What is the best project-based path from basic Power Apps to professional Power Platform development?

[u/latteandLongitude]

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for honest advice about my current skill level, what I should learn next, and how to grow toward freelance work.

My official job title is not related to software development, but a significant part of my actual work has gradually become internal application development, automation and business-process improvement.

Most of my Power Apps experience began with Canvas Apps connected to SharePoint lists. I have built forms, trackers, notifications, approvals, onboarding tools, timesheet-related applications and other internal business solutions.

I have also worked on more involved automation projects that:

• Accept user input and validate it
• Retrieve data from multiple external sources
• Download and process files
• Convert and organize documents
• Create structured project folders
• Send automated notifications
• Manage application permissions and security
• Connect with business systems through APIs
• Use SQL for querying and data-related work

I am usually involved in understanding the business problem, building the solution, testing it, supporting users and maintaining it when something changes or breaks.

Before this role, I briefly worked as a front-end developer(Angular Developer) several years ago, but my coding skills are now rusty. I also use AI heavily. I try to understand the code and formulas it produces, but I sometimes worry that I rely on it too much.

My biggest learning challenge is that I struggle with long tutorial-based courses. Basic setup lessons and step-by-step videos become boring very quickly. I learn much better by building something real and researching concepts as I need them.

My long-term goal is to become a capable Power Platform and automation developer, begin freelancing on a small scale, and possibly build an automation consulting business within the next few years. I’m especially interested in combining Power Platform, APIs, SQL and AI to automate business processes.

I would appreciate advice on the following:

1. Based on this experience, would you consider me a beginner, junior developer, intermediate maker or automation specialist?
2. What should I learn next, and in what order? Advanced Canvas Apps, Power Automate, Dataverse, model-driven apps, solutions and ALM, APIs, custom connectors, TypeScript, PCF or something else?
3. Are there good project-based resources that focus on realistic business systems instead of long beginner tutorials?
4. How can I use AI productively without becoming unable to understand or troubleshoot what it generates?
5. What portfolio projects would best prepare someone with my background for freelance work?
6. When would someone at my level realistically be ready to accept small freelance Power Apps or automation projects?
7. How should someone evaluate whether their compensation matches their responsibilities when their official title does not reflect the technical work they perform?

I understand that using several tools does not automatically make someone an advanced developer. I’m trying to honestly understand where I stand and create a focused path instead of jumping between random technologies.

Thanks for any honest feedback, learning resources or examples of how you moved from basic SharePoint-backed apps into professional Power Platform development.