It involves thinking and planning. That's where most hobbyists fail.
....
I wouldn't call it a failure. In fact, most of the time, the hobbyists reward is the fun he had, and maybe skills he learned.

I do not know to which extent (I am sure some) the following applies to a hobbyist, but it most certainly fully apply to a beginner/student:

There is nothing more dangerous than starting off "the informal way". I know people that, even after many years, have not UNlearned "the informal way" and still do things like using numeric values instead of definitions in instructions, which in larger maintained projects is a true disaster.

I know, Jan, that doing things the right way is not half the fun of "throwing it together" but this I have seen is one of the most difficult things to UNlearn. After some time, I assume, a hobbyist becomes an "advanced hobbyist" and THEN "throwing it together" is a certain recipe for failure. The beginner/student will be even harder hit when entering the real world.

for that reason I state as my absolute opinion: "if you write your first 5 lines of code in any way but the proper, you are heading for disaster"

I know many see me as an old curmudgeon that will not tolerate "the way things are done", but all my (re)actions in that respect to e.g. scribbles called code are related to the above

Erik

PS some of Richards "it must ALL be documented before ..." are very important for consulting, but in a regular job, the reality is, you should be happy if the spec you work from is 80% right. Richard is adamant "do what the boss tell you to do" and I have, outside consulting, never experienced a full spec from "when the boss told us to" start.