Well, don’t take it in the wrong way… I do agree that it’s important, and I’ve personally always made sure to learn lots of theory and do academic and other types of research. I agree with you that preparation and knowledge are super important.

What I was trying to say is that you get a really valuable perspective from actually working on a field. You get that plus you see how others work, possibly more senior engineers. Mentorship in the workplace is really useful for example. You also see real code and different practices and ways of working.

I wasn’t trying to be dismissive… more like encouraging. Some people feel that they really aren’t prepared, even when they get to a point where they are. It was more about that than about laziness. I value theory a lot, myself.