Failure stories are not necessarily disappointing (in the long run) - 4-5 years ago I have tried to become Go developer. Initially did some learning myself and started applying. While my attempts to score :golang: job failed, some companies not only challenged me with intricate tasks, but also provided with useful tips where to improve and how to learn more.
One of examples - on-site task at Uber to create a minefield command line application with some logic from classic Minesweeper game. Allocated time was far too little to develop something working under interview stress, but later I managed to put together an application at home, at my own pace. I think I'm gonna document it properly and publish as tiny open source project, because I've learned some useful ideas in the process. Needless to say, I wasn't hired.
Now it's nothing major really, but later I managed to contribute a few bits to lightweight blogging platform @writefreely and make tiny improvements to :aws_logo: Lambda Function example.
Currently I am putting together little working API server application with :postgresql: connection pooler and external OAuth provider support to show how basic API tooling works together - will post it as #opensource project later this year 🤓️
Never give up doing what you are interested into! Even if you get "not good enough" somewhere or everywhere, do it as a hobby, improve and enjoy!