I get what you mean but I believe the post describes a different issue and talks about side projects which are very different from paid gigs.

In paid gigs, you have hard or soft deadlines, commitments, etc. But sometimes you just want to code with no pressure, no deadlines, no managers, under total freedom and the money is not the first (and often not the second) priority.

That's why paid gigs often is not the answer.

I disagree here. Maybe if someone has had very little exposure to programming. I've found with an admittedly limited and completely anecdotal survey of developers around me that stress helps. The deadlines and people actually depending on you is a crucible that helps you get better much faster. You have to develop all the soft and hard skills that go with just pounding keys. Like project management and time estimation. Dealing with other people and evaluating problems.

You might get there with total freedom, but stress might get you there faster.

Let me counter your anecdote with my anecdote - I work much worse under pressure. Deadlines and commitments stress me out.

I suppose different people have different needs. I started with programming as a childhood hobby, and one thing I retained from that period of my life is the strong need for autonomy in the kind of projects I do, and in the way I do them. Which is, sadly, quite incompatibile with the way a typical employer wants you to work.

I get what you mean - side projects are notorious for never getting delivered. However, there is tons of things that can be learned from that as well. Balancing new and familiar technical choices, creating good tasks and assigning them to milestones, etc.

Who wants to hire someone whose experience is entirely exercises and tutorials?