what prevents me from playing chess is i know i’ll never be as good as people that started when they were 7, so what’s the point? i know it’s not a good attitude
I remember when I was about 9, reading that Mozart started composing at 7, and thinking it was too late. So I didn't compose much until in my mid-30s, and really wished I'd started when I was 9!
Anyway, when you play online, you don't play the best in the world. You play people about as good as you are. And it's super-easy to find them online. I mostly played on FICS, which is very friendly, and I played and chatted with people from (what must be) nearly every country in the world. Most people play for fun, not to be the best in the world.