The original author is saying success, not proficiency. There's plenty of programmers who didn't end up like John Carmack. Defining success is pretty difficult.

The original author is saying success, not proficiency. There's plenty of programmers who didn't end up like John Carmack. Defining success is pretty difficult. I generally agree with everything you're saying though, and it's hard to say any good programmer won't be nominally successful in their own right. Any skill-based career will enable someone to be employable, which in 2019 is more successful than average.