for now it's my competitive advantage
It's not intelligence, although that's a prerequisite. As they say in mathematics, that's a necessary but not sufficient condition.
Recently saw in a Hacker News thread a description of another two conditions: curiosity and discipline. I had the first ever since I can remember, trying to make gunpowder out of piss or in the lack of a physical computer (bat$hit expensive at the time), buying a book and trying learn how computers work from said book (worked fine for mathematics, physics, chemistry so why wouldn't it work for informatics?).
On the latter, after failing admission at the national Technical Military Academy (albeit getting almost an 100% on the SAT exam), I pulled my shit in order, devised a ruthlessly disciplined training program and stuck to it weather sun, rain, drinking party or nothing in sight. And got admitted the first at the non-military Technical Academy in a region of 5-million or so population.
Shall I add that I'm a peasant? I did this for a living for a while:
You know what makes the difference from stupid peasant to software developer to billionaire in addition to smarts, curiosity and discipline?
I'll tell you when I get there, for now it's my competitive advantage